I walked south from Chelsea last night and into the dark zone. I thought, at some point, I’d see revelers, people in costume, something Halloween-y. I’m sure that all was going on somewhere, but not where I was.

Which is suprising, because I was walking through the heart of Manhattan — down Broadway, to Union Square (which is occupied by local utility and police right now), and southeast into the East Village. And it was truly empty, dark, and quiet.

I walked past Webster Hall to see if they were gearing up to hold their Halloween party. Not a soul there or even around there, save a few people talking by candlelight across the street.

A friend of mine had been planning on visiting me this week, to come check out how NYC celebrates Halloween. He wisely canceled, but if he were out here this week, he definitely would not be witnessing a typical Halloween here.