Welcome Fall

Today is the first day of Fall. Hooray! I love Fall. Living in Virginia, we actually have a full on autumn, which is nice, and because most of the trees here are deciduous, there are going to be leaves EVERYWHERE. I know they are a pain to clean up, but it really is beautiful. Today is our last day forecast to reach 80 degrees. It is probably the last day my children will go to school in shorts. Saturday, the air just felt different. It was different than the feeling of a cool summer day. It was the feeling you get when you know the cool air is more permanent. It is Fall! In addition to the leaves, and the lower temperatures, there is the delicious food that comes with Fall. It is apple picking season. The pumpkins and squash are coming out. Sitting in the office, I can hear the occasional acorn falling from the oak trees out back onto the deck. (By the way, my backyard has acorns scattered everywhere. Where are the squirrels now I ask? Are the acorns only worth while if chewing through screen to get to them is involved? I digress)

Finally, the cartoon above summarizes one of my biggest personal celebrations over the arrival of Fall. (You can double click on it to see it larger) If people are the all you can eat buffet for bugs that bite (think mosquitoes, fleas, no see ums), I am the dessert bar. I have been covered in bug bites for weeks, and it is indescribably delightful that the bugs are rapidly disappearing. I left the windows open last night. Another bonus to this time of year. Wonderful cool air comes in, and I don't have to run the air conditioner. Anyhow, the usual loud chirping of hundreds of bugs was decidedly much more quiet. Calvin echoes my sentiments in the cartoon above.

Side note: Bill Watterson is the creator of Calvin and Hobbes. They are truly funny cartoons. The one above is from the book, There is Treasure Everywhere. Copyright laws are sometimes confusing, so I wanted to make sure you know who the cartoon above belongs too.