Jan 19
The Late New Year’s Frost
The ballroom was supposed to be loud. It wasn’t finished—plastic sheeting hung in long translucent curtains, scaffolding traced unfinished arches, and the floor was a patchwork of old marble and new plywood. Workers moved through it with the quiet efficiency of people who had been told, repeatedly, not to leave marks. Someone had gone live on their phone mostly as a joke. Renovations always drew…