To the little rat scaring everyone on the uptown A train platform at 34th St. tonight, I felt horribly sad for you.
You pranced around the platform sniffing for food, crumbs, anything for a solid 10 minutes, must feel even longer through your eyes. Your hunched back and strange enlarged nub before our tail gave me the impression that you were very sick. The fact that you weren’t on the tracks looking for food, and weren’t scurrying around straphangers led me to believe you were desperately hungry but on your last leg.
Then you found gum, and went at it like a bag habit.
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Another 10 minutes went by and you had acquired quite the crowd, and i can promise you most people were on the same page as me, as NYCers we know rats don’t hang out and play with us, something was definitely wrong with you.
You were either full, or scraped the gum down to nothing, because you pranced over to the staircase railing and laid down.
I had to run for the A train that was running on the local track (no thanks to MTA) and didn’t get to say goodbye but if you pass away later today in that spot or somewhere else… I just want you to know, that although only for 25 minutes, I cared. And had I not had to run for that A train, I was ready to give you the Special K bar in my bag.
Slippers & Vino 