Neighborhood Dry Cleaner Sign

The neon sign in the dry cleaner's window on my block says ALTERATIONS in blue cursive and LAUNDRY in red block letters. It's been there longer than I've been alive, the tubes slightly faded where they bend around the letters. That sign marks the shop as a specific kind of place: family-run and permanent. Warm glow at night makes the block feel safer. Hand-painted price list on the door, shirts $3.50, pants $7. A transparency that chain stores don't offer.