November

November Morning - Dwight William Tryon

Stepping out of my car yesterday morning at work, I could smell a wood fire. As the day was crisp, clear, and cold - it seemed fitting. Of course, I did look around to make sure the nearby woods weren't on fire. Hey, it happens.

But no, someone in the vicinity had their fireplace going.

As I walked into the building, I decided to pause and look out over the valley before heading into work. Across the way, there was a mist hanging over the water of the Lawton Valley Reservoir. Between me and that mist were two maples with golden foliage, some red mixed in but primarily gold. The morning light touched them just enough to bring out the color.

I took a deep breath of that cold air, almost tasting the wood smoke, savoring what would prove to be a gorgeous New England day. A day which began with a heavy frost which had me scraping the frozen stuff off of my car. While it will become a genuine pain later in the year, for now it was somewhat invigorating.

I don't mind the cold weather as much as some. I grew up here, it's in my bones in more ways than one. (Ask me how my knees feel when a low pressure area is approaching!) So in some ways, I find November to be very exciting. Probably because it reminds me of growing up in Vermont, before it became a failed socialist state. (Damn Ben & Jerry's to Hell, I used to like their ice cream. No more.)

Anyhoo.

In my youth, by Halloween we had maybe had our first snow flurry. The trees were quickly losing their bright leaves and everything was looking very wintry. The days were much shorter, high school football season was over and I had more free time. I like free time, I am a superb idler, Olympic class really.

Halloween is, for me anyway, the commencement of what I call (others do too) the Holiday Season. Halloween, Veteran's Day (though I call it something else and it's a somber day for me in more ways than one), Thanksgiving, then of course, Christmas.

Yes, it's that time of the year that retail outfits try to make up in sales for their performance the rest of the year. Ya know those times of year where the working stiffs aren't willing to spend a fortune on stuff that they don't really need. No, they do that on "Black Friday" and in the days leading up to Christmas.

Thanksgiving does come first by the way, though I understand the need for retail outfits to make money. Provides jobs it does, provides me a place to spend my money on both necessities and fripperies. Still and all, I do love Thanksgiving, gathering with family, gorging on food and beverage, then falling asleep in front of the telly, watching football, which is about the only time of year I do that. Other than the playoffs...

Ah yes, late fall. A favorite time of year.