A Universe Lies on the Sidewalks of New York- by Steven Doloff
In this essay, Steven Doloff talks about the items he finds on the various sidewalks of New York and the people who leave these items. He starts by giving examples of the dozens of gun bullets and bullet shells he picked up from the sidewalks in his neighborhood. He says how in a decade, he has collected “mashed 0.45 caliber slugs, little 0.25 caliber shells, and an inch- long snub-nosed other things that could smack a refrigerator” and with every object he picks up, he wonders how such objects get onto the sidewalks and whether they are from a policeman’s gun or from some evil criminal. He says that whenever he looks down while walking on the sidewalks, he finds it full of newspaper sheets. Few years ago, he noticed cocaine powder on his neighbor’s sidewalk almost everyday. He also finds a crumpled hundred dollar bill and numerous pennies which to most people, seem worthless. But to him the shiny pennies had value because he notices and respects the little things in life.
The thing the writer mainly talks and focusses on in this essay, are the gum spots which are found everywhere- at subway platforms, sidewalks, phone booths, bus stops, litter baskets and building entrances. He tells us how these spots range from small to big (“nickels to drink coasters”) and how these do not fade away and scrape off. He compares the stars of Manhattan to these gum spots saying that stars may not be visible in Manhattan but one can see a whole universe of gum spots on the sidewalks. He cites the example of a maintenance worker who has to spend a lot of time cleaning up hundreds of these gum spots. He describes how the gum spots on the sidewalks represent the people of New York. He feels that the new gum spots represent the young, innocent children who will adapt to the lifestyles of the people around them and eventually grow up to be like them. He compares the chewing gum spots to freckles on the concrete floor and says that they will remain always remain there.