Empty

After my three-day sojourn in downtown Jacksonville, it was back to my usual beat today, the streets of Riverside.

It still irks me that downtown Jacksonville is dying on its feet and no one seems willing to address the problem. The downtown area has no shops, restaurants and cafes remain shut at the weekends and the number of vacant premises at the heart of the city is depressing. It is fast becoming a ghost town and tumbleweed blowing along the streets would not be out of place.

All of my life has been spent with access to bustling major cities, with the functions and facilities they afford. Jacksonville is simply unacceptable but I have little choice in the matter. Maybe it is that sense of powerlessness that makes me so angry at the state of the downtown area, along with the fact that no one seems to care or they just pay lip-service to the the city's plight rather than coming up with a workable plan for recovery.

Today's picture would seem to suggest that all the partying and fun goes on in the suburbs, with a six-pack of Michelob beer being consumed at this bus-stop bench. I dare say a few beers could well make the waiting for a bus less tedious.

Needless to say, this photograph sparked the usual colour v B&W debate with my wife. I guess the colour gives a mundane shot a little bit more vitality.