It’s been a rough week on the street, mainly for walking.

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

They lay there waiting for you, these murky masses of muddy mirth, lurking and winking under cover of blinking city lights and hundreds of reflections, still as ice, lying in wait, camouflaged as street. One must be vigilant not to fall for it, or into it. Newly arrived New Yorkers suffer a winter or two before getting the hang of jumping into the street without jumping into the path of a car or bike or a senior with a cane. We pine for the snowstorm and revel in the snow day – but once we have it, we don’t know what to do with it.

Remember that story a few years ago about the opera patron arriving at the Met who mistook slush for sidewalk and plunged her evening heels deep into a puddle of water, ice, snow, and trash? She froze, literally, and figuratively before the cameras. For New York ladies with pristine pedicures and strappy stilettos stepping into a puddle of street sherbert is most definitely not a Marilyn Minter moment.

But puddle jumping is not only a necessity for the sleekly shod.  New York is a pedestrian city and we are an army of millions – with all sartorial styles, statements, and puddle-hopping abilities.  Navigating the sidewalks after a heavy snowstorm requires dexterity, flexibility, caution and a healthy sense of good humor. You WILL do gymnastics. It WILL be dramatic. You WILL not always be glamorous or handsomely dashing. Just try to stay up!

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Manhattan, NYC. January 27, 2015. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

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