If I could go back north for one season and one season only, it would be fall. A real fall, not this southern bs. One day it's 100 degrees and then BAM it’s 'winter'. This is no life to live. You have to gradually down shift into winter (again, real winter). The cold builds character, the beauty of fall makes you forget the winter is fast approaching and that you'll won't see sunlight for 3 months. Here are the things that I miss about a real, midwestern, fall.

The Leaves

The transition of the temperature is also seen on trees. Raking leaves, walking your dog and listening to them crunch under your feet. Bright oranges, reds, purples. That’s where the colors of fall come from. If the south had picked the colors of fall, the only colors would be green and brown. One day the leaves are on trees and they’re green, the next they’re one the ground, brown and dead.

Apple Picking

While not a cheap fall activity, it was a huge part of my childhood. Driving to the country and paying about $1000, you get your own apples. While they are no Costco apples, they are literally the fruit of your labor.

Sweater Weather

Not just for the freezing classroom, but a mild chill outside that requires the coziest of sweaters, and the fuzziest of socks. Although fall does require a different wardrobe from other seasons, the beauty of it is that you can usually mix and match your summer and winter attire.

Acorns

True evil in the tiniest form. The oaks in the north, although not as shady and gorgeous, do have their own majestic beauty. In the fall, half of their foliage is acorns. They fall in fall. Fall on your head, fall on your car, and fall in your yard and clog the lawnmower. They are terribly pesky. Much like the squirrels who store them.

Bonfires

Your mom hates them because they make all of your sweatshirts reek of burning things. However, high school romances blossom here and you feel incredibly cool while gathered around them. They’re actually needed to keep warm. Ya know, because it’s not a hundred degrees in October.

The cold builds character. Fall is a brief transition when we forget that winter is upon us. We forget the frigid temperatures and all of the layers we pile on ASAP. However, I did leave it for a reason, using the pool eight months out of the year is pretty frickin' sweet.