It is the third week in September and one week from the start of the calendar fall season (Sept. 22). Are you thinking about putting your air conditioning unit away for the year and replacing it with an order of heating oil – yikes! – or buying a cord of firewood?

Winter creeps up fast here in the Northeast. One person I think is getting prepared is Nick Upham, Boothbay Harbor’s public works foreman. The other day I saw him in Hannaford looking through the Farmer’s Almanac while his wife and kids were busy looking at items to buy. He kind of laughed when I asked him if he was doing some weather research for the upcoming winter.

The TV weather reporters said the coming week’s temperatures will be “fall like,” and expect some lower than normal temperatures overnight. At least the air conditioner won’t be running – I had mine operating Monday night into Tuesday morning because of the humidity. I slept well.

Next comes the leaf blower tune-up and inspecting the rake for quality, the last couple of mowing days (maybe one!) and putting the mower to bed (changing the oil, replacing the blade, unhooking or replacing the spark plug, etc.) for the winter.

Fall is great. There is still plenty to do. School sports, boat rides, the Fall Foliage Festival, Scarecrow Fest, and more keep the region buzzing into October.

Enjoy the final week of summer, embrace fall … and avoid getting overdosed on “everything pumpkin” that seems to be on every shelf in the stores!