Lac Wallace Pt I

 

We drove for 8 hours. With every stop, every gas station, the increasing number of tall dark trees, lower lying clouds, wavering cell reception (and certainly no 3G), the small town McDonalds (with wood furnishings and those smooth brown brick tiles...yknow the ones?) - all signs we were getting closer to our final destination. The Lake. Oh the stories I'd heard of The Lake...peaceful mornings that started with pots of coffee and freshly baked bread, a summer camp down the road, the oldest of friends reunited, talking and sharing secrets until all hours of the morning, ALL the water sports, home cooked meals, family traditions and games and all that wonderful holiday togetherness that repeatedly visiting the same place over many years can bring, the stillness and beauty of the lake and the comforting chaos of a well loved cottage . That's what I'd heard and after a big week in the big apple I was so ready for this! 

Pt II to come

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Photos: Shot on a Nikormat FT2 w Kodak Portra 400 by Rachel Kara (last shot by my protege, Emma Birdsall)

Bedford Stuyvesant

Bed-Stuy, the 'hood that became home for the month. I seem to remember things back to front -- that last day, a heat wave was just setting itself upon the city. It was grey around the edges and that sticky, inescapable kind of heat that really makes you sweat. One last 40 minute pilgrimage to Manhattan for one last breakfast at Buvette then back 'home' to clear the room, pack our bags, scour the house for scattered belongings, and say goodbye. Goodbye to that new home with it's new smells that had quickly became old and familiar.  A reluctant & purposefully quick goodbye with my beautiful new friend who had become family as we invaded her home. A storm set in as I called a taxi and took off alone, shutting the door behind me and trying not to acknowledge the sadness I could feel in the corner of my eyes as I remembered back to the beginning, that very first day in this unfamiliar hood I was now calling home.