Falling Thoughts (Bad Puns are Cool)

From last year... 

As the new style of this blog has probably led you to believe, I have Fall on the brain.  As recently as four days ago it was damn hot.  Like, REALLY hot (the news told me that with the humidity it felt like nearly 40 degrees Celsius, which translates to about 104 degrees Fahrenheit!).  But the last couple of days things have cooled down a lot, it's become slightly damp instead of humid, the wind has been blowing loudly through the trees, and I've been bundled up in warm sweaters, delighting in having everyone finally agree to opening all the windows (in the summertime my family always wants all the windows closed and the air on, even though I'd much rather have *real* air in the house, which means open windows!).  It's really starting to feel like Fall.  And I love Fall.  The smell, taste, and feel of it is singularly unique.  It's an amazing season!  Yet, at the same time, Fall is almost without fail a really emotional time for me.  Melancholy and happiness course through my system depending on the day (and in some cases, the hour), since Fall always catches me by surprise.  Is Summer really over already?  I'd swear it was Spring just a couple of weeks ago!  It reminds me of the passage of time (something that I tend to find pretty terrifying, since there never seems to be enough of it), while heralding a movement toward slowing things down, moving toward the hibernation of Winter.  Fall feels deeply spiritual to me, and usually involves a lot of deep thinking and questioning, a lot of soul searching and wondering of what-comes-next...

And also, of course, Fall to me means Samhain and dark windy nights, beautiful yellow, orange, red, and brown leaves falling and swirling through the air, to be jumped on when they land on the ground, making an incredibly satisfying crunching sound.  Fall is candles and year-end (because Fall feels more like the end of the year to me than January) campfires, warm sweaters and knit blankets and sharp air...  I miss Summer already, but I love Fall every bit as much as Summer.

This month I'll be away so much I'll probably miss seeing the beginnings of the mass change of leaf colour here, though since I'll be away in both the Toronto area and Vermont, I'll certainly see the changes there.  Last year at Not Back to School Camp (in Vermont) I marveled at the changes I could see every day. But, though I'm greatly looking forward to NBTSC, the next trip I'm going on is to the Toronto Unschooling Conference!  And (dare I admit it?), I *still* haven't written more than a snippet of the speech I'm supposed to be presenting there.  This threatens to send me spiraling, once again, into extreme stress and worry.  But, that has not happened yet, so I'll just have to (in a calm and collected manner) write it in the next few days.  I certainly have lots to say on the subject of unschooling, it's just a matter of getting it all down on paper in a somewhat organized fashion!  Wish me luck...

And forgive me for such a disjointed and generally pointless post.  I simply wanted to touch base with my lovely readers, let you know what my currently cold addled brain is thinking about, and that I'm still alive.  I might even be blogging about the Northeast Unschooling Conference (which was TERRIFIC!!) in the next few days.  Or, depending on how this cold progresses, I might just be curled up on the couch watching season 7 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer under a fuzzy blanket while listening to the leaves rustle outside the open window...  I guess time will tell.

Oh, and if you have any thoughts on the new blog layout, please share them in the comments!