Don't Use That Four-Letter 'F' Word Around Me!

It's almost impossible to avoid the word.  I hear it in the grocery store, I see it on billboards and menus, but please, don't use that four-letter "f" word around me.  You'll just get a steady stare and you might notice a tightening around my mouth, then I'll ignore whatever you've said and speak about a different subject.  Please, when talking to me, don't use the word "Fall".

Okay, deep in the cortex of my gray matter, I know and cannot deny that we have moved into the season of Autumn.  In reality, my back deck is dotted with fallen walnuts, more dropping with a thud several times an hour.  The green on the trees seems to be fading as it's pushed aside a bit more every day and replaced with golds, reds and oranges.  Squirrels are concentrating on goals rather than just running here and there, teasing the dogs.  The birdhouses that sheltered two or three families this year are swaying in the chilly breeze, empty.

But wait, look at me!  I'm still wearing shorts and t-shirts.  If it's really and truly Fall, wouldn't I be freezing in these clothes?  It's true I've only ventured to the porch to read in jeans lately, but that's surly just a coincidence.  Look at my front door.  No wreath of autumn colors or cornucopia decorates there.  It looks just as it did in July.  Out front, Ina the Concrete Goose is still dressed as a bumblebee.  There are no pumpkins waiting to trip anyone on my porch steps, no zucchini bread fragrance wafting through the screen door.  Never will you find an inflatable Halloween symbol bobbing around on my lawn.

Yes, I admit I just ordered a new container of chili powder from New Mexico.  That doesn't mean I'm admitting that there are cold days about to bear down on me.  It's just acknowledging that any sensible person knows that some days get cooler later in the year.  I'm even able to admit that some day there might be snow, just not anytime soon enough to worry about.

My winter clothes are still safely tucked into tubbies in the basement, as are my boots and fuzzy hats.  Maybe it does get dark a bit earlier lately, but having the lamp on to read is cosy.  Yes, I did put the blue blanket on the bed, but I just happened to do that the last time I took it from the dryer, there was no particular reason.  I've noticed that lots of television shows are starting new seasons, but that doesn't mean anything anymore because cable stations do as they please.

Just give me a few weeks to shift gears.  It gets a bit harder to do every year.  Let me ease myself into this "beginning of the end."  Don't use that four-letter "f" word around me; not quite yet, please.