Sometimes, you just need a good list. Read on for a compilation of things that should tickle you this time of year:

1. The relatively-new home decorating insanity related to Halloween. From my childhood, I can recall a paper witch or skeleton on the front door. Now, you can pick up strings of pumpkin lights, life-sized zombies, Aragon-sized spiders, and wailing busts (seriously, look at the link here) to spruce up the front yard. At my house, we rock the enormous inflatable jack-o-lantern and a witch that looks like she flew into the front door. http://www.grandinroad.com/halloween-haven/
2. Crunchy leaves. A chore to rake, but fun to stomp.
3. Candy. Ohhhhh, the candy!!
4. New shows on television mean new chatter for the water cooler. I’m a fan of “Ben & Kate” and “Scandal” so far, and I’m digging “Last Resort.” Though it may have the potential for jumping-the-shark at any time.
5. Football. I’m a non-football fan in a less-than-stellar NFL city, but I love that everyone busts out the orange and black on Sundays.
6. No excuse needed to make comfort food. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes-and-cooking/simple-homemade-soups/pictures/page-5.html
7. Less sweaty weather.
8. Back to school supplies. It’s fun to shop the clearance bins for glue sticks and pens.
9. Not one, but TWO Peanuts specials on television. Come on, you have to love one of them. I think I favor the Great Pumpkin overall, though Snoopy whipping up a Thanksgiving dinner of jellybeans and popcorn then battling a berserk lawn chair always makes me snicker. In the end though, I wish Charlie Brown would summon up some chutzpah to tell his friends they’re not invited to dinner. He caves every year.
10. An excuse to watch my favorite Halloween cartoon on Youtube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skdVouumMk4&noredirect=1
11. Year-end model close-outs on cars. If you need a new car, now’s the time!
12. Autumn is the only season that has not one, but TWO acceptable names (the other, of course, being fall.) You can try calling winter some sort of inverse solstice or something, but it just doesn’t have the same ring.
13. An incredible array of baked goods on parade. Pies, cakes, puddings, toffees, brittles…all acceptable to love this time of year.
14. Festivals! Oodles and oodles of them. Around Cincinnati, you can go to the Wool Festival, Oktoberfest, Sauerkraut Festival…
15. Celebrities who release holiday albums, yet have absolutely no business doing so. What a racket! Good for giggles. http://blogs.browardpalmbeach.com/countygrind/2010/12/the_five_worst_holiday_albums.php
16. Hot chocolate.
17. Hot brown.
18. Hot anything.
19. Jumping in piles of leaves. Then running away quickly, before the homeowner who raked them catches you.
20. Carrying a mug of hot cider with a little extra shot of something is just fine on a cold night in the backyard.
21. Being outside with absolutely no need for DEET. Ahhhh…what’s that smell? Read on…
22. Why it’s the delicious scent of fall! Sort of crispy and fresh, and without a hint of mosquito-repellant.
23. Really gorgeous front porches, decked out in pumpkins, hay bales, mums and the like. Here’s a photo of my front porch:
    http://www.google.com/imgres?q=fall+front+porch+decorating&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1366&bih=587&tbm=isch&tbnid=PAUPa0zWjInyMM:&imgrefurl=http://homehinges.com/2010/09/29/warning-contagious-front-porch-bug/&docid=s1xkQ5qH9Ky4NM&w=480&h=319&ei=b_2VTo3MDeTLsQKp3vjvAQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=273&vpy=148&dur=1482&hovh=183&hovw=275&tx=146&ty=104&page=1&tbnh=125&tbnw=166&start=0&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0Stop by later; I’ll be harvesting apples off my own tree and churning butter.
24. Hayrides, pick-your-own apples, and carving pumpkins.
25. Using the fireplace again.

And, bless their hearts, people getting lost in corn mazes and calling 911 for help. I’d laugh at them, but getting lost in corn isn’t funny. Nothing good comes out of corn stalks…ever seen “Field of Dreams?” That’s freaky. Or “Signs?” See what I mean? Nothing good in the corn. http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/family-gets-lost-in-mass-corn-maze-calls-911/2011/10/13/gIQA2SONhL_video.html