Summer's End

The day ran long today, and I realized as I stepped into the revolving door to walk outside, I had no idea whether to expect it to feel cool outside, or warm.

It being September here in the land between tidewater and piedmont, it was neither - and both, of course.

The humidity was enough to give a certain sensation of warmth - but also enough to keep heat from feeling penetrating.  It was dank and muggy at once, and the overcast sky did nothing to make the day feel steamy, but its stillness did nothing to chill the damp.

It won't be long before the needle falls to "cool" and heat will be the function of sunshine, of an odd afternoon, and evenings will be consistently crisp.  If we're more fortunate than last year, we will get cold - not just a little, but actual winter.  That would be immensely reassuring - and I know that is only asking for a haywire climate to go wild with sleet, and blizzards, and ugliness.  But 80-degree winters and 105-degree summers aren't natural around here.  Even a mass of snow would seem almost normal, after last year's tropical un-winter.