Found Money

Found money and my bicycle ~ tools for a good day. Thirsty, it was easy to raise funds. Walking my bike up 83rd Street towards York Avenue, I'd scavenge garbage cans for empty soda bottles. If I failed to raise the required monies, I'd go to the front of the tavern where the older guys pitched pennies. If there weren't any on the sidewalk near the wall, there was always a few just off the curb where they rolled back. After buying a Pepsi-Cola or a Mission Cream, I'd head for Carl Schurz Park but never much further. I'd get killed for riding in the street (spies were all over the neighborhood) and how else to get to Central Park or the Hudson River? Then if I got there, there were always the older kids to deal with. You could do this in a pack but not alone, it was dumb to push your luck. I had three prized possessions, bike, baseball glove and 45 singles, in that order.

Yesterday, I had a chore downtown that took me through City Hall Park. On a bench, some Richie Rich left 10 pennies just sitting there. Only a few pennies short of a soda, when I was 8. I took a picture of the pennies and left them there for another thirsty kid.

What a gift for kids: the new bike paths around Manhattan Island like Hudson River Park.