We walked home from the movie theater on the slate sidewalk between Third and Second Avenues near Tenth street, holding hands. Two figures were lit orange on the path before us, a dog on a leash leading the man. The woman leaned against a tree, smoking. They were talking in hushed tones as the dog squatted and pooped directly in the middle of the sidewalk. “That’s right,” said the man to the dog, some kind of husky, “Take a good shit.” The woman cackled in response. As we stepped off the curb to avoid the poop, she threw her lit cigarette across our path and it landed with a fizz in a puddle.