Let Me Tell You About the Shoes on the Line

One block south of the laundromat, on the corner of Jackson Street and Kingsland Avenue, are two bodegas (aka convenience stores, delis, Quik-E Marts, etc.), both of which are kind of bad and scary, and which I usually don't patronize if I can help it. But between and above the two delis is a power or telephone line that runs between two telephone poles, and over which (at least until very recently) hung many—I'm talking like 40, minimum—pairs of sneakers and shoes. The line was heavy with them, and it was kind of a sight to see, especially in the right light. I kept meaning to take a picture of all the shoes for my friend Paulo, who's a fan of shoes-over-power-or-telephone-lines, but I kept putting it off and now they're gone—but coming back: today there were two pair.

But what do shoes-over-power-or-telephone-lines mean? There are many schools of thought. Here are a few. If these offend anyone, I apologize; but I didn't write it—I only link to it.