After a few days of mid-summer weather (90s, humid), my calendar says fall is right around the corner, even if the weather doesn’t. I love fall. It’s my favorite time of year.

Living in the upper-Midwest, fall can be just spectacular. Soon, the days will be warm and the evenings chilly. Woodfire smoke (not the Canadian kind) will spice the air. Leaves will begin to color the horizon red, orange, and yellow. Football becomes a weekend staple along with a shift in dinner menus – less grill, more oven.

A little town north of me named Gay’s Mills is considered by some, the Apple Capital of the World. Minimally, it is the Apple Capital of Wisconsin. This gorgeous area and town, includes 10,000 acres of apple orchards, producing just about every variety of apple. For me, it is a ritual stop in early September. Here’s a bit more about Gay’s Mills and their apples: http://www.gaysmills.org/apples.html

Pumpkin patches are plentiful in my “neck of the woods” and the farmer’s markets that my wife and I shop, filling fast with the orange fruit. This is peak farm market season in the Driftless Region ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Driftless_Area ) with vegetables still plentiful and apples, pumpkins, and squash (all varieties) now available. I’m still grabbing the remaining pick of Roma tomatoes for Marinara sauce and Vodka sauce. My freezer is getting stuffed!

My favorite two holidays are celebrated in fall, Halloween and Thanksgiving: both for me, are full of memories from my childhood, all good. I love the costumes, Trick or Treating, pumpkin carving, etc., that is Halloween. I think we decorate the house nearly as much for Halloween as for Christmas.

Thanksgiving is cool as it is a day to give thanks, to share the harvest bounty, and to gather with friends and family. We have a big spread on Thanksgiving, traditional of course. I do the cooking, generally the whole meal but depending on guests, I may get lucky and have desserts made for me (brought by others). Football is a must as are turkey sandwiches the day after and our customary jaunt to a Christmas tree farm to harvest the family tree! Tree farms are plentiful in our region and each year God grants me the vitality, the Mrs. and I carefully choose a tree, and I cut it down by hand saw. Often, our daughter and son-in-law accompany us on the tree hunt.

So, on this Hump Day, pre-fall, I’ve included a couple of goodies for all readers. The first is a must clip from Charlie Brown/Peanuts, celebrating a fall ritual. https://youtu.be/bDH7ZZxhkrM

The second treat is a bit of music called the Great Pumpkin Waltz. Of course, the music is recognizable from the Peanuts feature, “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown”. Speakers on! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uINn4mkqL0M