I live down the street, and I have NEVER seen this shop open. Wait, that's not true: one time I passed by, and saw workmen with a tall ladder attending to water damage in the ceiling of the old shop.
Ok, that's not true either. ANOTHER time it was open when I had taken the day off from work, so I could actually pass by during the 6.5 hours when it's open on weekdays, *exactly* during other people's work hours. So I stopped in. I just had to see what lay beyond the sad, yellowing, unchanging display in the window: some vertical blinds, multi-ply glass, and random frame corners.
The shop looks much like what's in the weird window. The owner was kind of glum and seemed not very interested in me. I really wonder what keeps shops like this open in NYC, where I'm sure the overhead is outrageous. I simply wouldn't trust this shop because it looks so ramshackle. Very odd. If this were a movie, this shop would be a front for some criminal activity or magical hijinx or other intrigue; but since this is real life, it's just a tired old shop.
I don't mean to sound so critical - it just baffles me when shops stay open despite not having convenient hours, attractive displays, or anything else you'd think a shop would have to do to attract any customers.
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