Fall Is Here!

The weather predictions on my last day in California called for triple-digit temperatures in parts of Los Angeles, but I flew home to discover that autumn had come to the Ohio Valley.
As the plane was descending through a thick cloud cover last night, there was still enough light to see the landscape below. It was dotted with brush strokes of amber, maroon, and gold--the leaves are turning! The changing landscape and the chilly temperatures outside tell us all that autumn is here--and it's a wonderful time of the year. I love not only the fall flowers, but the excuse to make hearty food and the need to pull old friends out of the winter clothes piles stored away in the basement. I'm not looking forward to winter. But beautiful autumn can stay for as long as she wants!
I was surprised to look around outside our office building and see that the landscapers had switched out the summer flowers for beautiful yellow mums and ornamental purple kale (or is this cabbage?). Yep, no more petunias or begonias for us. Fall is here!