times square, 1975. leather-
jackets and spandex criss-cross under blink-
ing bulbs. a **** in blue fur spits at a
taxi that didn't stop. a man in a
black suit and red tie brings his briefcase in-
to the $1 peep show. a hustler
orders 3 a.m. bacon and eggs at
his favorite diner. a tourist takes
a picture of a stiletto-heeled
stranger and she smashes his camera
into the curb. profanities harmon-
ize with car horns. a wanna-be poet
scribbles on a coffee-stained notepad as
he walks hurriedly by. snow begins to
fall. an old man with a cane vanishes
into an alley, behind a flutter-
ing curtain of white. a shivering boy
from across the river tries to choose from
a parade of smiling red lips the one
that will make him a man. an elegant
woman in a green coat takes a drag off
a virginia slim, casually ex-
haling into the ivory-spotted
night air. a street magician loses his
rabbit and watches helplessly as it
hops in front of traffic, the snow reflect-
ing off headlights and sticking to its fur
like glitter.  it stops between cars, then boun-
ces again, reaching the other side, a
quiet winter miracle on the deuce.