Two girls play near Wilson Avenue and Linden Street during the last days of the wettest summer in decades. — Photos by Diego Cupolo
The sun will begin its crawl into the southern hemisphere today, marking the beginning of autumn, and with it, taking the warmth we struggled to enjoy throughout this stolen summer. While there were a few hot days in April, the usual summer heat didn’t arrive until mid-August this year and the traditional beach getaways of June and July were drowned in consistent downpours and unsettled skies.
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Some blame it on the jet stream, others on climate change, and a few on moon dust, but the short summer we did have is over now and the reminiscing has already begun. Street festivals, old men slamming dominos on the corner, piraguas, boat parties in Newtown Creek, rooftop sun-bathing, Chimi Domingo on Bushwick Avenue, gushing fire hydrants, flip flops, Michael Jackson blasting on every speaker, on every block – today they become memories and the light at the end of another winter.
To dilute any bitterness caused by today’s Autumnal Equinox, I’ve compiled 16 photos that best tell the story (or at least my story) of summer 2009 in Bushwick. And in the end, fall isn’t so bad: at least subway platforms will stop being piss-scented saunas for the next eight months.
Cheney September 24th, 2009 at 7:42 pm
While we may not see eye to eye politically or on Bushwick issues, as a photographer myself when not working I commend you on your photographic and writing skills. It was a lost summer indeed with the weather. Easily the rainiest and coolest I’ve seen in memory.