Well, we have made it.  Those of you who sweated through the summer with classes, internships or jobs can now take a sigh of relief as fall approaches.       There is less humidity in the air, the temperature drops and the wind chills remind you it is time to take out your cardigan.        When it is cold, coffee can be consumed while fulfilling its true purpose of giving you the much needed caffeine rush and warming you.  As far as fall goes, here are a few of my favorite things.   I think it is only right to start with football.  It really amazes me when I contemplate the amount of people in our country who reserve time on their weekends for a sport.  Don’t get me wrong, it is ridiculously entertaining.    Relatively speaking, though, fall seems to fly by due to what I call the “football effect.” If you have a team you are invested in, the weekend cannot come fast enough.    As a result, the football season (especially with the increased amount of Thursday pro games) ups the pace of fall and, before I know it, I am stuffed with turkey and stuffing while watching Tom Brady pick apart the Jets’ defense.   Speaking of Thanksgiving, how can anyone deny the 1-2-3 of monthly holidays that the fall ushers?  Halloween brings a masquerade where everyone has an excuse to be what he or she always wished they could be.    With Thanksgiving and Christmas, we find ourselves surrounded by loved ones, changing decorations like underwear, and a month-long medley of holiday songs on the radio (which by Dec. 15 may annoy the hell out of us).  The best part: Christmas break!  Now for the reason I love fall so much: months of crystal clear night skies; few things are this inspiring.   One easy way to put life into perspective is to look up and realize we exist as a small part of a vast, expanding universe.  When doing so I am constantly reminded of not only the fragility of life but also how lucky I am to be a part of the grandest design of all.    The only way to one-up being ensconced under a blanket at a fall football game with a warm drink is having the same while holding your wishes for meteoroids under the night sky.    In case you haven’t noticed, Starkville is a fantastic place to star gaze; just make sure you aren’t breaking the law or trespassing while doing so. Even if you don’t enjoy the frigid air and beauty this time of year brings around, I encourage you to find something special that only fall can offer.    Though we don’t have the beautiful earth-tone foliage or ice rinks our Yankee friends have, we also don’t have to worry about shoveling snow just to get out of the driveway.  So let’s get ready to bundle up and test our patience with the incessant amount of sniffling in class.