Philly’s dog days of summer

The ancient Greeks and Romans knew the annual appearance of Sirius, the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major (“Greater Dog”), would bring them the most sultry and sweaty stretch of summer.I’ve always associated the “Dog Days” with images of a lazy city, slowing down in August; this year especially after our once-in-every-250-years July. It’s standard practice across Europe — “Les grandes vacances,” the really big holidays — for offices, factories, and ministries to shut the doors for most of the month. Even here the mayor’s daily media advisory on many days last month just read, “The Mayor has no public events scheduled.”So it’s surprising for me to look back at what a wonderfully full, fascinating, and fun month August was for photography.The Philadelphia Cycling Classic made a