Well, the official first day of fall came and went, and I didn’t even mention it, except a few hundred subtle allusions to it I’ve made in other posts. That is, until now. Yesterday was the proper and official introduction of autumn. Here in Houston, we pull out our sweaters more as a measure of good faith than necessity. It just seems like the right thing to do after the dog days of summer. But there is a moment, not to be missed, the autumnal equinox (in the northern hemisphere) when the center of the sun is directly over the earth’s equator set by the earth’s revolution around the sun. At this moment, due east and west can be set exactly and precisely. It is believed that is how the ancient Mayans formed their amazingly accurate calendar, and Stonehenge was strategically set. For 2008, it fell on September 22 at 10:44 a.m. CST. For my friends in Brazil, this same moment marked their first day of spring in the southern hemisphere, due to the tilt of the earth either away or toward the sun. All these factoids culminate in one reminder. It is a good day to check your smoke detectors and change their batteries. Another thing my security alarm guy told me is to vacuum them or clean the dust off during this time. Dust can cause them not to work properly. So there you have it: a science lesson and hints from Heloise all in the same post. Happy Fall, everyone!
To everything, there is a season and a time to every purpose under heaven – Ecclesiastes 3:1