Ever since copper prices soared, American cities have found more manholes cover here and there missing on the road (people stole it to sell the copper). This could be hazardous as cars that drove by could get stuck in hole if the hole is large enough.
On my way to the metro station to work everyday, I walk by a tiny manhole (or ant-hole)– no bigger than the size of my palm. It was next to CVS. One morning, during the busy morning commute hour, I saw this black man who was wearing a white T-shirt, digging at this tiny pothole with a scroll bar.
The police was just patrolling less than 30 feet from this man.
And bypassers were walking by in crowds.
Since I read the news articles about missing manhole cover, I paid a little attention to this man. Yet I thought, with all the people and police near by, he just couldn’t be stealing the cover in broad daylight.
That happened a month and a half ago.
Since then, every morning when I walk to the metro station, I would pass by this tiny manhole, with the missing cover. The man did a poor job — the manhole cover was basically carved away in the middle. It was like the leftover of a piece of bread where the child only dug away the middle part and left the crest uneaten.
It is the everyday reminder of a bad equilibrium from a coordination game.
Damn it, I could have denounced him and got all the glory!
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if there is a metal cover on it, it is not a pothole…I think potholes refer to broken roads. The big holes should be called manholes, don’t know if there is special name for the small ones.
Comment by p September 16, 2008 @ 9:26 pmWhen are you going to finish your “fairy tale” ?