The Best Of... in a Year #MFRWauthor

Good Day to you all, and welcome back for another installment of the MFRW Author Blog's 52-Week Blog Challenge.

It is Week 38 today, and the topic of discussion is: The Best Parts of Each Season

With it being the first official day of Autumn today... and a sweltering 91 degrees F outside, I'll begin with Autumn and work my way around the Four-Quarter cycle of life.

AUTUMN

Autumn

As an amateur photographer, Scenic shots are what I most gravitate towards (and are likely the simplest form of the hobby to obtain).

It isn't my favorite season in a year, and in my head, it comes second as far as prolific beauty, color, and attraction go.

What I think is cool about Autumn are the shift in sun's position from our backyard to the front yard, yes, the trees and shrubs going from green to WOW!, and especially the gradual (sometimes abrupt) change in the temperature.

Autumn is a sad time for me, though, because I know what's coming, and in Michigan, it rarely bodes well.

BUT!

It is also GREAT because it hosts one of my all-time favorite holidays (LOL) HALLOWEEN!

I get to wear Jeans again, too!

Leaves

The 'doesn't bode well' Season...

WINTER

Great Lakes Winter

Now, I'll do my best to remain on the Positive Side of things since it is what this challenge asks of me, but...

There is cozy-ing up in a comfy chair, wrapped in a warm blanket, wearing snug slippers and a wool hat, a hot cup of tea steaming nearby, and my Kindle in hand.

WATCHING snow fall is extraordinary (having to shovel it, not so much) SORRY!

Here's what I think is INTERESTING about Winter (where I live).

There is a Native Legend in our city that is quite murky in facts, but the gist is that the Natives knew our city was an Odd Spot on the map in that it rarely receives rain while all around it is storming.

I'd include actual footage of that very phenomenon here, but I think it is too long to sit through and likely just as boring.

More times than I care to recall, I've watched one thunderstorm after the other rumble on through to our north, the south, and even from West to East (directly over us) before erupting in violent splendor less than a mile from the house.

HOWEVER!

When Winter rolls around, that same phenomena doesn't seem to work.

If it's going to snow, it will snow.

a day at EMU

Sure, we don't usually get the max totals our neighboring cities do, but that doesn't really matter when you're outside in sub-zero temps with a shovel in hand, having to un-bury your car and the driveway seven times in less than 12 hours.

Still, it can be a beautiful time of the year (that lasts wa-ay too long where I'm from) SORRY!

Windblown snow in sunlight produces them beautiful sparkles, and a lot of houses are decked out in fairy lights of varying colors and sizes, and it is blissfully QUIET around here at all times of the day/night (save the occasional storm that summons the March of Blowers to removal duty), and just an overall sense of calm.

I get to wear my fleece-lined boots again!

Average Rate for One Snowfall

Okay, so far, so good...

I think?

Keepin' it Real (for me) is the best anyone can ask of me here.

SPRING

I Think its Pretty

When I said Autumn comes in Second for Color Show, it's because I think that Spring beats it hands-down.

And that's likely because I love the way the trees look in Spring more than I do in Autumn.

Redbud - Wilson Bros Gardens

Chief Cherokee Dogwood

Crabapple - (Hunker.com)

the Chartreuse of a Willow (thetreecenter.com)

It's RENEWAL TIME, and after a nine-month long winter, with maybe a 3-week window on Spring, it is my favorite Season of the year.

I honestly can't recall experiencing a real Spring here, but the trees never fail me.

It'll still be snowing here, bitterly cold, or just winter's stubbornly refusing to let go, yet the trees will always do what they're supposed to do regardless, and that gives me hope.

I'd like to be able to visit a place where there is a Real Spring that starts on time, lasts Four Months, and gradually turns to Summer because that never happens here.

Winter clings with its icy grasp sometimes through May, which is a bummer, but I do know somewhere out there is a place with a real four-month Spring period, and I'm just as anxious to visit now as I was when I was a kid going to Easter Sunday mass in a snowsuit and gloves.


And which is why I am SO in love with

Summer

Yes, it Actually Rained

Since we are robbed of a true Spring here, I have always looked forward to Summer in Michigan.

Windows open, bulky clothing stored (fleese-lined boots preciously wrapped in plastic), and longer days.

The equinox occurs again, shifting sunset to our backyard, where it's much easier and less infringed upon to take pictures.

The hotter, steamier the temps, the better, I say!

The two combined are supposed to increase the chance of there being a storm, which is the #1 thing I look forward to in the Summer.

I already discussed the Native Folklore surrounding that issue, though.

At least I get to 'listen' to distant storms day and night, and that is better than nothing to me.

I like that I don't have to work during this season, and that for at least two of the four months it is supposed to occur, Summer is hot, muggy, and for the most part, sunny.

Summer makes me feel alive and want to get out and DO things, so I travel a lot, take hundreds of pictures of 'stuff', and stay awake much later than usual.

It is a noisy time of the year, though, but with my trusty stand fan beside me while I'm writing, the noise levels decrease somewhat.

Some of my favorite flowers bloom in summer, too.

Earthsky.org

KingSeeds.com

Gardenia.net

Bugs may be an issue at this time of year, but the other day I actually saw a HONEY BEE gathering pollen from our garden, and instead of freaking out the way I usually do (not deathly allergic, but I do suffer a horrific case of 'blow up' that turns black and hard as rock), I smiled and watched as he worked tirelessly to do his job.

A honey bee.

Imagine that?

Thanks SO much for stopping by and reading my post!

Please scroll down to the Linky Link to read more about The Best Part of Each Season from others involved in this 52-Week Challenge.