LUCY BURDETTE: Are you the kind of person who loves to see fall coming? (I know some of you have been suffering through incredible heat this summer and can’t wait for the change.) I do love the cooler temperatures, and the open windows at night, and fall colors. Last week, I noticed this sign in a nearby neighborhood. Every day during the summer, these neighbors put this board out with high and low tides marked on it, as well as the temperature of the Long Island Sound. Now that summer has officially ended, the board is taking a rest for the winter as well. I got a chuckle out of it, while at the same time it left me feeling a little sad. Time is passing! the board said. Seize your moments now. I will certainly try. I’m hoping to see lots of family and friends, read good books, eat good food, and write good pages this fall and winter, too.
There is also the matter of the silly things that fall brings, like pumpkin spice Cheerios. Really? Does this appeal to you? How do you feel about fall?
HALLIE EPHRON: Having grown up in southern California where there are no seasons (unless wind and fire count), I do appreciate the seasons. I remember the first time I was in Vermont during peak fall foliage and I could not believe how gorgeous it was.
Here, it means time to rake, time to clean the gutters, time to close up the house and make sure the furnace is working. All done. Now I get to just sit back and watch the show. (Photos by Jerry Touger.)
RHYS BOWEN: I’m not a big fan of fall. It reminds me that winter is coming and I hate short dark days. I like to wake up to blue sky and sunshine. I don’t like cold and wet. I don’t like trading my flip flops for boots and socks. And I really don’t like pumpkin spice latte! This is why we fly south with the swallows to Arizona about this time of year. Sorry if I sound like a grouch!
JENN McKINLAY: Autumn is my favorite season! Probably because I spent my childhood in a small town in the Appalachians in NW Connecticut. Colorful leaves, apple picking, a fire in the fireplace, and the entire town joining in on Halloween with trick or treating. Those are truly some of my happiest memories. And, yes, I love pumpkin spice - coffee and cake and pie - but nothing else, please. Now we have to drive up to Prescott or Sedona to enjoy the aspens changing color but it’s always a wonderful getaway.
HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: I love fall! It’s gorgeous, it has sweaters and boots and coziness. It smells good, right? and it’s so lovely to walk outside and breathe the gorgeous fresh cool air.
I love my birthday, and Thanksgiving, and fleecy things. And it’s time to make beef stew and soup. I love how the weather and our instincts are so connected, we just know when it’s the end of iced coffee time, and when we get to wear tights again.
As for pumpkin spice. Okay. I will weigh in. I really love pumpkin spice… In pumpkin pies. Only. That’s all. End of story. Pumpkin pie, love. Pumpkin everything else, not so much. and in coffee, please. I honestly think it’s disgusting. I am so sorry. It’s just me.You’re all going to say: what about pumpkin muffins and pumpkin scones and I’m sure those are all delicious, but they were just still not be my choice. If there’s a pumpkin soufflé, okay, that might be good. But I am not making it.
Thoughts about fall, red readers?
I like the coziness of fall and the turning leaves are gorgeous . . . sweater time and cooler temperatures are good things, too . . . .
ReplyDeleteAs for the pumpkin spice . . . I have pumpkin pie spice in my spice cabinet and I use it to make pumpkin pie and a pumpkin spice cake that everyone seems to enjoy, but I’m definitely passing on all the other things that are pumpkin spiced this time of the year . . . and my eyes are rolling over the silliness of Pumpkin Spice Cheerios
Isn't that the craziest thing? I skipped the Cheerios for sure:)
DeleteNever liked the taste of Cherrios anyway. Though the Pumpkin Spice in Pumpkin Pancakes did make a big difference. That is the only Pancake that I like in the USA.
DeleteDiana
It is 9:52 PDT and the temperature is 92 degrees, down from a high of 105. I live in the very southern end of the Bay Area, more or less central California, only ten miles from the Pacific coast. October cools off at night but with off shore winds temperatures are normally in the nineties, but we are in our third day of above 100 degree temperatures. Beautiful clear blue skies and low humidity make the temperatures bearable. We really don’t have fall, only two seasons wet and dry. It generally does not rain until December, which is out coolest month with highs in the low seventies most of the time. Any trees that change color doesn’t really happen until Thanksgiving. I am not a fan of the things that are now known to signify fall pumpkin spice and Halloween decorating.
ReplyDeleteoh gosh, it would be hard to feel fall-ish with temps over 100!
DeleteSusan, you just spoiled my comment! I was going to say that, while I live in San Diego now - the land of few seasons - I grew up in the SF Bay Area. When I was a kid, we had an actual season known as Autumn. Leaves turned brown, fell from the trees, air got cooler and we started getting rain, though the real rainy season was reserved for Winter. With Climate Change, all bets are off as to who gets which season when. I do love sweater season and fires in the fireplace (instead of wildfires), soups, grey skies so we should stay inside and read or bake cookies or watch old movies. As to pumpkin spice, I did try making pumpkin spice waffles (from a mix) and they weren’t awful. Generally speaking, though, I prefer pecan pie but have one piece of pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving to please my husband. That’s it for me and pumpkin spice. — Pat S
ReplyDeleteI would miss the four seasons, even if I complain about winter:). Hmmm, now you have me thinking about pumpkin spice and my new waffle iron. Maybe next year!
DeletePat S., I remember the Autumn when growing up in the SF Bay Area. Diana
DeleteAutumn (fall) is my most favourite season but we are not getting a normal one this year.
ReplyDeleteOttawa broke temperature records on Tuesday/Wednesday this week, with highs of 30-31C/86-88F and heat index of 35C/94F. This is a big deal...before this week, we have NEVER reached 30C/86F in any day of October in Ottawa's 130+ years of weather records. And no rain since September 19.
So, the leaves are a bit slow in changing colour this year. They need shorter hours of daylight + cooler nights to really get bright reds, oranges & yellows. FYI, it's 20C/68F at 4 am today...normal low is 5C/40F!
Not a pumpkin spice fan, I only like it in pumpkin pie. Others can enjoy the PSL and flavoured Cheerios! Instead, I am looking forward to eating apple cider donuts (also popular in NE US).
The cool, rainy weather is coming starting tonight, of course, because it is Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. Forecasted HIGH temperatures of 10-11C/50-52F and lows of 5-6C/41-43F for the next 5 days. Great stay-at-home reading weather!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Deletethose weather changes are scary Grace. I too love apple cider donuts--in fact I made an apple cider donut cake last weekend! Recipe to come. Happy Thanksgiving!
DeleteThanks, Edith. I have the turkey, brussels sprouts and pumpkin pie ready to enjoy on Monday.
DeleteRoberta: Ooooh, apple cider donut cake sounds amazing! Looking forward to seeing that recipe.
DeleteI'm heading to Cider Hill Farm today to stock up on donuts!
DeleteYou are tempting me, Edith. Maybe I should get some cider donuts from Hall's Apple Market tomorrow at the last Saturday FM...I already have pumpkin pie.
DeleteLucy: Look forward to the recipe for Apple Cider Donut Cake. Diana
DeleteGrace: Definitely staying at home reading books weather! Diana
DeleteHaving Thanksgiving on a Monday is so practical. Trust Canada! Your menu sounds wonderful, Grace. I came thisclose to getting Brussels sprouts for my birthday meal last night. Now I wish I'd gone for them.
Deleteapple donuts!? yum, recipe please.
DeleteLucy do you bake them or fry them?
APPLE CIDER DONUTS!! YES!
DeleteCount me in for the apple cider doughnuts!
DeleteLucy, I just made an apple cider doughnut Bundt cake for a church luncheon . . . we'll have to compare recipes!
I love fall as it is a prelude to winter which for me means hibernation and excused not to go out in the cold. I'm one of those who is not a fan of pumpkin anything.
ReplyDeleteI can see that Dru Ann, hibernating like a big bear:)
DeleteThe bear life ! Eat, hibernate, eat hibernate...
DeleteI grew up near where Hallie did, and I remember "winter" as being when it rained, and when we would put on wool sweaters and skirts - except the sweaters had short sleeves and I could make a skirt out of half a yard of fabric. We read books featuring children sledding and eating apples. We ate oranges and avocados and tamales out of a can.
ReplyDeleteSo I also love the seasons here in New England, once I get over grieving the loss of the best fresh produce. I also have a fall birthday, and Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.
Pumpkin spice in pumpkin pie. End of story.
Ha, tamales out of a can Edith. I used to love those! Yes, leaving the fresh produce behind is the worst.
DeleteEDITH: True, I also don't like the end of fresh produce. This is the last weekend for our local Saturday FM, and my balcony garden is slowly winding down. Picked the last cherry tomatoes yesterday but the herbs & kale/Swiss chard are still going strong.
DeleteOur garden is just at its peak, and the tomatoes are starting to really ripen as their leaves slowly shrivel. I wonder how many days in a row I can make BLT's for lunch, as they are so tasty right now.
DeleteWe went to Bermuda one September, where our host was looking through catalogues to buy (and wear) her 'winter boots'. No snow, and scandalous hot, but it was coming in to 'fall' on the calendar, so there was a need for winter clothing. (picture a bikini with winter boots...)
Edith, for the last couple years I've grown lettuce, parsley, chard, and kale under makeshift row covers, to have fresh greens nearly the entire winter. We share with our elderly neighbors, who adore the more delicate leaf lettuces I grow, that are never available in stores. And so do we.
DeleteI like fall but here in the Adirondack High Peaks it is a short season. Our leaves are already 1/3 gone and after this weekend's forecasted rain and wind, it's likely most will be down except the poplars. ("Popple" is considered a weed tree here and it is indeed a pest in a field, but I can't help but be fond of it as it is among the first trees to flush green in the spring and the last to hang onto color in the fall. Oaks also keep leaves longer but we are too high for most oaks.) Larches/tamaracks will be orange torches in the woods for another six weeks before they drop their needles. And then we will be in a black and white landscape until mid-May. We often have 6+ months of punishing cold, grey skies, and bleakness here, and as one who does not ski, I find my belly clenching when I see the first leaves flutter to the ground.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, as someone who works outside sweating through endless farm chores all summer, I have often reflected how thrilled I am to walk the land when the snowbanks finally ebb and the first birds return in early May -- and conversely how relieved I am by our first killing frost. "OK, God," I think gratefully, "shut it all down." We used to have this hard frost in mid-September. The last couple of years it has been mid-October. I may have another month of outdoor chores but the pace will be slower and the tasks will all be "readying for winter" ones. And you can't count on having that time. I've frequently been caught unprepared by October snowstorms, and local children's Halloween costumes are generally sized to fit over snowsuits.
Selden
Selden, you are a season poet, thank you!
DeleteAutumn in the Adirondacks is my favorite season! How lucky are you to enjoy the brief beauty. Where we are in the Dacks, further south, the leaves start changing in August. So you can have a warm bluebird day and fall color. Perfect!
DeleteAww...this is lovely. "shut it all down.." or at least, give it a little rest.
DeleteFall is a favorite season…new beginnings, a “month of birthdays” in November, and now that I live in FL and not CT, the season to return to the outofdoors, of long comfortable beach walks, and long sleeves…and this year I am noticing that there are leaves that turn from green to golden yellow. Elisabeth
ReplyDeleteSummer in FL is not fun Elisabeth!
DeleteI like pumpkin as a vegetable and an ingredient in soup. I eat a slice of pumpkin pie at our small Thanksgiving (a potluck with four families, all American wives with Swiss husbands). But, like Pat, I much prefer pecan pie, and that's what I bring to our Thanksgiving potluck! As for fall, I never experienced it until we moved from San Juan to Vancouver. As soon I got over thinking I was freezing to death when it was 65 degrees outside, I came to like fall a lot. But I'm a sucker for spring, as I think most people going through Swiss winters are. When I start to see wild primroses coming up, I'm SO happy.
ReplyDeleteYour potluck sounds like fun!
DeleteKim, pumpkin and carrot? ginger? leek? soup?
DeleteWould like to know your Pumpkin soup recipe.
Diana
I love pumpkin spice everything. When I lived in MA I would be one of the first in line at Dunk's to get a pumpkin spice latte. I haven't had one yet this year. Of course, it still being in the 90's here it will have to be iced.
ReplyDeleteYay! Another fan of Pumpkin Spice like me.
DeleteDiana
I'm a fall lover, too. It's my favorite season.I love the changing colors and the changing light. Subtle difference but it really is different from summer light. I like the coolness in the air. And here in Braga, stalls are everywhere in the historic area, selling hot chestnuts. Sooo good.
ReplyDeleteYes the light is definitely different! I'm sure an artist could explain...
DeleteAh, we had a gentleman who sold hot chestnuts from his mobile roasting stand outside our Italian grocer in the ByWard Market for decades. Sadly, he passed away in 2021. No one has come to continue this autumn tradition.
DeleteChestnut trees have suffered greatly in recent years, and the nuts have become extremely rare, and dear. Perhaps that is why. I remember walking around NYC in the 1970s with what seemed like a charcoal brazier on every corner, roasting chestnuts.
DeleteI like fall and would bump "like" up to LOVE if it lasted longer than ten minutes. I'm not a fan of winter for all the reasons Rhys named. As for pumpkin spice, no thank you. I can eat pumpkin pie, but if there is another choice offered, I always take that alternative.
ReplyDeleteLOL on the ten minutes Annette!
DeleteThe hours of daylight are already too short for me here in Minnesota. The Fall days I enjoy are the ones that are more like summer. We had some of those last week. Now I have had to drag my large house plants in from their summer home on the deck because we might get frost this weekend. The cold, wet, windy, gray days of November are just around the corner. Ugh. Cozy sweaters yes, but I try very hard not to start wearing my winter coat before November first. I just got the thing washed and put away from last winter not that long ago.
ReplyDeleteI don’t even eat pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving if I can help it; so we always have an alternate kind. I think it is mostly a texture thing along with the pumpkin flavor. I do like pumpkin bars with lots of cream cheese frosting or muffins. I much prefer the flavors of apple and cinnamon. The last few years the alternate pie has been French cranberry apple. Many times it has been the chocolate Dream Whip pie.
Interestingly, I was just wondering aloud to my husband yesterday if they have the pumpkin spice everything in parts of the country where they don’t really have the fall and winter seasons. On the flip side perhaps that is where the craze all began by some misguided souls searching for the nostalgia of Autumn. Food for thought, I guess.
I think you might be right on the misguided souls! You and your coat would get along with my hub--he always says no heat before Thanksgiving (in CT.) I say 'yes honey' and turn it on as needed.
DeleteAh yes, “Have you turned on your furnace yet?” Is always a conversation starter. There are always the hold-outs.
DeleteMy sister lives in Honolulu and they have a house in Manoa which was built in the 30's. It has a fireplace (unusual). My sister said it can get really cold in the winter. I asked how cold? And she said it can drop to 68-70 degrees.
DeleteFall – depressing. I like long days, sunshine, outdoors, heat even though we don’t get your 90’s, anticipating good food from the garden, butterflies, green-ness – all these things are no longer in my days. Fall means they are over, and even though we have a lovely long fall, it is so busy. There is the garden to bring in and clean up – often on days when you would rather not be outside as it is too cold. Pickles to be made, even though the smell of vinegar and spices is just lovely and the bottles look so beautiful on the shelves. The fires go back on – but first you have to order and then stack the wood – it is up to $1400/truckload and we need two! Flies – everywhere and each one is pooping on the ceiling, so when I have the ‘urge’ to clean, I dare not, as I will only have to do it again when the cold really sets in and those flies die.
ReplyDeleteAs for pumpkin spice anything – not in my flavour profile. I do like pumpkin pie, as I make my mother’s recipe with real pumpkin and lots of mixed spices – not pumpkin pie spice mix. As she said – Pumpkin pie is the reason for whipped cream! (she would eat it for breakfast).
This weekend is Canadian Thanksgiving. I am about to leave the computer to make beds for the incoming kids, roast the pumpkin to make the pie, and this year I think I will fool them and make apple strudel instead of pie. That should make an interesting conversation!
Then Monday I will face the fall…
I guess I would call my relationship with fall "complicated." Actually, it is a lot like Annette's, above. There is usually a period of one to at most four weeks where it is truly lovely -- I love the colors, the crunchy sound of walking through fallen leaves, the nip in the air, bonfires, hot cider, all of it. But here in Central Ohio that period is sadly brief, followed by a l-o-n-g period of gray, wet misery.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a big pumpkin spice person. I want no more than one slice of pie on Thanksgiving Day, and that's pretty much it.
I like the crisp air and bright sun of fall days. Raking leaves, putting the garden to bed, generally tidying up the outside for the coming snow (not yet, please, not yet). We had the furnace serviced yesterday, ready for when it gets colder. September has been unusually warm -- here and everywhere. A hard no to pumpkin spice, thanks but no thanks.
ReplyDeleteFall is my favorite season. I love how vibrant and bright it all is, the angle of the light and the cool air which gives me energy. As a child, I loved going back to school. It's getting into sunrise season and some of them have been spectacular. I don't like anything sweet in my coffee or tea; pumpkin belongs in pie.
ReplyDeleteI live in New England and am always excited for Fall - because it means Winter isn't far behind. I love the cooler weather and beautiful fall leaves the Fall brings. I also love Winter since I think there's nothing better than reading while it snows. aprilbluetx at yahoo dot com
ReplyDeleteBelieve it or not, we are having a heat wave this week in the SF Bay Area in CA. And I have been sick for four days! For us, when it is 90 degrees outside, it is too hot!
ReplyDeleteMixed feelings about the autumn. I prefer the term "Autumn" to "Fall". Though I am Not a Fan of shorter days, I Love the cooler weather, meaning that I can wear sweaters. I love Pumpkin Pies. I do like Pumpkin Spice Lattes, though it would have to be Dairy Free Milk. I love Nutmeg in my coffee. Sometimes I use Pumpkin Spice in my coffee if there is No Nutmeg available. Oh, I also love the crisp air.
It was in the Autumn when my cochlear implants were activated (after a month of Recovery from the surgery) and I recall one of the first sounds that I heard with the processors were the crunching of the leaves on the ground when I was walking.
Diana
Diana, wow, that memory of hearing the leaves crunching under your feet gave me shivers! There is so much that we all take for granted!
DeleteFeel better quickly!
Diana - for a city (The City) that Mark Twain described as the "coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco" 90 degrees is definitely a heat wave!! Get well soon.
DeleteYes but temperatures in San Francisco and Berkeley do not represent the weather in the rest of the Bay Area. Nineties and near 100 are normal for October. In the summer and fall those cities are thirty to thirty five degrees cooler than where I am, also in the Bay Area, not the SF Bay Area. San Jose surpassed SF in population twenty years ago.
DeleteHi Anonymous, yes that is so true. I lived in San Jose one summer & we had temps when it hit 100 degrees. We got the San Francisco newspaper each morning and the headline was: HEAT WAVE HITS THE CITY. It was around 90 degrees and we thought that would be cooling down in San Jose!
DeleteHope you feel better soon, Diana! I'm over the 90's as well.
DeleteThank you everyone! Feeling a bit better. Fingers crossed I will be better tomorrow.
DeleteDiana
Fall is my favorite season. The cooler temps, the colorful leaves, dry smell in the air, time for sweaters and fires and coziness. Like Annette, I wish it lasted a bit longer because I am not much of a winter fan, but oh well. I'll take what I can get.
ReplyDeleteI'm okay with pumpkin spice in baked goods - pies, scones, etc. I love the scent of a pumpkin spice candle. Pumpkin Spice Cheerios is pushing it.
It’s not popular to say this, but I don’t like fall. I hate it that I need to put on a sweater or jacket in order to be warm enough; it seems unnatural. And it just gets worse until spring comes in March. One day last week I was so cold that I put on my winter coat when I went out to run errands in the morning. I make soup all year long; I don’t need cold weather in order to do it. I occasionally like to put cinnamon in my coffee, and adding a couple of other spices to make taste like the spices in pumpkin pie is fine with me. I sometimes put pumpkin pie spices in my chili.
ReplyDeleteWhat has Autumn brought me so far this year? Covid. I tested positive on Tuesday. I’m taking medication now.
Sorry to be so grumpy!
DebRo
Hope you feel better soon--being cold AND sick just doubles your misery :-(
DeleteDebRo, being sick makes me grumpy, whatever the season! No apology necessary… sending “negative test” thoughts your way. May you be well soon. Elisabeth
DeleteDeb, sorry to hear that you are sick. Sending healing thoughts!
Delete:( Bummer! Get well soon. :)
DeleteDebRo, I hope the "Covick", as my mother calls it, passes soon, with no lingering aspects. You can be as grumpy as you like, just take it easy and get well soon.
DeleteBoo. Hope it's a light and short-lived case, Deb.
DeleteI agree with you on Fall! Fall is essentially death.
DeleteGet well soon, Deb!
DeleteLike Hallie who grew up in L.A. I live in southern California.
ReplyDeleteWe are kinda reversed weather wise. May and June are our winter months (June gloom & May Gray). Sept and October are our summer months (Santa Ana hot winds from the desert blow toward the ocean). Nov/Dec can be a combo of sunny, rainy, cold and warm.
San Diego is a meteorologist's perfect job - everyday: "near the ocean -- marine layer burning off midday, 73 high, 69 low"
Only near the coast. Five miles inland the climate is very different! Most people don’t recognize or understand California micro climates.
DeleteAgreed. We’re about ten miles inland. It’s not even 10:00 a.m. and it’s already 93 degrees! I’m ready for this current Santa Ana to leave! — Pat S
DeleteOur high today in the southern Bay Area was 108.
DeleteI love fall! The leaves, the colors, the crisp edge to the air. Bring it on! Pumpkin spice? Nope, only in pumpkin pie or other baked goods! Let's keep the great pumpkin where it belongs!
ReplyDeleteI love Fall, but I really love all of the seasons and am happy to see each one arrive. I do love long sunny days, but I also love the short, dark cold ones for snuggling under blankets and reading. Here in Connecticut, Spring is probably our shortest season although occasionally there may be promises that it's coming, we still can have pretty cold days and even snow in April and May.
ReplyDeleteThis year the leaves are just beginning to change colors and, like Grace, we had some record high temperatures this week. That's over now. A hurricane is on the way for another wet Saturday and we'll sandbag our house again, just in case.
I mix my own pumpkin spice for pumpkin pie and pumpkin bread, which we love. (No ps in my coffee, thanks.) 🎃 Having a Halloween birthday has always been lots of fun. My dad made it special, decorating inside our house and my grandmother would come in from NYC to bake a birthday cake. We had Halloween parties for years but don't anymore. Now we go out for a nice dinner together instead.
In November I will be attending my very first conference, Crime Bake near Boston. I am really looking forward to that!
Halloween is the best day for a birthday!! My granddaughter is a Halloween baby too.
DeleteYou are a Scorpio are you "feisty". That's what her brother calls her - and her response is a fiery, "I'm NOT feisty!"
My birthday is two days later, Judy! And..."feisty" - ever notice it's NEVER used to describe a male? Don't even get me started. Yay for the grandgirl.
DeleteFall is pretty and seems to come later each year. The walnut trees used to start dropping leaves in August, but they're not yet bare into October now. The days grow shorter, colder--I can deal with this when it's sunny, but we're not known for sunny winters up here on the lake. I like pumpkin pie and pumpkin bars (I bake the latter--don't want any store-bought ones). Other than that, pumpkin spice anything is a big no.
ReplyDeleteGrey and gloomy like all of Ohio.
DeleteI've never had Starbucks Pumpkin latte (I remember back 12+ years ago when I first noticed it on their menu). I will have to check it out today so I can at least say I've tried it.
ReplyDeleteMy granddaughter (turning 10) was born on Halloween. When she was younger and was asked her birth date - she didn't know that it was 10/31 it was always just Halloween!
It’s 45 degrees and raining right now. This is the fall I hate.
ReplyDeleteLove fall, hate pumpkin spice anything--including the smell of it, indifferent on pumpkin pie. I've made a million pumpkin pies over the years, and all three daughters love them, but if we are not together for Thanksgiving I prefer pecan instead. I have also made similar-tasting pies, by the way, with cushaw (debate whether this is a squash or a melon, I've heard both). A couple weeks ago I bought a candy roaster squash that the farmer said would make awesome pies. I'll let you know how it goes.
ReplyDeleteMy nice wool and cashmere sweaters (that make living in a cold environment bearable) are all cleaned and ready, we had the chimney swept a couple weeks ago, and the garden is winding down. I have some colorful pumpkins stacked on the front porch, and the maple trees in the woods at the bottom of our property are glowing brilliant red.
Is it a holdover from going back to school in September, or from being born in the fall? Maybe that's the reason this is my favorite time of year. I love those brilliant blue sky days with red and yellow leaves--there is nothing like it, those wonderfully crisp mornings that mellow into cooler days than the ones just a few days ago. I always breathe a sigh of relief that life is settling down a bit. I look forward to nights curled up under a throw in front of the fire with lots of good books to read.
I do not think I have ever tasted "pumpkin spice" anything... Though I do love a good pumpkin pie with whipped cream. When the kids were growing up we'd stuff a pair of Jerry's pants and a shirt with leaves and draw a face on a stuffed pillow case for the head to make a scarecrow, and seat him on our front steps. Surprisingly creepy. Our across-the-street neighbors dressed the plastic goose that forever lived on their front steps in a witch's outfit. Now they're putting a blow-up dragon and Frankenstein monster next door.
ReplyDeleteOH, and the battle about turning on the heat. I always try to put it off as long as I can. Add another sweater! Add a fleece thing! It's FINE!
ReplyDeleteMy husband is one for not using the AC or heat.
ReplyDeleteI am definitely turning up the AC or heat when needed. But this summer has been quite cool. So the AC wasn't used.
We have an interesting HVAC unit. It is electric but when the temps outside go below 40 (which is extremely rare) degrees it will convert to gas. So it is like a hybrid. We also installed solar panels so it's not all that expensive to run on electricity.
I am a lover of fall with the cooler weather coming in. pumpkin pie spice is only for pie and pumpkin bread--a true favorite! I may be able to top the pumpkin pie spice cheerios--my sweetie was at the grocery store yesterday and sent me a photo of Pumpkin Spice Gouda--yes, the cheese! This thing is out of hand and there ought to be a law. . . -Melanie
ReplyDeleteI can't say it any better than Rhys did, so I won't even try. I will add that, since autumn usually means wind and fire season in So Cal (and now Nor Cal), that is another reason to hate it.
ReplyDeleteI miss fall! Definitely my favorite season. Last fall I remember watching a bunch of YouTube videos of Vermont - so beautiful!
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, I get to walk to the farmer’s market today to get some local tomatoes , so SoCal does have its advantages.
And I am firmly in the cinnamon and spice and everything nice camp!
I'm definitely an autumn lover! Beautiful changing leaves (which I don't have to rake. Yay!) College football season. Cooler weather. Halloween. My birthday, which I ignore. Pumpkin spice everything? Nope. Nope. And nope. Pie and cake. That's it. Comfy clothes with layers of warmth. Allows certain of us to leave off that pesky uncomfortable undergarment.
ReplyDeleteMy AC just kicked on so I'm not quite feeling it here!
ReplyDeleteOf course, right after writing my part (and taking my warm weather clothes up to the attic)... we were hit with temps in the eighties!
ReplyDeleteKathy Reel here. I have always loved fall, my favorite season, and I would always have my Halloween decorations that I enjoyed so much out by now. This year, of course, everything is turned upside down. I have a few Halloween pillows out and two Halloween scented lights, a pumpkin on the hall table and a mummy in the bathroom. Kevin always loved Halloween, too, and I've put a few things in his flower arrangement on his grave, a tiny ceramic ghost and a flat ceramic pumpkin on the ground by his Harry Potter figure. I'm trying not to be maudlin, but here is my favorite fall poem, which is also displayed on a table in the foyer. It's a poem written by Kevin when he was a youngster.
ReplyDeleteWho Said It’s Fall?
The goblins did when they knocked on doors asking for candy.
The wind did when it whistled and whispered through the air.
The scarecrow did as he stood watch over the farmer’s fields.
The fog did as it spread across the misty ground.
The leaves did when they crunched beneath my feet.
The jack-o-lantern did when he smiled an evil smile.
Kevin Reel
So sweet, Kathy.
DeleteLovely, Kathy. Great imagery!
DeleteI should have mentioned candles, one of the few pumpkin things I like! I'm burning one today and the house smells so unmistakeably like autumn. Also, Trader Joe's pumpkin waffles are pretty good. They are my daughter's favorite thing from TJ.
ReplyDeleteNormally, when we have a very hot and dry summer, our trees start dropping leaves in August. But weirdly this year (and it was very hot and very dry) that didn't happen. I've been amazed at how green the landscape still looks. Hoping we will get some little pockets of fall color in the next few weeks.
Debs, Kathy here. I just bought a candle with a scent called Autumn Evening made by a local candlemaker here, and I plan on burning it all weekend. I love the scent.
DeleteI love fall. My feelings of fall were just posted this past Wednesday. To say the least, I am a lover of this season. Thank you so much for your delightful expressions.
Delete