More from the edge of Queens

Emerald city, otherwise known as "The Hole".  In the short time spent here, I was told that the streets are flooded like this after rain, and that the cowboys come through every so often.  Nearby to Emerald City are a group of city riders known as the Federation of Black Cowboys.  I was hoping to talk to some of them, and perhaps get their photograph, but  I was not so lucky this time. 

These neighborhoods are beginning sit at the edge of my consciousness, between the soft tissue and skull.  There are small stories here, short histories to be told.  I'm trying not to forget that some places sink, and others keep rising out of the layers of old.  

The Bayside/Acacia Cemetery

If you have ever wondered what our public spaces would look like after 20 plus years of no human touch, then the Bayside Cemetery in Queens is one of those places.  It has gone into a state of extreme disrepair; I noticed only one fresh headstone, otherwise they all date back decades.  Who knows how long the brush has been allowed to grow, or roots to push and topple over the granite slabs.  In some locations, it looks like crews have cut back bramble, and chopped limbs that would threaten to break the stone markers.  They have piled the brush and bramble high, only to pile it over grave sites and  mausoleum steps.  There also seems to be a lot of vandalism, and even in some cases break ins to mausoleums.  The purpose of photographing this place was not to shock, so I did not include those images.  If you want to see more, you'll have to go there yourself.