Fall, Finally

The St. Louis area had an unseasonably warm October. Mid-month when the temperatures dipped into the 50°F range I got out my fall and winter wardrobe and put all but a handful of short sleeved shirts away. Four days later things jumped back up into the mid and high 70°s. The early fall shirts got pushed to the back and stayed there for the rest of the month.

But today finally felt like Fall. The change back to Standard time meant that it was less than completely dark when I got up. It was cool and gloomy all day; the dusk to dawn sensor pathway lights outside the condo building never turned off. And thanks to the change sunset occurred at 5:03.

Looking at the ten-day forecast I decided there would be no more eating outside. It was time to cover the table and chairs on the deck.

Needpix

Every year when I uncover the small rectangular bistro table and two chairs I think that this year will be the one I invest in a dedicated waterproof cover to use in the fall. Then all of a sudden it's the end of the season and the outdoor furniture department at the hardware store has turned into the holiday decoration department. The first year it happened I bought a tarp and set of bungee cords and MacGyvered the protection into place. I've done the same thing every year since.

After unfolding the tarp I draped it over the table and chairs, then pulled it down snugly, lifting up the table and chair legs and putting them on top of the tarp to help hold it in place. I folded in the excess tarp at each end, used the bungee cords to secure it at the bottom, and called the job done.