Autumn

I woke up to the sounds of the Chicago Marathon this morning. Honking, sirens, cheering - all of it started around 8 am. I crept out of bed and peeked out my window around 8:30, but there were no runners yet. Within an hour, Clark was covered in marathoners at their halfway mark. I can't imagine running 26.2 miles; even a half marathon would be too much for me. But I have to respect the thousands of runners who train and train for this one event. I may be disciplined, but doing a marathon isn't really my thing.

It's finally fall in Chicago and I love it. It came about suddenly (as the seasons tend to do in this city) going from 85 to 55. The first few days of cooler weather were the yucky fall days, the kind where the sky is oppressively gray, the wind whips against your too-thin coat, and it feels like winter is just around the corner. Today, however, the clouds parted and the sun came out for a more ideal fall day. These are the days I like, where the sun keeps you warm and your too-thin coat is just enough to keep away the chill. I even wore flip flops today, knowing that I only have a few more days of not wearing closed toe shoes. The trees are starting to change over (although there are few in the city) and I've finally realized that it's October. Pumpkin carving and Halloween costumes are on the way.

I'll finish the day with the usual Sunday traditions: a crossword puzzle, takeout from the Pasta Bowl, and some ABC hour-long shows. It's already a great start to the week.

(I ran into the Returning Ex yesterday at the Art Institute of all places. Now he's stuck in my head like a bad Ashlee Simpson song. Aargh.)