Coming Soon to a Summer Near You

At some time during the next few days, there is going to be a changeover from "spring/summer" to "late summer/fall is coming, alas (because winter is next)." At least it will come soon here in wonderful Upstate NY.

Any day now, I am going to be walking, and instead of birds chirping away I am going to hear this scraping, insect sound...the sound of-crickets, cicadas, or whatever. I'm not an insect expert so don't ask me what they are. All I can tell you is that, it happens. Every year.

I do know what it means even if I don't know what is talking to me.

Did you ever realize there is more than one summer?
There is the fresh part of spring/summer, when foliage is new, when the spring bulbs bloom one after the other, when birds pair up and greet the day, in a well-defined order, with their song, and the early summer bulbs and roses take over.

Then there is the main summer, with hot days, swimming pools, long days and short nights (the further north you are, the longer the days are), daylillies, and Rose of Sharon bushes blooming.

Then one day you look around and the goldenrod and ragweed are blooming. (If you are allergic, you know when this is to the hour) .The birds are becoming, or have become, empty nesters. The green of tree foliage starts to get a bit dull. The days start shortening noticeably, accelerating by the day. And that...insect...sound starts. In insect language they are saying "summer is almost over! Tempus fugit."

Well they could if they could speak and not chirp.

I don't care if you can tell the temperature by their chirps.

It's not the school bus returning to your neighborhood that signifies the end of summer in Binghamton.
It's the crickets.