Day 233
Well, I thought their leaving would have been more ceremonious … like the scene of the flying monkeys in the Wizard of Oz. Flocks of cicada flying off into the sunset … flocks or herds or whatever of those creepy critching things (bugs or frogs, I never did find out!) … walking or hopping off somewhere as well.
But, all of a sudden … without nary a nod of the head let alone a formal good-bye … they are gone.
QUIET REIGNS ONCE AGAIN.
I imagine that as a newspaper headline in Times Roman bold, 2″ high … smack center across every tabloid within earshot.
But nothing. No parades. No banners. No headlines. No good-byes.
Just quiet.
And, to say I’m a little disappointed, would be an understatement because I thought I’d notice it IMMEDIATELY.
Instead we had a few days of cold weather and clouds and rain and then, I realized, 2 days after the fact that we had also changed seasons and it was now, indeed, AUTUMN and remarkably quiet!
Maybe those noisy critters die off as the autumnal equinox happens. Maybe they walked to Mexico. Maybe they hopped. I don’t know. All I know is, is that they are GONE.
And it’s not that I MISS them … oh dear, not those obnoxious noisy creatures … but I can now hear OTHER things. Like the nearby traffic or my neighbors arriving home and the slamming of their car doors. Maybe I was oblivious to the other sounds around me, that were happening, because I was so focused on the singing and critching of what was in the trees. Who knows?
In any case … it’s quiet. Blissfully quiet. No bugs. No frogs. Just the occasional acorn plopping onto the roof and rolling off the edge. And those blasted airplanes. THOSE I can still hear!
However, Autumn … my favorite season … has arrived and I, for one, couldn’t be happier. Not only does it mean no more scritching/singing/chirping … but it also means no more sweltering days … no more slobberpuss of sweatness … no more needing 3 showers a day to just function. And there is not even the slightest chance that anyone will see me in a muumuu!
I was driving around these past few days and all of a sudden the trees are starting to turn. There is a forest preserve nearby and a nice windy road alongside it … and the reds are peeking out along with some oranges and yellows. Jack Frost has been busy.
I am looking forward to a midwestern autumn. The Denver area had some nice falls over the past 30 some years … but, more than not, we’d get some yellows and then we’d get snow and then everything would die and we’d have brown until May. So, bring on the show! I’m ready for it.
I can’t wait to see what my new neighborhood looks like … in the next month it’ll be just gorgeous, I’m sure of it. And the best thing? No critching bugs to distract me from enjoying the beauty!