the only time the intersection a T intersection was busy was during the school year and then particularly only afternoons when school buses loitered and car traffic burgeoned     

the property at the top of the T West Mall was the junior high school its track and exercise field were behind a sevenfoot chainlinked fence 

west of Ysabel the street that ran into the T and a stop sign was the playground and exercise field for the Fine Arts Academy it too was behind a tall chainlinked fence Security yaknow how comforting to grow up confined held behind fences schooled in a compound similar to jail  east of Ysabel was the towns old Printery Building it had been renovated what was the printing floor now housed an acousticallyhoned auditorium for performing arts 

behind the Printery ran a creek

at street corners around the school complexes adult crossing guards were posted  school childrenrather young teenagers evidently were either not adept at crossing streets by themselves he had been a patrol boypatrol boys then were responsible for helping elementary school children across busy streets or these children had to have rides home

however like their school incarceration they may have also been groomed not to walk anywhere

to avoid the hot mess of the schools letting out one could take a left onto West Mall off Ysabel  theyd cross over a concrete bridge spanning the creek the bridge was erected in 1910  metal commemorative plaques at either end of the bridge vouched for the fact  he often went out of his way while walking to cross it very pastoral branches of trees older than the community arched over the creek throwing shade on its raw cutaways grassy banks and tangled thickets

school was out

Christmas vacation

kids wouldnt return until January 7

                                      maybe sooner if it hadnt been for the fenceworks denying them access to the schoolgrounds the seven basketball courts the wide open playing fields otherwise they might have returned to play it seemed cruel to him they were denied to enjoy playing out of doors

                                                    but maybe they dont need the out of doors why be outside if computers smartphones handheld devises simulate play play insideno skinned knees or bangs or bruisesplay programmed imaginations rather than exerting or exercising their own 

just another confinement another compound  another jail 

evidently school children are groomed not to play   

interfacing is safer

today there may have been something to that there were no latent echoes of teeming children falling from the spotty boughs of trees swaying in a cool breeze on Ysabel  

he was walking to the library 

hed cross the West Mall bridge maybe it took him ten minutes longer  but ten minutes is an inexpensive pleasure

at the corner where hed cross leftodd  usually he jaywalked he saw a blackskinned banana peel sprawled on the sidewalk 

that was odd foodfruit the children rarely threw onto the ground  maybe empty sandwichbags usually candy and gum wrappers they were too lazy to pocket until they got home  more frequently stapled assignment pages though rarely food  which is why it probably drew his attention

he looked around for a trash can 

there were trash cans inside the fenced schoolgrounds  inaccessible 

Well he thought at least the peel was organic itd rot 

he went to kick it off the sidewalk into the grass by the fence but stopped the blackskinned banana peel  it was a mauled dead rat mired with dirt gravel

he stooped tenderly he picked it up gently he laid it in the long grass around the base of a metal fence post

the grass at the base of the fence wasnt edged

he figured itd be peaceful considering the violence of its death

                                                                 he knew no children would be around to disturb it

text,  1339,  Sunday,  23  12. 18

1140,  Friday,  28  12. 18

The Smashing Pumpkins Rat in a Cage https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8BjKQkym8w