Why Philly Matters: Fits Like a Glove
He thought about this a minute. Then he said, “I don’t get down there much.”
“It’s right off Oxford Avenue,” I insisted. “It’s right around the corner from the Wawa.”
“We live off Verree,” he replied.
At last I understood. The Altearis lived on a stretch of Chandler Street that was at least four blocks away from the cute little cafe. That’s why Peter had never heard of it. The cafe was over on the other side of the train tracks. It was all the way over on the other side of Oxford Avenue. To any Philadelphian worth his salt, that was terra incognita.
I love this city.
Joe Queenan is a regular contributor to the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and Barron’s. His memoir about growing up in the East Falls housing project, Closing Time, will be published by Viking in April.
