You're Always Running Here And There

According to the Wall Street Journal, the construction of the Second Avenue Subway has sent an avalanche of rats into the streets, cars, and buildings of the Upper East Side.

The infestation has left residents of the East 90s along Second Avenue with what they say is the worst rat problem in decades. Things get especially ugly at night, says Walter Johnson, a 60-year-old maintenance worker. "It looks like the street's moving," says Mr. Johnson, who has lived on 93rd Street east of Second Avenue since 1976. "It's just wild. You can't imagine how infested this place became." T & Y Groceries on Second Avenue has been confronting rats since digging on the subway started three years ago, employees say. Early on, rats ate through plastic packaging to get at food stacked on shelves. Now, the store stocks merchandise in plastic bins to keep them out, says employee Harsh Patel.

Fortunately I have an in-house rodent killing machine.