Yup. First Days of Fall Are Upon Us, and I'm Beginning to Fall Into a Productive Routine. Write. Analyze. Write, Right?

Actually, I'm counting the number of leaves on my running trail each day, and even more that have fallen by the time I take Glamis for an evening walk after dinner.

The windows are open during the day and shut at night (well, downstairs...I don't want the dog barking at passing-by raccoons). I've taken to wearing sweatshirts with my shorts, and suddenly I'm craving apples and pumpkin pie. It's fun to find football games on the television, and to have the sun set about 7:30 (more hours to be at the grind behind a computer without feeling guilty that it is so nice outside).

I've decided this sabbatical thing is like chiseling a sculpture. I'm not sure exactly what is becoming of it, but slowly the projects are taking shape: interviews transcribed, data sorted, proposals written, reports given, books organized, outlets found, and days filled to the brim. I feel like I'm back in dissertation mode where I nerded out to the max....tv on, but mute...sitting in my writing chair...thinking, and thinking, and thinking.

Yet, when I run...or when I walk...I'm focused on what matters more. Exercise. Fresh air. The changing season. Autumn and the winter ahead. It got me thinking about what I'm looking forward to most over the next couple of months.

1. Pulling out my Polo running tights (I've had them since I was 25). Love running in them.
2. Apple picking.
3. The NWP Annual Meeting (in Minneapolis this year).
4. Hearing news of college basketball creeping on the horizon.
5. The return of Empire and Scandal.
6. Sleeping with the windows open (and needing a blanket to curb the chill).
7. An eventual return to American Honey to warm the stomach.
8. Cravings for Spaghetti and Chili.
9. Trick or Treaters (I'm destined to be swamped in this neighborhood, I'm sure).
10. The skies. I love the skies, trees, and atmosphere at this time of year.

In high school, the season meant Friday night football games and Saturday nights supporting Cynde while she marched with the Northstars. In Louisville, it meant U of L football games and the St. James Art Fair. Back to Syracuse, it meant marching band with Nikki and SU football games (plus a helluva lot of studying for my doctorate). Now, it means it's just months before I can return home to Syracuse to see my family once again!