parallax

parallax
Originally uploaded by madabandon.

I am back in Brooklyn. The weekend was beautiful, relaxing, a little too cool for much swimming. On the drive up--Friday night--I encountered a ferocious storm in northern Dutchess County and into Columbia County. Torrential rain, wild wind, brilliant lightning. Coming north from Manhattan I could see the lightning up ahead; it created a fantastic light show that captivated me from afar. It was not so captivating once I was in the thick of it. Many cars had pulled off the road, which is famous for its twists and turns and lack of a shoulder so that if you miss a curve, off you hurtle into the woods.

I have driven up this way dozens of times in the last year, and at least half of my trips have featured horrific rainstorms. It is always scary, driving on the Taconic Parkway in those conditions. But I am a good driver and not a daredevil. And lucky.