I took a walk yesterday afternoon in the heat. I had a need to get out of the apartment and feel like I live in a city even though my body wasn’t thrilled with the humidity or the bright sun.
I wandered up and down the main drag in our little neighborhood and took a few photos of places I like and things that caught my eye. Especially pretty things.
I paused for a while on Eastern Parkway to get out of the sun and dry off in the breeze. People ran by, dogs walked by, bikes zoomed by, and the busyness made me feel calmer as I sat in place.
Rather than instantly sidle up to a bar at noon on a Sunday, I decided to stop and get a cup of coffee in the air conditioning instead. It was quiet with brief bursts of customer activity, and I was slow and easy as I sipped my cortado and took a few pictures. The barista was kind and funny and the first drops of rain fell.
After coffee, I finally decided to go find that beer and a sandwich at one of my favorite spots on Washington Ave. I had a lovely chat with Butch, the bartender, as a storm began to roll in. A quiet bar on a Sunday afternoon is a beautiful thing.
During a break in the rain, I scurried on over to the Crown Inn where a friend was working behind the bar. As the storm came and went and then came and went again, I had a few drinks, talked about Lenny Kravitz’s wardrobe malfunction (it was exactly seven years ago yesterday!) and watched the world go by.
I asked one of the bartenders if I could take his picture, and he instantly slipped into a perfect model pose.
A few more things caught my eye as I wandered home, and I began to think about how easy it is to pass things by unless I’m looking for them. And even in a small neighborhood (I didn’t go more than a few blocks in any direction) there can be so much to see.
Part of me is curious to see how things change over the next few years, and part of me simply likes to feel like I’m a part of something. The pictures help me remember, but they also give me a chance to look more carefully and pay closer attention to the streets, the business, and the people that make up my neighborhood.
And as I grow more comfortable talking to people, I suspect it will give me a chance to understand my neighbors far better than I have.
I often think that photography and writing are a great combination. It was easy as a kid to remember that my father was a photographer, but at times, I would read his articles and realize that he was a photo-journalist as much as anything ––and that his words and his pictures let him capture the world in far more detail than either of the two on their own.
And maybe, as I wander and shoot, talk to people and jot down notes, it lets me feel a little bit closer to him as well.
Best to you all and keep cool my friends
Nice shots and nice story. I particularly liked the NY Times photo and the street-scapes.