Hooray for Fall!

“Autumn's the mellow time.” ~ William Allingham



What follows are my most favorite things about this delicious season — which begins today — in no particular order.

All Things Pumpkin!
(OK, this probably is my actual Number 1 and will fill most of this post I'm sure) My fancy for this squash-like fruit has evolved over my 30 years from the kid fun stuff to the "Watch out! I will plow you down to get to one of my favorite pumpkin delicacies!"

• Let's start with the (obvious) best-of-pumpkin — Yummy-nummy nutmeg and cinnamon infused pumpkin pie. (I also love its close relatives sweet potato and candy roaster). Oh, and let's not forget pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin bread, pumpkin spice cake ...

• Then there's pumpkin beer. Man, oh man, when I had my first at Brewgrass many years back, I was sold! Dogfish Head Punk at 7% is my favorite followed closely by Cottonwood's Pumpkin Ale. And then there's the most delightful Pumpkin/Porter half-and-half that's so good you almost want to cry a little :)

• Pumpkin coffee — A number of years ago I turned my back on flavored coffee, preferring instead the darkest/strongest/boldest roasts I could find. But when fall comes around and our local roasters stock the shelves with this goodness, I can't resist.

• Pumpkin seeds – These are, in my humble opinion, the best part of slicing up one of the suckers. It stinks to have to dig 'em out of the goo, but when you toss them in Worcestershire sauce and bake 'til crispy, it makes every slimy string worth the effort.

• And I'll round this one out with: pumpkin candles and other home fragrance, pumpkin carving parties (Becky, are you out there?) and, of course, Linus' sweet sweet devotion to the Great Pumpkin.


Saving Energy which Means Saving Money!
I love, love, love that this time of year (at least in its early stages) allows me to turn off the fans and the icky AC, leave a window open at night and not yet have to feed the oil beast for warmth. My power bill this month should be a slight relief compared to the past few, not to mention the ones to come.


Zaps of (Natural) Energy
This one applies to both me and my Old Man Blackie Dog. When we walk outside and get those little gusts of freshness or the chill in the evening, we both feel so much more alive ... and he gets a little spring in his step, a rare occurrence these days. It's like he waits all year long to feel comfortable in his big fur coat.


General Mellow-ness
For some reason, this is a season that lends itself so much to sharing time with friends & family be it around bonfires or sitting on porches, taking drives to see the fall colors, carving pumpkins and going on hayrides, going to football games or just enjoying a good meal together. The big summer vacations, camps, activities and whatnot are over and life is in a nice, mellow place before the big holiday-crazy sets in.

Happy Memories
This time of year always always makes me think of Wilderness Trail. I wasn't the trooper some of my friends were during the summer months, going on Trail for weeks at a time. Instead, I went on the nice, compact 4-day ventures that usually landed us near Damascus, VA, long about the time the leaves were all colored up. I most remember when my friend Leahpet drove 3 or 4 of us girls up (we were probably 16-ish) and we sang Indigo Girls songs at the tops of our lungs as we wound up the mountain, and we were just young and silly and carefree (boy if we had only known then ...) Good times, good times.

And so again I say, "Hooray for Fall!"