I remember the good old days. We’ve been here in the Valley of the Sun for thirteen – count ’em, thirteen! – years now, and the weather tradition has always been that come the second or third week of October you get that one day where all of a sudden the heat gods swip the flitch and boom! the daily highs drop into the luxurious 80s and that marvelous time of year known as “Arizona winter” has arrived.

Not so this year, and from the looks of the Accuweather forecast for 85234, we might be waiting a few weeks yet. Sure, next Monday is supposed to drop into the 80s, but the daily highs go right back up into the 90s through the end of the month when the temps may actually flirt with triple digits.

It’s so disheartening. We’ve been in the 90s since early May and, sun angle and lengths of days aside, there is still bona fide heat in the air come the witching hours of 3-6 PM. This time of year one ought to be able to slip out of work early or finish the weekend chores a little earlier to hit a bucket of balls without working up a sweat but we’re not there yet.

It looks like if I’m going to find some truly fall weather it will have to be when I head back to Massachusetts the last week of October. I guarantee there won’t be too much short sleeves and shorts weather there and then. But it will sure feel like fall and that would be nice for a little while at least.

BTW, the swimming pool is still somewhat swimmable (although it would be a bracer, no doubt) at 72 degrees. This is the longest I can remember our pool still being in the 70s. It’s refreshing to stick your legs in while contemplating life and death and other big issues like the Red Sox after David Ortiz and when Tiger will find the guts to play in a PGA Tour event, but 72 would make for one chilly swim.