The Unspeakable F-word

It's that time of year again--the time when one terrible, chilling, soul-crushing word rises up to overthrow summer and destroy the world: FALL!  (And you thought the f-word was going to be the adult version of "fudge," didn't you?) 

 

Just the other day, I was minding my own business when I saw this horrifying sight:

 

 

Panic gripped me.  Where did summer go?  Didn't I just pack up my winter sweaters, like, yesterday?  I wanted to grab my paintbrushes and paint that red leaf green again.  I wanted to run screaming to the nearest beach.  I wanted to shake my fist at Mother Nature and say, "No!  I'm not ready yet!

 

Since the onset of fall is no new occurrence, you'd think I'd be used to the changing seasons by now.  But, I'm not.  I loathe fall.  Each year when summer starts slipping away like grains of sand in the palm of my hand, I get a little crabby.  I'm a summer girl through and through.  I LOVE the heat; my pretty flowers; trips to the beach; my summer jammies; ice cream, lemonade and cookouts; and how the daylight lingers long into the nighttime hours.

 

But fall--fall is the antithesis of all that I love.  Things I don't like include:

-It gets colder

-Football

-Raking leaves

-My flowers die

-It gets colder

-School starts, commute time doubles

-Flu shots

-Halloween

-It gets colder

-Tax season #2

-The trees get naked

-The days get shorter

-IT GETS COLDER

 

I could go on, but that would bum me out even more.  Instead, let's play the "Glad Game."  To battle my post-summer blues, hubby and I have tried hard to come up things that are fun about fall.  Things I do like include:

 

-Going to the pumpkin patch with my mom and sisters

-Hot apple cider and pumpkin-flavored everything

-The Ohio Renaissance Festival

-Dressing up my dog for the trick-or-treaters

-Curling up with a book and a blanket

-Thanksgiving (especially my mom's scrumptious stuffing!)

-The autumn litter of squirrel babies I get to watch from my office window

-One extra hour of sleep with the Daylight Saving Time change

-The Nov. release of Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (woohoo!)

-Christmas is just around the corner

 

This is a good start, but my animosity towards fall runs deep.  I'm definitely going to need a lot more reasons to like the season!  What do you like best about fall?

 

Now that the clock is ticking, I plan on soaking up the last days of summer and mentally stockpiling enough warmth and sunshine to last me the next six months.  I suggest you do, too!  (That is--unless you're one of those freakish fall-lovers.  In which case I say, "Traitor!")   

 

Have a happy Labor Day weekend!