One recent weeknight, he arrived at his post at the Bracey houses.

On a recent weeknight, the dining room was overflowing.

On a recent weeknight only four tables were occupied.

One recent weeknight the offices were as busy as a bus station, with two dozen people waiting to sign up.

On a recent weeknight, business was slow, but the phones were busy.

The dining room was crowded one recent weeknight, and the two waitresses, who spoke almost no English, seemed more than slightly disorganized.

The spot was empty one recent weeknight when I pulled in, overjoyed at being able to park a mere four blocks from my apartment.

On a recent weeknight, different musical acts were jockeying for position in the hallway outside the studio.

On a recent weeknight, rows of treadmills were packed with a mostly middle-aged crowd tuned to the machines' personal television sets.

On a recent weeknight, the 250-seat dining room had no more than 20 customers.