It's ba-ack....

Outside, the leaves are beginning to turn.

Here and there pockets of yellow and red appear among the trees, while those still green appear paler than they were before.

The ground is damp from rain last night, and with the few fallen leaves, there is a smell that comes with it. It has not the freshness of the Spring, but instead, something more foreboding.

The sky's not as blue as it once was as the sun begins to abandon the northern reaches of the United States.

Perhaps it started a month ago, when the guys in the pads started rushing down a field with a ball, hitting everything and everyone in their path.

It officially started last week, but a few days of 90 degree heat seemed to say, "no, not this year!"

Now, though, there is no denying it.

Autumn's here, and the boys of summer are about to become men.


Are you ready?