the fall

technically, this is the 2nd time i have moved to a place known as “southeast.” north carolina was the first. and now this part of alaska is referred to, in shorthand, as “southeast.”

as a midwesterner, i grew up with a deep love of the fall–the crisp air, crunchy leaves, blue skies, & the lingering wifts of cross country meets. i would wait out those long, dank, summers all in hopes of the lovely fall that always slipped a bit too quickly for me into winter. in southeastern u.s., fall came late and stayed until early december. by the time it finally arrived, i was already a puddle of humidity.

here in southeast alaska, i seem to have missed it. perhaps it was the 2 weeks we were gone for the wedding, but it seems winter is here. the temps are topping out in the low 40s and i am scrounging for scarves, hats & mittens. without me noticing, all the devil’s club turned bright yellow & the occassional oak leaf is clinging to its branch; just barely.

it pours rain here, and people say: “oh, fall is here,” with a disappointment in their voices. what!?! fall is the best time! but people here love the summer. and as i think about it, summer was a lot like a midwestern fall. and it looks like fall might just be the rain before the snow.

this may very well be the first place i have ever lived where i love summer.

p.s. i certainly hope the irony of a resurging blog being kicked off with a post about the weather has not been lost on the primarily midwestern audience of this blog:)

(photo credit: Lance McVay, http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=2755352)