Fall: The Season of Creepy Things!

After one of the shortest summers in Newcastle history, I was hoping Fall wouldn’t arrive so quickly. How can we be in the Season of Dark already, I wonder? Our PNW summers may be short, but they are nearly perfect with the extra sunshine, the fabulous mountains and lakes nearby, and people enjoying outside together. Fall, on the other hand, is kind of creepy, and here’s why:

Extended Darkness. That’s the Number One creepy thing, in my opinion: darkness! It gets dark way too early! And do you know what you see when it’s dark outside? Optical illusions. I keep spooking myself when I walk past my neighbors’ house in the evenings because a nearby evergreen looks like a woman lurking next to their car. Whew! It’s just a shrub, and it gets me every time.

Spiders. Spiders are creepy because they appear out of nowhere and move FAST! They run across my bedroom floor. They spin sticky cobwebs across my front doorjamb, all over my car, and the light posts in my yard. And because of the darkness, I regularly walk right into the cobwebs. Even thinking about it makes me itchy! Add the darkness to the cobwebs, and it’s possibly the best reason to stay inside.

Fog. Blankets of fog roll up our hillside like living creatures overnight, increasing the freaky factor exponentially. Have you ever noticed zombies emerge from the fog in almost every scary movie? Then they stun their victims, chase them down, and eat their brains! I’ll keep my brain, thank you very much!

Rain and wind. While people from the PNW are no strangers to rain, the rain-and-wind combo sounds extremely eerie. Add a couple of creaking branches to make sounds and cast shadows, and you have another excellent reason to stay inside.

Thankfully, the landscape is still beautiful with its vibrant fall foliage during the shorter daylight hours. The red, yellow, and burnt umber tones decorate our parks and yards. The cool, crisp air is delicious to breathe. We can drink our pumpkin spice lattes, eat homemade soup, and watch the creepy things come to life from safe inside our homes.