Cuddling, nuzzling, and dreams of guzzling

Fall fell this week. Walking barefoot in the driveway is now comfortably uncomfortable. The fleece (that's plural for fleece, I guess) came down from the top of the closet. The sweatpants made a return visit to my bum. Daylight is getting ready for bed a little earlier than usual and I don't have any problem tucking it in.

After six months of sleeping single under a single sheet, I'm finding my way back under the comforter with my wife. Her warmth is too much for the summer, but she makes a loving radiator come autumn.

The dog feels it, too. Her early morning trips to the backyard for Barkfest 2001 have dwindled in number. She likes to stay under the comforter and somehow sandwich herself between two people who have found renewed comfort in the art of the spoon-cuddle.

And perhaps best of all, LEAF is only a few weeks away. We will climb the mountain, pitch our tents, and shiver until we've had enough anti-freeze. I'm taking a four-day weekend for that trip and plan to spend every minute of it appreciating my friends/family.

It won't be too long before I'm bitching about cleaning up fallen leaves or standing in a sleet storm because a producer wants a live shot from the dog and pony show. But for the next few weeks, everything will fall under the heading of "I wish it could stay like this forever."

Even as the world crumbles around us, we can count on autumn to make us appreciate the things we sometimes neglect or forget entirely.

The good things are all around me. My brother called from Med school to check in (that's what we called it in college...just checking in). Two great friends are making a baby. My wife is learning Spanish...not out of obligation, but out of desire.

I haven't said or even thought this in a long time...in part because I've always been a brooder without a reason to brood...and in part because everything seems so screwed up everywhere.

Nevertheless...I think it's all going to be all right.