It’s that time of year

I think today marks the beginning of Autumn here in Maryland. I know, I know, that was officially back in September, but today is the first day when it really feels like Autumn. As Fritz and I took our morning patrol around the block this morning, the sky was that a bright blue that you really only see this time of year. We had buckets of rain yesterday, and the ground is littered with golden leaves. My neighbor up the street was packing his car to get an early start on tailgating at the Ravens game today. When we got home,  I sat down with a hot cup of coffee and Fritz got in his bed and we turned on the heater.

We don’t have a fireplace in our house, so last year we bought this little electric heater:

As you can see, except for the ugly cord sticking out the back, it looks pretty realistic. And it really gives off a lot of heat. Turning on the heater is a rite of Fall for us. It goes right along with the Wearing of the Fleece.  So that means that along with homework, laundry for the upcoming work week, and a trip to the grocery store, we need to add two annual chores: switching over the clothes in storage from the sleeveless tops to the fleece jackets, and taking the air conditioners out of the windows.

Meanwhile, Fritz is pretty happy this time of year. Sunday morning is a “special occasion,” and so he’s now up on the couch next to me. He’s had a walk around the neighborhood, had breakfast, and is sleeping. Now if I would just stop this infernal tapping sound next to him with my typing, life would be perfect. Sorry buddy, I’ll stop making so much noise …. go back to sleep.