1. Leaves. Orangey and red and crunchy and on the ground waiting for you to shuffle through them. There's a school down the block from us and when the kids get out at 3 o'clock I can hear them shuffling through leaves just outside my office window. So even if I'm inside, I can HEAR fall. 2. Bright sunny days with a crisp chill in the air. Turns out Michigan excels at this. (It puts on a good spring, too, but this is it's time to shine.)
3. Sweaters and general bundling-up-ness. The aforementioned should be worn, preferably, with your comfiest jeans and maybe some old boots you've been dying to drag out of storage.
4. Soups and stews. I'm not the world's best cook, but it's hard to go wrong tossing a hodge-podge of produce together and making something warm and hearty. It impresses people disproportionately.
5. Knitting. Sure, I dabble a little in knitting all year round, but fall's when the weight and texture of the yarns really catch my eye again and the idea of hauling around a big, wooly project doesn't seem like insanity.
6. Taking pictures. I enjoy it year-round, but trying to capture the brilliant hues of autumn is one of my very favorite things. Even if all my shots come out looking like Audobon Society calendars. Whatever.
*In case you were wondering.