The Brown Waste

Where is the grass? They keep taking the green away and leaving in its place...

The Brown Waste!

Endless dirt and a sack of fertilizer soon to be spread

It was a beautiful day for a walk, but it was ruined as soon as I entered PCV.  I couldn't wait to exit through the gate back into the street.  Imagine -- the heavy First Avenue traffic and concrete sidewalks actually providing welcome relief from a park!

There is nothing more delightful the fresh smell of grass, leaves, flowers and unadulterated soil, especially in autumn. Instead I was forced to breathe in the abominable smell of fertilizer, which totally overpowered the aforementioned smells one longed for on a clear autumn day.

 

There might have been some justification if it was to be short-lived and one could look forward to a reward -- but it isn't and one can't. It's a constant process that goes on from late spring until late fall or early winter -- the denuding of the land -- the tearing up of the grass, the resultant a brown dirt that is then filled in with the horrid-smelling fertilizer, and the strangely artificial-looking blue seed which we've spoken about before here.

 

 

 

In fact I was talking to one resident who said reassuringly: Oh but it's only for a short time, to make things grow! But that's not true, I told her, because it goes on constantly. As for make things grow, why are they trying to do this at the end of September when we are supposed to be moving into that wonderful season of watching things die? But this endless cycle of "renewal" goes on throughout the spring summer and fall, until winter finally closes the game down.

Watching and smelling the beautiful leaves and berries and acorns that fall from the trees this time of year has always been one of my favorite experiences. I remember choosing fall as my favorite season in grade school while most of my classmates chose spring or summer, just because I loved the sights and smells. But now, a prisoner of the City, my best opportunity for the fall experience was being sabotaged by the landscapers, who need to be doing something I guess.

 

Am I the only one that is bothered by this faux fall renewal?   Am I the only super smeller? I don't see others walking around looking upset or angry. Maybe PCV residents have been fitted with special noseplugs to mask the smell so it doesn't bother them. Instead of autumnal splendors we get to see a few straggly plants that are going to die soon anyway. Was it worth the sacrifice?

The squirrels don't seem to mind the smell, and in fact seem to enjoy digging away in the endless dirt. I guess that's one small consolation.

A resident pointed out that when she walked out of her building today the first thing she saw was the empty brown space where they had ripped out all the hedges. There used to be a beautiful stand of hedges there that took many years to grow. GONE!
 

Anyone else bothered by this blasted wasteland? Comments are welcome.