Autumn Arrives

So summer’s over? Don’t be depressed.   As you worry about the end days of summer, here’s a song about Fall, which will be the soundtrack to this post:

Once you come to terms that lazy nights, short shorts, pool parties, etc are no more, and as you pack up your grills, you actually can see that Fall does have some things going for it, ESPECIALLY for those of that are out of school.   Is it fall or autumn? I’ll use them interchangeably.   Anyway, what I’m saying is that for many of us, it’s not like we have to go back-to-school which is usually the main cause of depression.  Yet that depression lingers, there’s many unhappy people at the end of August,  which is in my view conditioned from 20 years of schooling. Summer’s good no doubt, unfortunately for me I didn’t do the typical summer parties and beach excursions this season for obvious reasons, but I’ve vowed to make up for that next year, but before that who is to say that end of August means end of life? (same thing applies to weekdays, you can actually DO STUFF on Monday or Wednesday, etc you know)  Needless to say autumn does have a lot going for it.

First of all, there’s the cool air and the beatiful foliage. Cool nights and mild days, which is a repreive from the humidity of summer. A wise succesful person I was listening to speak recently spoke about how he always likes to spend some time in solitude in nature. Whether sitting in a park, gazing at a lake, jogging on a trail in the woods, and I’ve found that it is a very refreshing habit. In the fall it is easier to do regularly, and there’s the added bonus of witnessing nature’s miraculous transformation as the landscape floods with tones of amber, gold, red, orange, and brown.

If you are into style, there is the fashion change, time to get the long sleeved shirts and to go back to conservative colors. Ladies it means creativity to be able to look sexy as the weather dictates that you’d have to cover up a little more [maybe this assumption is misguided. I went to Fur Nightclub in DC last winter, I think it was December of January, and sure enough there were girls in miniskirts (and I mean mini) outside and in the lines.]  Also it means new makeup colors, I understand that the main hues of this autumn, are subdued shades of purple, berry and black among others, and that the smoky look is back, and that there will be plenty of drama and edginess in fall specially in makeup trends.  Didn’t think I knew all that did you?

Another advantage about fall is the inexpensive travel. People tend to focus on vacationing in the summer, which is convenient I have to concede, for people with families or in school. But for young couples, or for singles out of school, airfare and hotel rates in fall are usually at most half the rates in fall that they are in summer. Been wanting to go to Cancun, Mexico? Jamaica? Any such getaways? October or November are not bad months to do so.

On a personal note there’s a New Fiscal Year. I’m an entrepreneur in addition to my regular profession, and in my industry our new fiscal year starts in September. It’s a time in which we refocus on our goals and plans for our businesses. Plus, there is an annual huge convention bonanza that occurs at this time of the year in which many of the top achievers in the industry attend.  That’s always a memorable time, and no doubt this years will be again.

Moving along, how can I forget sports.  Sport’s returns.  Griridon and Association. Those are the two types of footballs – American, and soccer. Football for those in the USA, and futbol, calcio, soccer, mpira, footie for those of you elsewhere. Sports fans are a little starved in the summer.   I’m not a big NFL fan, I really couldn’t care any less about the Redskins or any other particular team, but I get into college football, and fall is when it starts, when the bands start playing, when the tailgate parties start and the rivalries are sparked up.  For football I follow Maryland, and the Big 12 (except Texas), and I also like USC.  I don’t like the SEC, Florida teams or other teams in the ACC I always root for them to get a good shellacking when they’re on the screen.  Then there’s also High School football even though I don’t live in the heartland like Texas, or Ohio, where High School football is a way of life (non-football fans, watch Varsity Blues to know what I mean).   But there are a few good teams in Maryland, plus I still follow my alma-mater Walt Whitman High School of Bethesda, MD whenever I can.   Meanwhile in soccer, fall is a chance to watch the Premiers League, Serie A and all the top players in the world, and a chance for me to convince myself that my beloved Liverpool have a chance.

Lastly, there are the two big holidays of autumn – Halloween & Thanksgiving.   Halloween brings the pumpkins, the costumes, and the spooky horror movies, tales, and parks. And trick’n’treat.  For me somewhere along the line I lost my innocence and became to “grown up”  to properly enjoy the event, but sometimes its good to retain a childlike approach to life and this year we’ll see if I can enjoy this event better.    Then there is diet-killing pound-adding holiday known as Thanksgiving.  For non-North American readers, this is the biggest hugest feast, when families get together. Other cultures will typically save that for Christmas, but in the US Thanksgiving is more of the family event.

So fall is here, I look forward to it.  It is a quiet time of the year, between summer but before Thanksgiving, and it’s a good time to relax.  What about you?  Do you like autumn?