Midtown, downtown

Last week I worked at our midtown office, starting out there for a client event, and then staying because it was, simply, easier to do so. I have worked in downtown Manhattan for over three years now, after nearly 15 years near Rockefeller Center. I realize that I miss it terribly - yes, even the crowds of tourists trying to find the Christmas tree, even the weird traffic barriers along Sixth Avenue, even the blue-hairs tumbling out of Broadway matinees. It feels like Christmas there, not here, where I trudge the same convoluted path past (up and over) ground zero, where tourists line up in front of a big construction pit because it means something to them. Maybe it's sadder, here, this year, because the holidays (and bonuses) aren't the same for most on Wall Street. But I don't remember it being much more festive last year.