Saturday, September 8, 2007

See You In September

The first thing I loooove about September is the weather. It cools down from the sweltering heat of August and becomes comfortable. The days are perfect for walking and the nights great for sleep. I can open the windows and let the air in. I can sit outside and enjoy the day.

I also love that the vacation crowds are all gone and while the weather is taking a turn, it hasn’t turned yet. School’s open and all the vacation hot spots are still operating. The prices are slashed in half and it’s perfect for playing the tourist. The guides at the sites have time to answer questions and give you that extra bit of information that most people don’t get.

Fall clothes are also on my lists of things I love about September. Sweaters and sweatshirts, exercise pants, and patent leather shoes. Curling up in front of the fire with a glass of wine or apple cider and Smokey Robinson or Gladys Knight singing in the background is close to heavenly. I’m always cold, especially under air conditioning. It seems I can never find a comfortable temperature and I feel claustrophobic being confined to rooms where the air has to be cooled in order for my body to maintain an energy level where I can work. Honestly, I don’t know what we did before air conditioning, and while I prefer having it, to not having it, it’s not the same as a perfect fall day.

See You In September, I love September songs, and going back to school. See You In September always takes me back to those days. While the song was often popular in June when schools were closing, it was more popular as September approached and I knew I’d get to reunite with friends I hadn’t seen for three months. I was a person who usually traveled upstream. I loved school. I loved learning and the social part of school appealed to me too. Each succeeding year meant nine months of fun and new opportunities. At the time I was going through it, I knew it was the best years of my life.

I love that a new television season begins in September. After a summer of reruns, finally I get to see the resolution of the cliffhanger that the season ending left me with. I get to watch the new programs and find what appeals to me. Now that we have cable and can always choose a new movie to see, the new season still gives me a little jolt. I’m very selective now, since I have so little time for watching television, but I still feel a need to know what the new programs are.

The US Open (tennis) begins the last week of August and ends the second week in September. This is my favorite tennis tournament. It’s in the United States and close to where I live. I’ve spent days on the bleachers in the hot sun watching some of the best players in the world do what they do best. The bleachers are hard, the food is past expensive, the sun can be hot, yet the experience is priceless.

I love picking apples and making applesauce, apple jelly, stewed apples, apple pies, apple cobbler, apple brown betty, apple crisp, baked apples, apple turnovers, and all manner of apple dishes. Apples are the only fruit that I like when it’s cooked. I’d rather eat fruit fresh and raw, but for the American staple, I’m right in there enjoying it in any form. Years ago I used to go to a farm and pick vegetables and then can or freeze them. Then I’d go to orchards and pick fruit, peaches, apples, strawberries, blue berries, pears and make jams and jellies. I still like the apple dishes and look forward to cooking them every year. Nothing is better than a warm kitchen, smelling of apples and sugar, on a crisp September day.

These are all the things I love about September.

What I dislike about September is mainly that darkness comes early. The days no longer have the same amount of daylight. I love the daylight and in September it gets noticeably darker earlier. I get more accomplished when the amount of sunlight is longer. When it’s dark, I feel like my day is over and I should prepare for bed.

But the sunsets in September are spectacular. I can say this about all sunsets, no matter the season. They are all different. In September the sun is a huge red-orange ball dipping in the sky. Even driving home after a long day at work, the sunset commands that you notice it, practically forcing you to look at it. No matter how bad your day may have been, the sunset gives you a sense of wonder.

There’s more to love about September than dislike about it. Yes, it means winter is coming, but that also holds a lot of exhilaration. Embrace September. Enjoy it. And marvel at how much of your life you fondly remember that took place in September.

Shirley

18 comments:

Michele L. said...

Hi Shirley,

What I like about September most is the weather. It starts getting cooler. I like warm weather but not sweltering hot, humid weather like we have in the summer. April, May, September and October are my favorite months. I wish you a happy fall season Shirley!

Michele

Tori Lennox said...

It hasn't gotten all that much cooler here yet. And the humidity is awful. Makes me glad I don't have to go outside much. :)

I'm ready for cooler weather, but not colder. I'm not a big fan of winter.

I am, however, looking forward to something besides reruns. *g*

Susan said...

Shirley, I am right there with you with the Fall clothes! Then you have the trees just starting to turn colors.

Unknown said...

I love Sept. to because the days start to cool off, it hasn't happened yet and we start getting more or should. Sept is a good time to take walks although the days are getting shorter. I love walks on cool evenings

Shirley Hailstock said...

Michele,

Thank you. If you've watched any of the weather in the NYC area (US Open included) you know the weather has been perfect. The last two days the humity has gone up, but there's a cold front coming and we'll see more comfortable days.

Shirley

Shirley Hailstock said...

Tori,

I'm a fan of all seasons, including winter. I grew up in the cold north -- Buffalo -- we know snow. There are a lot of fun things you can do in the winter and that wine by the fire is just one of them.

Shirley

Shirley Hailstock said...

Susan,

Our trees don't turn until October. So the weather depend on where you are, but the promise of fall foilage is evident.

I have a red maple in my front yard. It's small and when the afternoon sun shines through it, it looks like a burning bush. It's gorgeous. That only happens in the fall because of the position of the sun and the long rays.

I love the change too.

Shirley

Shirley Hailstock said...

Virginia,

I walk everyday during my lunch hour. Only when the temperature or wind chill factor is below zero do I stay indoors. Usually I walk two miles.

when the weather cools, it's just perfect walking weather. This past week has been wonderful.

Shirley

Heather E. Andrews said...

I am with deseng..I love the cool weather. The summer always feels so stifling in upstate new york!

Tam G. said...

I love the slightly cooler weather in September, I wouldn't want it to be any cooler.

Shirley Hailstock said...

Heather,

The weather has been gorgeous here in NJ. I noticed this morning that the trees have begun to turn colors. The one in my front yard has begun dropping its leaves.

Prelude to winter.

Shirley

Shirley Hailstock said...

Tam,

I'm glad the change is gradual. But I like it colder too. I love the winter sports. When I was younger we used to ice skate on the pool. That sounds strange. The pool was only three feet deep at it's deepest point.

The city would free the water in winter and we'd haul our skates out. This was in Buffalo, NY.

Strange the memories of those days are all warm.

Shirley

robynl said...

Been there done that with the apples- Apple Butter, Apple Sauce, Apple juice, fruit, etc. Love it all.

Shirley Hailstock said...

Robyn,

Robyn,

I got my copy of Martha Stewart's LIVING magazine yesterday and there are oodles of recipes for apples. Some of them sound delicious in that I like all the ingredients and they appear to work well together.

Last night I couldn't resist trying one that had molasses in it. It was delicious and the preperation time was only 20 minutes.

You know I like easy and quick. And the house smelled so good.

Shirley

Sue A. said...

I can't say I'm a fan of summer. I really hate hot weather. For that reason my two favorite seasons are spring and fall. Fall use to be a cold season here but with the global change in weather it has become a very pleasant season and may become my favorite season.

Shirley Hailstock said...

Sue,

I like all the seasons, but global warming scares me.

Shirley

diane said...

September is the beginning of change, a new school year and great changes in the weather which I love. SO much to look forward to and enjoy. The Balloon Fiesta, walks in the park and just enjoying this remarkable season.

Shirley Hailstock said...

Diane,

I love hot air balloons. In one of my books I had a heroine who flew them.

There's a balloon festival here in N.J. next month. We usually go to a hilly area and watch them take off. What a beautiful sight with all that color in the sky.

Shirley