Mapping the Grid

I hauled myself onto the dining table, drawn to the glossy paper map spread beneath the pendant lamp. Its sharp fold creases were held flat at one corner by a heavy ceramic mug. Under the warm illumination, fine red and blue transit lines intersected in rigid grids, mirroring the avenues I had observed from the window. I dropped to one knee along a crease, tracing the main red artery with the tip of my gauntlet. It crossed two bridge markers before reaching an expansive rail depot. The grid extends far beyond this structure. I committed the primary intersections to memory before rising.