Season Rivals

When I was a kid, teenager and young adult, summer won hands down as my favorite season, with its long carefree days of t-shirts and shorts. More time than ever was devoted to being outdoors. June, July and August were when travel and exploration beckoned. But even if I didn't go anywhere special and stayed in the city, summer was still glorious with bike rides, running in parks and beach days. It was filled with blue skies and sunshine to better illuminate the sexy bodies of others who also wore fewer clothes. Nothing was better.

Even though I will always value the summers of my youth, in reality summer is no longer the annual ruler of the year. Summers are becoming too hot and humid thanks to mankind.

Fall is competing furiously for the title of my most beloved season. Despite shorter days, fall brings incredible beauty and often wonderful temperatures. Fall is arguably much prettier with its reds and oranges joining green in an awesome fashion show that only nature can produce. Autumn's brilliant colors make the city's blocks more gorgeous than ever. When it blankets mountains, forests and valleys, it creates stunning landscapes.

So fall is threatening to take away summer's crown and never give it back. The only flaw with fall is that you know it won't last and it will be followed by gray skies that brighten too late and darken way too soon. It's as if you received a wonderful gift in the beginning of September, only to have it cruelly taken away at the end of November.

Well, at least it's followed by Christmas and New Year's which try to soften the blow. And winter is eventually followed by spring, which is really just a tease for summer.

Still, for me, summer and fall are the two most important rivals of all.

Riverside Park

Upper West Side

Manhattan