The Q at Parkside

(for those for whom the Parkside Q is their hometrain)

News and Nonsense from the Brooklyn neighborhood of Lefferts and environs, or more specifically a neighborhood once known as Melrose Park. Sometimes called Lefferts Gardens. Or Prospect-Lefferts Gardens. Or PLG. Or North Flatbush. Or Caledonia (west of Ocean). Or West Pigtown. Across From Park Slope. Under Crown Heights. Near Drummer's Grove. The Side of the Park With the McDonalds. Jackie Robinson Town. Home of Lefferts Manor. West Wingate. Near Kings County Hospital. Or if you're coming from the airport in taxi, maybe just Flatbush is best.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Do you hang to the left, or to the right?

Each day I, Clarkson FlatBed, must make a decision of great import. Most of us Parksidians, that is, residents of "Parkside," must decide each morning, after entering our beloved decrepit Q station and heading towards the Manhattan bound side, whether to go down the stairs to the left, or to the right. After a few hundred trips at about the same time every day, I actually recognize a fair number of you FRONT-OF-TRAINERS, and perhaps you, I. Rarely do I head right (why would I?), but the other day I did just that, to see what I could see, not unlike the proverbial Bear/Mountain scenario.

So many new faces! What a motley crew we are! Every color of the double-rainbow (Mrs. Q saw a pair rising over Clarkson today!), every dialect, every conceivable hair style, fashion and apparent destination. From burka to doo-rag to briefcase to hipster scruff - we're the real deal New Yorkers that makes living here such a trip. Today, I loved every last one of you. (Except you, Mr. Rico Suave, with your thick veneer of cheap cologne. I'll let it slide this time.)

Then I walked frontwards, and on that sliver of platform between the stairwell and tracks, I noticed this door and sign:



Clearly, this is N. Thompson's dominion, and he is it's sovereign. Yet there's something a tad sad about it. All he gets is this Enclosure? Can you even be a manager, if all you manage is an enclosure? Or does he manage a large number of enclosures? If I were the manager, I'd manage to do something about that besmirching graffiti. And what does it say? Best I can make out it says POWER 2 NGR GANG. The word or acronym NGR has an enormous number of potential meanings, though I think the most likely culprit is the affectionate word that the young men on my block often use to refer to one another. (While I won't make the mistake of writing the word here, suffice to say that many Brits and Yanks have used a number of synonyms through the years - LAD, CHUM, MATE, BUDDY, DUDE, PAL, with similar sentiment. Sort of.

Anyhoo, here's to you N. Thompson, and all you do to keep our enclosures safe, clear of debris, and securely locked at all times.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

your grafitti reading needs improvement

Clarkson FlatBed a/k/a Tim said...

Not so sure about that Anon. I looked long and hard to decipher that "R" You got a better suggestion?