Penn Editorial 10.25.11

Are you feeling the midterm slump? We certainly are.

Are you appreciating the last few weeks of autumn before Indiana descends into sloppy, frigid winter?

We're hoping to enjoy the last couple days of sunshine and adequate vitamin D before not seeing the sun again till April. In order to make ourselves feel better about the impending winter weather, we're trying to come up with as many good things about fall - or what's left of it - as we can.

There are the crunchy leaves on the sidewalks, which we go several feet out of our way to step on, their dusty smell and satisfying snap. (This is discounting the fact that they turn sidewalks, terraces and outdoor staircases into slippery death traps after frequent rainfall. We're optimists.)

There are various fall-flavored treats. Everyone suddenly cares about pumpkin again. Give it another six weeks and pumpkin will be tossed by the wayside for peppermint and gingerbread; enjoy it while it lasts.

There's Halloween. Enjoy the free candy, the constant bombardment of themed TV shows (appreciated as a relief from political ad campaigns) and, of course, people-watching as a competitive sport. Keep score. Tell all your friends to keep notebooks with them and keep a running tally of common costumes. Be careful when counting people dressed up as zombies. Some of them might not be dressed up; either they look like that all the time, or we're all in trouble.

There's the gorgeous scenery. We're not even going to be sarcastic about that one. Just go out for a walk and enjoy it.

There are sweaters, which are almost always good things, boots, hoodies and nice wool peacoats. Fewer people will probably be wearing leggings as pants, because it'll have gotten too cold for it, which can't be anything but a good thing.

It can't be forgotten that the further we trek into autumn, the closer Thanksgiving break grows, offering a joyous respite and a chance to sleep in.

And let's not forget one more thing to be glad about: we've survived the projected end of the world. Again. Congratulations, everyone.