Autumn Envy

So, those of you who don't live in Southern California need to know that yesterday and today were hotter than the most hot days of this last summer.  I can't tell you how many times we played during summer vacation at Raging Waters, our local water park, where I froze to the point of discomfort, because the water was so much more cold than the summer air was warm.  I would have been so happy for today on one of those days.  Instead, I have today, with all its summer heat, and a London Broil roasting in the oven--something I wouldn't have dreamed of doing in August.

In fact, I told Tessa that the Pumpkin Spice coffee I bought at Fresh and Easy has to stay in the cupboard until the outside temperatures are worthy of the aroma.

It's hard to be in the spirit of fall with a sundress on.  And my sundress is pink and yellow, hardly in line with Autumn Chic.  It got me to thinking.  We need to come up with an autumn line for women that showcases the colors of fall, in summer-like fabrics and designs.  That way, we can pseudo do fall, but yet not pass out with heat stroke because we're in tweed.

It's kind of awkward, this time of year.  It's when we in California look upon the midwest and east coast weather reports on Good Morning America with no small amount of envy.  We hear talk of the brilliance of your fall colors, while we stare at the same purple petunias we've been having to water since March, when we planted them.  In the not-frozen soil.  In the warm soil.  That March day when we got a sunburn because it was so sunny, and our skin was exposed because we were wearing a tank top because it was so warm outside.

OK, so that's when we pay you all back.  It's in February, when we go out to the beach and snap a nice shot of the kids playing near the Seal Beach Pier in nothing more than a hoodie, while the rest of America is knee-deep in snow.  And tired of it.  It's then, that we pay you back for the way you make us feel with the crispness of your autumns, and the beauty of your white Christmases.  We give it right back, with a Wish You Were Here shot of us by the pool in January, and we plaster it all over Facebook.

Know, when we do it, it's because of the depth of our envy last October, when you wiped the frost off of your pumpkins before carving them, and then placed them with a bright smile and a warm glow on a window sill looking outside from a cozy house.  While we, in California, had the air conditioner on.  Still.

There is no such thing as paradise on earth.  Well, there is, but we're not talking about paradise, now, are we?  We're talking about Autumn envy, and I have it in spades.

I just checked my dinner in the oven, and I could hear my poor dog panting.  I think I'll have to give him a bath tomorrow to keep him cool.  In the back yard.  With the hose.  While I'm there, I'll water my over-grown tomato plant that I'm so tired of.

I miss my four seasons of Nebraska.  Frost, and a hard freeze should never be taken for granted.