Let the Fall Duldrums Commence!

Let it be known - I hate fall. Really, honestly, in my eyes it is the season of death and decay. Living in the Pacific Northwest, I go from days of 14+ hours of sunshine to less than 8 in the dead of winter. I get to work before the sun is completely up and leave work well after it has set - and I only work the standard 8:30-5 schedule! At least with winter you have the holiday festivities of Christmas, Hannukah, New Year's, Valentines to living things up. Plus, the week before Christmas the days begin getting longer again.

My husband, on the other hand, loves fall. He loves the colors, the baseball, the crisp air. The darkness doesn't bother him. It never used to bother me either, until I moved south to where your day light hours don't vary throughout the year. Now that I've moved back it is all that I can seem to notice.

Autumn at Green Lake 2010

Yes, its the season of lots of delicious food (pies, roasts, apple cider and hot cocoa), but those inside tasties are just a distraction for the dreary gray world that is taking shape outside. It rains a lot, the storms seemingly getting worse and worse each year - or maybe I'm just getting more affected by it. We've spent many weekends trying to make me not loathe fall. Trips to the local pumpkin farms, trips the the arboretum to see the colors, trips to the store to get all bundled up and cozy. While mildly diverting, the distraction never lasts. I'm once again stuff with the heat slowly being sucked out of me day by day just as the sun is getting sucked out the the sky.

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I am always cold, even in summer I keep a jacket handy and gloves nearby. Or maybe its the mold the sprouts on everything up here during our three damp monthes that wrecks havoc with my nose. Or maybe its all in my head - the diminishing sunlight bringing on the supposed Seasonal Affective Disorder that is much mocked up here. (Of course you're sad without the sun, suck it up like the rest of us!) I'd like to think that it's none of these more obvoius reasons, but just that out of the four seasons to choose from, I like this one the least. There's nothing wrong with not liking it, it's just that this happens to by the hubby's favorite season. This clash is where the problem lies. It's one of those things that doesn't bother you when you are just dating, but now that we're stuck with each other we must find a way to adapt. I try to be more chipper about the ever dying daylight. He tries to contain his enthusiasm to a managable level.

This year I'm trying to be more upbeat about it, but lets face it - Seattle is known for its horrible, soggy, cold fall and winter. This is the reason that people like to mock us for our rain and suicide rates. This is the season that drives people away from here. Having been born and raised here, I should be able to take it. I just miss those 70-80 degree autumns on particularly soggy days. At least there is always an excuse to get a new coat! Now if only I could find som golashes...