In this age of coronavirus, elbow taps and social distancing, even the timeless symbols of childhood are changing.
A lemonade stand on Columbus Avenue in the West 70s on Tuesday had all the usual fixings — drinks, snacks, and homemade signs. But in other ways, it was quite different.
First of all, there were no kids there. It was an “honor system” stand where people were asked to pay money into a bowl. “Please don’t steal, we are kids,” one sign noted. “Please don’t steal a muffin,” another sign implored. Dang, these kids really don’t trust adults (smart).
And there were quite a few sanitary instruments, including gloves and hand-sanitizer. Either these kids have taken a full course in restaurant management, or they’re aware of the angst surrounding New Yorkers right now.
In any case, $2 for lemonade seems a little steep but this is the Upper West Side and there ain’t no 50-cent Cuppa Joe anymore folks.
Good luck kids. If you keep this up, we’ll be watching you on Shark Tank in a few years.
Photo by Carol Tannenhauser.
I saw this stand this morning on my way to work (9am) – The setup was kind of weird. Nothing charming about the blue tape and sharpie signs. The kid(s) could have made it a little friendlier with some fun signage instead of it looking like a third world country blood drive.
Was surprised to see it still there when I got home from work around 7pm….Even though I saw a young boy setting it up in the AM I Assume this was an adult prank or some sort of performance art… either way given the current climate I didn’t find it cute or funny.
That said I wonder what they paid for renting the space… I hear the UWS is expensive.
Why do you have to be so harsh, they tried there hardest and only had no workers because of the fear of getting in contact with strangers.
fwiw I did not find A.P.’s comment mean or offensive. The stand w/o staffing is minimal effort. But hey I’m not telling anyone else how to spend their money if they feel like throwing $10 at the kids.
Dear Arnold,
Your reply was mean and hurtful to the kids who are trying to do the best they can in a stressful time. Shame on you.
Haha what kids are reading WSR?
Hope his comments didn’t hurt their feelings too much!
These children DO read the WSR! They are upper west siders!
How cruel to criticize creativity, initiative, and their experiment to assess honesty.
Kudos to the children who cooked this (and the muffins) up!
I am SURE the kids responsible have read these posts with some excitement after the attention. Arnold Probably doesnt have children and, well, no clue either. Shame shame. Be safe all.
I agree, no need to be mean, Arnold. I loved this article! Maybe, if you think about it some more, in light of the heaviness around us, you will be able to recognize a child’s innocence and interest in such an experiment. They obviously showed CARE. I applaud them and, for the record, had I passed by, I’d give them a $10 spot, just for their efforts! BRAVO!
Shame on you Arnold Porter. These are kids trying to be kids in a hard time. Cut them some slack.