A Baltimore moment:

I’ve covered a few stories in Baltimore post-Freddie Gray, and police-community relations have, sadly, continued to suffer big setbacks. The city has seen a recent spike in violence, and the police department is reeling after a major corruption case and the resignation of its police chief over allegations of tax evasion. 

A New York moment:

Last year I started subscribing to a local paper that covers a cluster of small towns north of New York City, like Beacon. The town meetings and arguments about construction of a cell tower are not relevant to me, but it’s a good newspaper, and I miss good, local news coverage. Every issue has a Q&A with a local resident, like a longtime pub owner or a librarian.

Police say four people are dead, including the gunman, in a downtown Cincinnati bank shooting. The shooter opened fire early Thursday morning at the loading dock of the Fifth Third Bank building, which houses popular ice cream, sandwich, and pastry shops, Police Chief Eliot Isaac said. The gunman then entered the bank’s lobby where he exchanged gunfire with police. It’s unclear if the gunman shot himself or was shot by officers. Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley said it “could have been much, much worse” if not for the immediate police response to end the threat.

A New York moment: 

You see a lot of weird stuff on the sidewalks of Manhattan, from discarded pants to one-legged pigeons. One time I came across a steaming pile of potatoes, scattered on the sidewalk, a scenario that still leaves me baffled.

A New York moment: 

The other night I had a late dinner with friends, and the subway was down due to construction (as it often is these days), so I took a Lyft ride back to my apartment. As I talked with the driver, a father and husband whose family lives in a one-bedroom apartment in New Jersey, he urged me to be in touch with the New York City Council to oppose proposed regulations on Lyft. 

Almost 20 years ago, when Denver International Airport was still brand new and I may have been a little too brash, I detailed in this space some of the airport’s most noticeable problems. A few Denver residents have never quite forgiven me.

Now I read that our friends in the Mile High City are getting ready to spend over a billion dollars updating and expanding the fifth-busiest airport in the United States. Yes, I said a billion dollars. For that kind of money, maybe I can sneak in a few kind words.

If there was ever a city people love to hate, it’s Los Angeles. After living in this sprawling, dusty, smoggy, freeway-gutted, billboard-asphyxiated city for nine years, I’m convinced that we Angelenos love LA as much as we hate it.