It's so cold the kids noticed.

I think of Halloween as the official end of summer in Ohio, not Labor Day. After Labor Day we can have several solid weeks of perfect weather, like we did this year. However, almost without pause, the week after Halloween undergoes a sea change and it's suddenly and irreversibly miserable. In our neighborhood at least, Halloween is a big deal, owing in part to the smart people we know who don't equate trick-or-treating with either childhood obesity or devil worship. It's just kids blowing off steam and nabbing some Hershey's along the way. I've noticed too that Halloween is often the last big night where neighbors socialize outside before the cold snap shows up and we all head inside until mid-April.

The last two days were so damp and "ugh" that even OC said, "It's chilly willy outside." You got that right, sister. As long as we live in the midwest, time to get used to it.