NICC Library: Monthly Spotlight: It's Fall Y'all!

First Day of Fall- 9/23

Why is it important?

Autumn has always played an important role in the life of the farmer. The period of harvest, vintage, and fruit gathering, has left an imprint not only on day-to-day living but also on the development of folklore, mythology, and art. The intimate intertwining of art and nature in the Western world can be seen in the detailed depictions of the autumn months in the French cathedrals. At Reims, for example, in one of the carved stone scenes portraying the calendar year, fermenting wine is being transferred from vats to casks. The season itself was often personified in Western art as a female figure bearing grapes. --Salem Press Encyclopedia

Prepping

Prepping for Fall:

Check your furnace and filters
- and don't forget any humidifiers
- Gas heaters and stoves are working properly
Fire safety
- when was the last time you changed the batteries in your fire alarm?
Check your roof for missing shingles
- don't want any leaks
Clean your rain gutters
- helps when the snow melts
Seal any windows and doors properly
- helps keep the heat in during the winter
Got a fireplace?
- clean it!
Prep your garden/yard
- don't forget to turn off and empty out any hoses or sprinklers
Prep your winter gear

Best things to do

Brought to you by Oprah Daily.

Farmers Market
1. Dubuque
2. Calmar
Apple Cider Doughnuts
Jumping into piles of leaves
Chili and Soups
Ghost Stories and Bon Fires
1. Don't forget the s'mores!
Arts and Crafts
Host a Murder Mystery Party
1. Or maybe just watch one
2. If not read one
Hygge

Fun Facts

The sun goes south during the fall equinox
Satellites may get disrupted during the first day of fall
Mayan astronomers marked the fall equinox
People in the Northern Hemisphere are more likely to see the northern lights during the fall equinox
- Geomagnetic storms are twice as likely.
Women are likely to lose more hair in the fall
Heart attacks decrease after the fall equinox
- extra sleep means less stressed
In Australia and New Zealand, fall starts on March 1st and ends on May 31st.
- Our fall is their spring
People who live near the equator miss fall entirely
The word "Autumn" is believed to come from the Etruscan word "autu", meaning change of season.
- Until the 1500s, 'Autumn' was actually called 'Harvest'
Levels of testosterone in both men and women are at their highest in Autumn.
Babies born during the Autumn months are more likely to live to 100 than those born during the rest of the year.
Red and purple leaves are caused by the presence of sugars in sap trapped inside leaves.
- Tree leaf colors have been arriving later across Europe since the 1980s, and in Britain, oak leaves are falling a week later than 30 years ago.
No film with Autumn in its title has ever won an Oscar; all the other seasons have.
The full moon closest to the Autumn equinox is a "harvest moon".
In China, the Autumn equinox is a moon festival.
- Chinese families eat moon cakes and round foods like watermelons, oranges, and green soybeans.
Fall is not an exclusively US term. The word "fall"– short for "falling of the leaf" – was used in the 17th century throughout Britain.
Everyone knows bird migration happens in the fall
- One of the longest migrations is the 11,000 mile journey by the Arctic Tern.
Fall doesn't happen because of the Earth's distance to the sun, it's due to the tilt of the Earth.
Pumpkin Spice: the flavor comes from a mix of ground cinnamon, nutmeg, dry ginger, and cloves, except when food companies take over.

Most times, companies create a synthetic version using chemicals found naturally in pumpkins and some of the previously listed spices. Those chemicals trick your brain into thinking that whatever concoction you’re consuming is pumpkin.

Information was gathered from CNN, BBC, and Reader's Digest.

Autumn VS Fall VS Harvest

Autumn and fall are used interchangeably as words for the season between summer and winter. Both are used in American and British English, but fall occurs more often in American English. Autumn is considered the more formal name for the season. --Merriam-Webster

Fall and autumn were both once known as “harvest,” according to dictionary.com. And “Harvest” is technically the earliest name for this season. However, the phrase was a bit confusing because it refers to both the time people usually harvest crops and the actual harvesting of crops. --Reader's Digest