Saturday, October 16, 2010

Fall, At Last

Yesterday's weather signaled for me the beginning of Fall here in the upstate of SC. Other places north of here have color on the trees, having had cooler weather for a few weeks. Ours, on the other hand, has been in the 80's during the day. Yesterday, though, there was a stiff breeze and cooler temperatures, and I spent the day wearing my cozy, pink sweatshirt.

It's good yard work weather. I wish my body would cooperate enough to do it. I've completely given up my gardening ideas, as the constant aches I feel are aggravated by the tug of war with the weeds. Let me say this, too, that even if my aging frame would stand strong against the battle, my mental attitude toward the fight is that of defeat. I've learned in my four years here that the weeds are strong, the clay is stronger yet, and I'm no match for it. So, good weather or not, this body had given in to the agony of defeat.

There are things I can ....and should do. I can lift all but the heaviest of potted plants and bring them inside before the cold nights we've been having cause the green and living things to turn brown and dead. I can bail out the barrel fountain, clean it, and get it into the shed. I can turn over the basins on the bird bath. (That, however, will cause an uproar with the wing-ed beings.)

I'm thinking of Christmas, with the coming of this cool weather. I really should update my shopping list, gather the gifts that I have stored away, and get the rest of the shopping done. I also have to take Mom to buy her gifts, after I collect ideas and sort through who has already purchased what, and then give her the list to choose from. Shopping for great lengths of time used to be a joy for me. Not anymore. My foot starts screaming after an hour or so, and then I begin to favor that foot, causing pain to jump over to my other leg! This year, I forsee a good number of short stints, picking up a few gifts at a time.

The pressure begins to mount, as I know that there is a trip to NY coming soon. It may be as long as two weeks away, it may be less...and I suppose it's possible that it will even be longer. I have too much to do, and I'd like to get home again....so I hope the whole thing goes quickly.

Ahhhh... Fall. I've waited for it. I'm glad that it's here. The air, the smells, the foods, the clothing, the activities....all are different in the Fall, and I must say that today it is my favorite of all seasons.