Holiday Jade briefly woke, peered at the brutal light of Summer and scowled. It was still too hot, too muggy, too buggy, too goddamn bright.
Just before returning to the blessed darkness to hibernate until the “Ber” months that are her domain, she caught a glimpse of something hopeful. For sitting on the desk in the kitchen was a stack of new catalogs featuring this year’s crop of Halloween decorations. A sign that, yes, her time will soon come.
As Holiday Jade returned to her attic — a room that is painted black and covered with layers of thick curtains — she smiled and began to imagine the coming of Autumn.
“Just a little longer…”
2 Comments
Emily X
I grew up in South Florida, and it always irked me when people with seasonal affective disorder acted so cheerful when it was hot and sunny outside. I always hated the heat and humidity because my body thermostat was higher than average, and the slightest bit of warmth would make me break into a sweat while other people were still comfortable. I was happy only between October and March, when other people bitched about how “cold” it was. Seriously, it’s Miami, and you think 45 degrees is cold? Have you not heard of this thing called snow?
Now I live on the West coast, and climate change has ruined what used to be a temperate summer. Every year, we get temperatures in excess of 100 degrees. I may as well have stayed in Miami.
I have no strong feelings about Halloween, but I am ready for it and all the cold-weather goodness that is to come.
If I ever become a millionaire, I’d like to have a home in the southern hemisphere so I can live there during North American springs and summers. By moving between hemispheres every six months, I can always live in a perpetual autumn and winter and never experience the heat of spring or summer again.
Jade Walker
I used to have the same plan! But now I just keep moving north in hopes of finding cooler weather. Temps in the 90s and 100s are too much for my brain.