And the winner is.....

Well, my unofficial poll is complete. Everyone I asked has told me that fall is their favorite time of year.
Those of us that live in the southern most northern part of the mid-west probably think of fall as our reward for the humid dog days of summer and the freezing chill of winter. I think actually that fall is pretty sneaky, and has a good sense of humor. Like for instance how to dress during this in-between season.
I will never forget when I was growing up I could not wait to wear my new back-to-school clothes; especially my Bobbie Brook pants and avocado green poncho – accessorized of course by my new clogs and macramé purse. My mother would warn me that by noon I’d be hot, and of course she was right. But I would go ahead sweat under that poncho, knowing I looked very Marsha Brady-ish.
I think maybe fall plays tricks on us to get us back because it seems like we are forgetting about it. Christmas decorations are already up for sale; each year it seems they get put out earlier and earlier. Who really buys Christmas decorations in June, anyway? Fall seems to be pushed aside…Christmas overshadowing Halloween, poinsettias and fruitcakes trumping pumpkins and miniature Snickers bars. The Halloween costume stores seem to go up and back down in the flash of a few weeks. I need more time than that to decide if I should be the good fairy or the bad fairy.
There are some sure things about fall that I know we can depend on: hot apple cider with rum (it’s good, try it) and squirrels doing gymnastics in my chestnut trees. Bright colored mums, large orange pumpkins and beautiful red apples still greet us at the market. The crock pot calls my name, and the grill is soon to be a distant memory. It’s time to switch to my russet and dark green and deep red throw pillows. The summer scents and flowers get replaced with gourds and cinnamon candles and the skeleton that sings “Bad to the Bone.”
Fall, we have not forgotten you. Go ahead and take your time handing over the baton to winter. Let your amazingly beautiful leaves linger just a little bit longer before I have to jump-start the leaf blower. Keep giving us your gentle breezes, clear, crisp mornings and bright, starry nights. Let us plan our hayrides and bon fires and eat extra candy corn. We are begging you to stay as long as you want. So for now, the mittens and ice scrapers will just have to wait.