Happy Fall!

If you're a regular and long-time reader of this blog, or if you know me personally, it's no secret that fall is my favorite season, and as of today, it's here. It's officially autumn. Happy Fall, friends!

I'm in Love

Fall is here and I'm in love with:

Wandering the State Fair, standing in line for deep-fried fresh-cut fries, potato pinwheels, pizza, local ice cream, and pb&j on a stick, petting the goats, gasping at the size of cow udders, ugly laughing at Vicki and Dwayne scrapbook pages, hurtling down the giant yellow slide on potato sacks, spending the evening with wonderful friends.

Clicking on the Mammoth Hot Springs webcam last week and seeing elk grazing on the lawn out in front of the Albright Visitor Center. (We got married at Mammoth seven years ago this month and several of our wedding photos have grazing elk in the background.)

Driving home from work last night, passing the local high school and wondering why the big crowd, and suddenly realizing it was the first football game of the season and that I could hear the noise of the game and crowd from my deck at home.

Visiting my dad at work and getting sent home with fresh, just-picked-yesterday Brigham City peaches.

Wearing my favorite fleece vest all day and still being a bit chilly despite.

Listening to my "fall music" in season, and having lyrics like "Summer's beginning to give up her fight" ("Mystery", Indigo Girls) finally apply. James Taylor is fall music to me too.

Taking RSVPs for our annual Fall Fest party, where we cook up a big pot of spicy chili and a couple of pans of apple crisp, and serve it all with pumpkin ale and good conversation.

I love this season.

Good Luck Bear

Yesterday our five-year old neighbor, Vivian, brought over this picture of Good Luck Bear that she had colored for us. I nearly cried, I was so touched that she thought of us enough to color us a picture. We promptly made a batch of chocolate chip cookies and took them over to thank her. We told her we were going to hang it on the fridge and she smiled and said, "That's what everyone says!" It's really on our fridge though. It's amazing how a five-year old can restore your faith in humanity, and attest to the mere existence and strength of human kindness.

I'll Smile

I'd love to write something heartfelt and lovely, something explaining my current reflective state of mind (mirror... reflective. get it? ha ha) but really, I've been staring at this blank "create a new post" space for about a half hour now and really, nothing is coming to me. Dave Matthews Band's cover of "The Maker" is playing through iTunes, and I'm listening intently to LeRoi's beautifully moving saxaphone that now haunts this song, and feeling sad for him, his family, his friends, his fans. LeRoi passed away unexpectedly August 19.
It might seem odd to be upset about the loss of a man I never met, but LeRoi (and Dave, Boyd, Carter and Stefan) has been a part of my life since I was 17. From the very first time I heard "Ants Marching" on the Mountain 105.7, I was hooked. I went to my first DMB concert at 18, and felt so lucky to be on the 17th row. I was dazzled. I was in love. I lost my voice that night, and it's no wonder after all the screaming I did when they began "Two Step". This band is the only band I've stuck with since high school. I have new favorites, but this is my mainstay. I grew up with DMB and I can't help but wonder what the band will be like now that LeRoi is gone. Time will tell, and the band will endure. I can't wait to see them again, and we will soon (as soon as the postponed Usana show is rescheduled), but in the meantime, I'll listen to my favorite band and reflect on the great times I've had at all the shows I've seen since that first one, and I'll smile (grin, really) when I think of all the memories that were made when DMB was on in the car, the house, and the iPod. DMB is in heavy rotation on the soundtrack of my life and that'll never change. LeRoi, RIP good friend.