Is There REALLY a Summer Here?

As one of the Assistant Photo Editors for The Ithacan, Ithaca College’s student-run newspaper, one of my unofficial responsibilities is to drive around the city and take photos that complement the stories. Sometimes this is easier said than done.

For our Jan. 28 issue, we were looking to run a story about how smoking is going to be banned from the Commons. (I know, cue the outraged locals.) The photo request we received for this story didn’t come as much of a surprise: get a photo of people smoking on the Commons. And that’s just what I attempted to do.

You know how the weather patterns have been changing on a whim since August? Well, apparently it’s not sitting well with the locals. Either that, or I just ran into some of Ithaca’s grumpiest townies last week.  I trekked down to the Commons on the first downright frigid day of the spring semester with a two goals. One, stay warm. Two, get the photo and leave. Usually, most shoots require you to stick around until something interesting happens, but let’s be honest here, there’s nothing interesting about smoking in Ithaca of all places.

The Commons was desolate, almost to the extent of the scenes in The Book of Eli. (Great movie, go see it!) So I stuck around waiting for somebody to either walk by or step out of one of the shops. Fast forward 90 minutes. I am freezing and disgruntled. I asked about a dozen people who were smoking if I could take their photo for The Ithacan. Nobody said yes. I fully understand that if one smokes, it’s not necessarily the best attribute to have publicized, but it doesn’t necessarily warrant the shrewd remarks I received.

I think the winter really eats away at people. As humans, we have the inherent nature to go out and explore, break boundaries and do something new – things that can easily be done during the warm summer months.  While walking around waiting for somebody with a cigarette, I thought about how an area’s personality changes through the seasons. Ithaca is, of course, cold. But there’s a vibrance that emerges every single summer: Ithaca Fest, Grassroots, boats on Cayuga Lake, etc. During these long winter months, Ithaca rests. To sit on the Commons during this time and envision to explosion of activity that will take place once summer hits is incredible.