The Season of Fall(ing)

(Originally published in the Juneau Empire, September 2010)

Although the four seasons are known to others as Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter, my own Juneau seasons are Soggy, Sailing, Falling, and When Eaglecrest Ski Area is Open.

Falling (which some years extends into When Eaglecrest is Open) I have so named because that’s what I do come September. I fall. I have no idea why. It’s certainly not because there’s more rain to confuse my feet, nor because we suddenly have cloud cover obscuring the line between curb and street. Honestly, rain is comfort weather for a Juneauite and I’m sure the eyes of Southeast Alaskans have evolved to see contrast where others see shades of grey (insert your own witty comment about Juneau’s Democrats and Republicans here). But down I go; twisting an ankle, stubbing a toe, tripping on my own feet with a graceful flourish.

It might be that I’m worn out after Sailing (navigating the Inside Passage by wind-power is darn tiring… as is navigating downtown Juneau after the ships sail in) or that I’m calorie deprived after growing my own salad greens. Either way, come September, my body tells me I need to sit down, bring my world closer to home, my awake hours back to 16, and get ready for winter. Which really is the purpose of pretending we have Fall in Juneau: to recuperate from Summer and prepare for Winter.

In my home we’re typically in denial about the approach of winter until we forget to prepare for it at all. We’ll have a broken snow shovel, ski boots too small for the kids, and no wood for the stove. We’ve thrown money at these problems: buying the last, priced-like-gold shovel, ordering brand new boots, and resigning ourselves to paying an extra $1000 for electric heat for the winter. Ah well, the cost of living in Juneau, we say. But now that we’re living off one income (which I highly recommend, regardless of how many incomes are coming in – a soap box topic for another day), there is no extra $1000 unless we break out the evil, life sucking credit cards.

So, preparing for winter has an added importance for us this year; we’ll be sure the wood pile is tall. And though I aspire to canning my harvest some day, “putting food by” still means shopping sales and finding bulk deals at Costco. But it’s better than putting no food by at all. Filling the pantry in the fall means cheaper food, less shopping and less winter driving.

So, if I can keep my summer energy for a few more weeks, and manage to stay on my feet and off my tail bone, I hope to be ready for When Eaglecrest is Open – and not spend it sitting in the lodge with a cup of tea and a good book (oops, that sounds darn good. Maybe a minor knee twist in January?).

Fall Checklist

Though many of you are still in the season called Salmon, with the Deer season to follow, don’t neglect the many other winter preparations you can do to reduce spending and increase enjoyment of the season. Here are a few things to consider for your list:

ENERGY

       Stock up on firewood: Find the “Tree Cutting Map & Rules on Public Lands” at www.juneau.org/lands/ to make sure you harvest legally and with respect for our public lands and ecosystems. Or look for classifieds and roadside signs for folks offering firewood for sale.

       Increase your “Clo”: Did you know that a Clo is a unit of personal insulation? One Clo is attained by wearing pants and a long-sleeved shirt, while sitting at a desk. If you increase either your Clo or your activity level, you can decrease your room temperature and still be comfortable.

       Lower your thermostat: Lower the set point by 3 to 5 degrees from your normal. To stay comfortable either get going on that treadmill or get blankets and sweaters to increase your Clo.

       Turn off lights: Though fluorescent and efficient bulbs use less energy, and most energy from a standard bulb is heat, so isn’t always wasted (if the heat in the room is reduced to compensate), waste is waste. If you don’t need the light, don’t leave it on.

       Tighten up your home: Re-caulk your windows, buy storm doors and windows, add gaskets around openings to the attic, get plastic for extra-leaky windows, and gaskets for outlets on exterior walls, etc. Don’t worry that you’ll over-tighten, it’s not likely… and you can always open a door for a few minutes if you need to.

       Prep your wood-burner: Give your stove or fireplace a good cleaning, all the way up the stack. Look in the yellow pages or online for chimney sweeps, or go to a home/hardware store for the DIY tools. Have all safety supplies near the stove and check extinguishers and smoke detectors.

FOOD

       Put your garden to bed: As a novice, I recommend calling the Cooperative Extension Service for good information. What I’ll do this month is pull all plants from my containers and garden to compost them. Next month I’ll add the container soil, and possibly compost and other soil amendments, to my 5 ft by 8 ft garden plot. Then I’ll cover it with newspaper and the black plastic I reuse each year.

       Pick and process some berries: There are lots of berries left out there, it’s been such a weird year for them. At the very least, freeze some up. The Cooperative Extension Service is once again your go-to info source.

       Go to the Saturday Farmers Market at the JACC: Extended through September for late-harvest produce. This is the best stuff… fresh from local gardens, and no air miles!

       Shop sales and buy bulk: See what the grocery stores have near the end of the Lower 48 growing season. I look for produce that is less than $2/lb, especially organic, then buy enough to freeze or can.

MISCELLANY

       Kill your TVs: I’m serious. Put all TVs except the family one in storage. Instead of creating bad watching habits that persist all year, watch less and watch it together. Better yet, cancel your cable so you can have time to read, exercise outside, talk, and play games with your kids.

       Prepare for emergencies: Store enough candles, batteries, flashlights, water, propane, canned food, first aid supplies, etc, for an emergency of a few weeks.

       Stock up on craft supplies: Plan for holiday gifts and home projects for long winter evenings. Or make items to sell at the Farmers Market next year.

[Bio]

Sarah Lewis is a local architect and social worker who loves to make lists just to check things off and feel she’s accomplished something… and she hopes that every once in a while she really does.