Lunchtime Panorama/AutoZone

After yesterday's blue sky and promise of spring, we regressed to gray clouds and temperatures barely up to 45F/8C.

After shopping for furniture for our New York apartment (stay tuned), we decompressed by eating out, sitting at a window counter, overlooking our usual supermarket (Stop & Shop) and AutoZone, a car parts store whose name could serve as a title for this and many urban views. The view is clearest seen large--it's near the center of Northampton.

A PVTA bus is in the far background; the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority is "the largest regional transit authority in Massachusetts with 174 buses, 144 vans and 24 participating member communities," to quote the web site. It serves a particularly important role in linking the five major colleges and universities in the area. Bus fares are $1.25--very reasonable for this day and age.