Oct 15 2002
autumn in new england
Days like yesterday are additional reasons I’m so glad to be back in New England.
October is generally my favorite month. Typical October weather has been a little slow in getting here, but yesterday was the Perfect Day: sunny and bright, mid-to-upper 50s for temperatures. Many trees are showing their colors now; it’s like they changed overnight Sunday as a consolation to those of us who didn’t have Columbus Day off and had to commute. I missed this while in Virginia and North Carolina; leaves did change there, but they were, to this native New Englander, abnormally late. I can remember griping well into November about how the trees just turned *brown* there, and then saying “Ooh.” when I realized that I just needed to wait a month or two longer. I don’t remember the trees looking quite as vibrant in the south (ok,ok, I know Northern VA isn’t *exactly* “south”), though, and I don’t remember feeling quite as alive on autumn mornings as I do in NE. Here you can take a deep breath of air and feel the cleansing chill deep in your lungs, which has always put me in a happier mood. I like coming in from outside with the cold on my cheeks and nose; I love the apple cider season, the sound of leaves crunching underfoot, the late afternoon sun low in the sky, the simple smell of the air around here. These things may not be strictly New England phenomena (an aside: this word always reminds me of the Muppet Show skit, in which Animal sings “mah-na, mah-nah.” (mp3) … just thought I’d share), but in my mind New England’s fall season is the Real Deal.
wish my camera weren’t still broken. :-/
