Those Important Neighborhood Support Services

ambulance

UPS truck

Segway cop

Sometimes I don't see all the support services that we have in this city neighborhood and it's easy to forget how useful they are. For instance, there's those cable guys from Verizon or Comcast hanging about on the lines in the alleys. And, every once in a while someone calls an ambulance and it arrives!  It's worth noting that ambulance service is now dispatched much more efficiently than when I first moved to Washington DC when this service was also being used by some for non-emergency visits to local hospitals and consequently, service was more erratic!  Then there's those marvelous UPS (and Fedex) trucks which leave us so much of value on our front porches (ask them to hide stuff under the porch so it doesn't get pinched in the recent wave of thievery!).  And, up until recently, it seemed like we had police patrols using Segways rolling around and preventing drug dealing and other miscreantry. Of course there are other support services, such as police, the US postal service (USPS) and store delivery services like Sears and Peapod (both of which I've used and find very helpful), services that one sees occasionally making a foray into our streets.  And of course now is the season for UHaul and other similar vans as it again is moving time for the more transient population living here. I suppose I could mention the dry cleaners, bars, hospitals and a public library all within walking distance, but I haven't got around to photo'ing all of them yet and didn't want to have too many thumbnail pics jammed into this one blog. I could also mention the mostly 24/7/365 clean running water, gas and electricity but that's really basic infrastructure and might be the subject of another blog about things we take for granted. But these services here really do make our life in the city so much easier, don't you think? And, Thank God!

Oops, Easy to Miss the Alleys

First St NW alley

Adams St NW alley

W Street NW Alley

You can walk right by the entrances to the alleys, not even seeing them at all, but they are there if you look for them.  Sometimes narrow and rather dark, they are one of the reasons why you see little trash on the street, because most of it is in bins in the back alleys. They are also the reason why you don't see the trash truck pick up unless you get up early enough in the morning and exit out your back gate.  I only hear the noise of the trash trucks as these hardworking city employees (?) crash about upturning our bins and dislodging our rubbish into these giant trucks that they somehow manage to squeeze into the twists and turns of our neighborhood alleys. While walking by, the alley may beckon your longer glance to see glimpses of what your neighbors might be up to -- ladders and construction equipment signaling remodeling or tossed out mattresses and bureaus signaling new furniture, or cars parked closely to the garage wall when overnight guests have failed to get the visitor permit in time and don't want to risk the Parking Ticket Nazis on the street front.  The alleys often belong only to the cats and the stray dogs that got away during the day.  Occasionally, in the summer, you may see young people shooting baskets or playing ball if someone has been so kind as to put up a hoop. Of course, about a decade ago our alleys were the scenes of drug dealing, some prostitution, more than a handful of murders and some public drunkenness, but it seems like most of that has passed.  However, today if you do see someone walking through the alley from your house rear view windows you do find yourself  remarking about them and wonder what they might be up to in a different way than the people you notice walking by on the sidewalk in front of your house. There's something more unusual and more private about the public alley ways, as if the space has been reserved only for certain purposes like egress to a garage or garden or some other special purpose.  This layout and design adds a great deal to our neighborhood, in my opinion, and it's something we take for granted, so used are we to the benefits the alleys bring.