"Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?"
"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the Cat.
"I don’t much care where--" said Alice.
"Then it doesn’t matter which way you go," said the Cat.
"--so long as I get SOMEWHERE," Alice added as an explanation.
"Oh, you’re sure to do that," said the Cat, "if you only walk long enough."

Desmond closed his copy of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and took a moment to reflect not on the passage, but on the environment in which he was reading. It was 2 o'clock PM on a Friday on Hollywood Boulevard in downtown Los Angeles. The most interesting thing he noted was that instead of the hustle and bustle of the city, there were only barren sidewalks. Of course, this had been the situation for weeks while the city was under renovations and closed to the general public.

Las Vegas and Los Angeles were the first to shut down. The reigning rulers of the remaining cities saw fit to reopen Las Vegas to anyone with the guts to claim it. However, Detroit soon fell afterward, and recently the entire East Coast has shut down as well.

With more closed cities than “officially recognized” ones, he said to no one in particular, it is interesting to wonder about what the remaining triumverate of godfathers will decide to do with all the newly extra room. It will be nice to visit Central Park and be able to read in peace though.