Open up.

"The city never sleeps, even if its eyes are closed."

Cinematic Moment: "CM Illustrated Week" Postcard #5

I'll start this with the grammatical observation that there is no apostrophe in "its."  I apologize for my mistake, but I only had a few minutes and wasn't thinking clearly.  That said, this sketch was done on a weekend evening, sitting at the 125th St train stop which is 30 or so feet up above the city.  The view is pretty impressive if you take a moment to observe.  125th St. simply vibrates on a Friday night.  It's the best way to describe it.  People shopping on the streets, catching up with old friends, music blasting, a constant traffic jam.  It's some of the best people watching and what I consider the place to find the most genuine human interaction in NYC.  

While I watched the world buzz below, I got to thinking that to live in a big city certainly takes a thick skin.  In the suburbs or for instance, the beach town I grew up in, it's easy to never have to encounter misfortune or pain in others.  You simply don't have to see it if you don't want to.  It makes helping or exposing yourself to the grit of life a conscious choice instead of something you learn to live with.  A place like New York City, though, requires living a full circus of emotion every time you walk out of the house.  Where there is beauty, there is equal tragedy.  Yet, people accept it and continue with their days and nights.  I guess sometimes closing your eyes is all you can do.