Published: August 27, 2009

To the Editor:

I don’t like change. When I got to Fordham as a freshman, I was perfectly content with my one-way street, the big round mirror and the sign that said “LOOK” at the corner of the massive construction site. I lived in 2E—which is actually an M-style suite—and stared directly into the never-ending construction of the project that didn’t actually exist—with no visible progress for the last two years—every morning of my freshman year. It wasn’t beautiful, but it was ours.

Now, it’s gone. The city has finally finished whatever it was doing there in the first place after more than a decade and a half of work. Now the west end of our street actually looks like a real street. And I’m not okay with that.

Just think—a livable, pedestrian-friendly sidewalk means more people walking down the north side of 60th Street. I don’t like strangers; I like seeing only Fordham students walking to and fro, through the smoky cigarette haze. Plus, now I actually have to walk down to that corner just to cross the street to get to Duane Reade. That extra stretch of sidewalk really makes me reconsider my midnight donut runs.

Two-way car traffic is really a problem, too. I’ve been weaned off of looking both ways when I cross the street to get to Starbucks, because hell, it’s a one-way street. Well, not anymore, apparently. The one-way mentality once got me clipped by a Ram Van driver. Which brings up the whole changing of the Ram Van routes in response to the change in traffic patterns. I timed my commute time to the minute—the extra 45 seconds it takes to go around the block just won’t work for me. The same goes for when my mom loads up the minivan to take me back to school—she can only parallel park on the left side of the street, and we don’t appreciate the right-side discrimination.

I was happy with my quiet street, Fordham and the City of New York. I knew how to dodge speeding cabs on the corner of Amsterdam, but I’m not sure I’ll ever get the hang of this new “looking both ways” thing. I say down with change!

Sincerely, Jilted Jaywalker

Dear Jilted Jaywalker:

Didn’t the “looking both ways” and “playing well with others” lessons come right after learning to tie your own shoes in Kindergarten? Anyway, be glad about the construction finally being cleared away—we have a nice view for the next seven months. That is, until the groundbreaking for the next never-ending construction project, also known as the Master Plan.

Love, The Editor

*Not a real letter to the editor