It smells like fall today, that wonderful odor of decay that signals autumn. It also makes me want to get out a rake, make a pile of leaves and jump in. But alas this is Florida. There are no dead leaves scattered across the front lawn, no rake in the garage, no brilliant yellows and reds lighting up the landscape. Fall comes late here. And stays but for a fleeting moment.
Fall means a turkey is cooking in the oven today. We've decided to skip Thanksgiving in favor of a car show in Orlando this year. We'll have a hot dog for lunch and leftovers when we get home. Aren't leftovers always better than fresh out of the oven anyway?
Tomorrow it will be winter. Winter by Florida standards doesn't include snow. It rarely requires gloves or hats or heavy coats. When it does, we have to dig far into the closet to find those things we brought with us when we came south over thirty years ago and kept on hand just in case. Winter here is a pleasant, cool crispness and blends quickly into spring.
The impending onset of winter means it's time to put up the Christmas decorations. Oh I forgot. They're already up.
The Christmas tree is decorated and standing proudly in the living room. The patio is strung with lights and garland graces the front door. But Richard won't turn on the lights until someone else in the neighborhood does it first. This is a 55 community. Someone else has to have too much time on their hands like Richard. The giant blow up Santa surely has to appear in the yard down the street soon. Or do I have to wait for them to smell change in the air? Tomorrow they'll pop out of bed and rush around putting up the decorations, baking cookies, trimming the tree afraid they've missed it.
Each year the holidays come sooner and sooner. Where does the time go? Just for today I'm going to soak up all the sights and smells of fall. They will be hard to find and difficult to detect. Tomorrow it will be winter, the day after New Years and the day after that Easter. I'm going to enjoy it while I can. The holidays will come around again before I know it.
Fall means a turkey is cooking in the oven today. We've decided to skip Thanksgiving in favor of a car show in Orlando this year. We'll have a hot dog for lunch and leftovers when we get home. Aren't leftovers always better than fresh out of the oven anyway?
Tomorrow it will be winter. Winter by Florida standards doesn't include snow. It rarely requires gloves or hats or heavy coats. When it does, we have to dig far into the closet to find those things we brought with us when we came south over thirty years ago and kept on hand just in case. Winter here is a pleasant, cool crispness and blends quickly into spring.
The impending onset of winter means it's time to put up the Christmas decorations. Oh I forgot. They're already up.
The Christmas tree is decorated and standing proudly in the living room. The patio is strung with lights and garland graces the front door. But Richard won't turn on the lights until someone else in the neighborhood does it first. This is a 55 community. Someone else has to have too much time on their hands like Richard. The giant blow up Santa surely has to appear in the yard down the street soon. Or do I have to wait for them to smell change in the air? Tomorrow they'll pop out of bed and rush around putting up the decorations, baking cookies, trimming the tree afraid they've missed it.
Each year the holidays come sooner and sooner. Where does the time go? Just for today I'm going to soak up all the sights and smells of fall. They will be hard to find and difficult to detect. Tomorrow it will be winter, the day after New Years and the day after that Easter. I'm going to enjoy it while I can. The holidays will come around again before I know it.
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