Fall is that you?

First Walk of the Fall. 

When you live in the desert southwest or as my sister calls it, the seventh circle of hell, fall's arrival is marked differently than in other more sane places to live.  I always look for the mornings and evenings to become cooler (when I say cooler, I mean it's 90 instead of 115, but it feels cool to this desert rat).  We can go to the park and play in the mornings and go on walks in the afternoons.  My beloved pumpkin spice lattes arrive at Starbucks and the Halloween decorations adorn the stores.  In my own way, I cheer fall on by decorating the house for fall faithfully every Labor Day.  When I finish decorating, I always say, fall is here (even if I am lying and I usually am).

However, I am thrilled to write that I think fall has arrived and not a day too soon.  I have delayed posting this, but after two perfectly wonderful mornings filled with playing in our yard and at the parks and two evening walks, I am ready to say we have made it for another year.  I always feel as if I had made it thru a long, sweaty and stinky journey when the fall arrives, I feel like a champion, I have made it yet again, summer has not won.  Maybe this is how someone feels after a long cold winter, I am not sure, I just know about scorching, burning summers.  I have always said we have reverse winters here, when the rest of the nation is suffering we are kicking back in shorts wondering why we ever thought about living anywhere but here, and when the rest of the nation is kicking back saying this is perfect, we are enduring heat that literally leaves you wondering if your brains just got cooked on the way to the grocery store.  

But it's over again for another year.  Yes, its still hot, as I write this its 100 degrees outside, but the evenings and the mornings are ours again to stroll and play outside and soon we will recapture the entire day and the heat will be but a steamy and searing memory. 

This morning, Noah and I took stock of our poor, neglected and overgrown garden.  I looked at my forgotten friends that have endured the heat without any extra TLC from this gardener.  I let my garden go as I was too tired of the heat to weed, nurture or fertilize them. I am surprised what survived and even flourished without any attention, except the occasional watering.  I have bell peppers, hot peppers, a watermelon or two and basil coming out of my ears.  I am too depressed or embarrassed to post pictures of the sad state of my garden, but now that fall is here, I have plans to weed, plant, mow, hedge and in general make a big, sloppy and muddy mess out of myself, John and Noah in the process of getting the garden back to a lovely and wonderful spot.  I will post pictures of the process, mud and all.  Maybe when it's back in tip top shape I will post pictures of the before, but not until it looks better.  Welcome back fall, my old friend! Lets go outside and play! 

Noah contemplates fall's arrival.