Six reasons to celebrate fall

(Photo courtesy of Ed Schipul on Flickr under CC license)

BY STEPHANIE COSBY, Staff Writer

The leaves are changing colors and the air is getting cooler and more crisp each day. As we move closer to the official start of fall, I can’t help pulling a 2009 MTV VMAs Kanye West: “Yo summer, I’m really happy for you, I’ma let you finish, but fall is the best season of all time. The best season of all time!”

While fall means the start of a new semester, a heavier workload and another hectic schedule to adjust to, it also brings quite a few things worth celebrating:

1. Cider mills: Is there anything better on a chilly autumn day than a warm cinnamon-sugar donut washed down with a glass of freshly made apple cider? No. No, there is not (besides football, but we’ll get to that in a moment.) After spending all week cooped up in a classroom or an office, taking a couple of hours to wander through the pumpkin patch or to hop on a hayride can be just the refresher you need.

2. Sports: After waiting patiently all year, it’s finally time to don our maize and blue on Saturdays and honolulu blue on Sundays to cheer our beloved football teams to victory (hopefully). Nothing beats weekdays full of fantasy football and ESPN predictions, and weekends out tailgating and yelling “Hail to the victors!” with 100,000 other people.

3. The End of Construction Season: While this whole thing is about why fall rules, any savvy Michigander knows there are actually only two seasons in this state: Construction and No Construction. I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty excited for a time when I don’t have to tack an extra 30 minutes on to my commutes because Ford, 275, M-14 and 96 are ALL shut down or backed up with orange cones and lane closures.

4. Election Day: While the endless campaign ads and donation solicitations that come with the presidential election can get irritating, it’s still an incredibly important rite of passage to choose our President, our State Representatives, our Senators, and more. Why? Because these are the people who will be making, interpreting and enforcing laws that will affect all of us. Voting is a privilege that not every country has, so take advantage of it and make your voice heard. Check out www.mivote.org, a collaboration between UM-Dearborn and Detroit Public Television, to learn more about your candidates and issues before you go to the polls in November.

5. Clothing: Chillier weather means it’s time to start wrapping up in comfortable sweaters and scarves and to bust out those boots you haven’t been able to wear because it’s been too hot. This time of year is perfect, because a few light layers is enough to keep you cozy– not too hot, not too cold, but juuust right.

6. Seasonal treats: Technically cider and donuts fall into this category, but the cider mill experience is in a class of its own. This one is reserved for pumpkin flavored fare like the Starbucks pumpkin spiced latte and the Tim Horton’s pumpkin spiced donut. These elusive goods are only available for a few months each year, and put a delicious twist on the typical coffee and snack run.

These are just a few perks to this short, but perfect season. Now that you’ve reflected on it for a moment, go outside and enjoy it!