Review: Classic Fall Experiences

 

Fall: the season of sweaters, pumpkins, shades of deep reds and bitter cold mornings. The following are a couple things that I wanted to try and prepare for the oncoming autumn season.

PUMPKIN PATCH

Sixty acres of pumpkins, corn and soybeans. I arrived at Carolyn’s Country Cousins Pumpkin Patch. Each year the pumpkins have been harvested by the Raasch family since 1991. I pulled into the parking lot to see healthy, bright greens and kids running around, chasing each other.

Once I entered the gates of the farm and payed the woman behind the window $10, I climbed aboard the haywagon to take the trip to the patch. The short ride covered the grounds with variety of pumpkins: orange, white, green, smooth, tall and short. I hopped off the back of the truck with the hand of the tractor driver. I walked into the field and received a wiff of hay.

I immediately started looking for the right pumpkin for me. I had always been the kid who needed the perfectly round pumpkin, just the right size, with no imperfections. I was hoping to find a member of the squash family with no scratches, bumps or holes.

It may have been hard to find, but with 20 acres of pumpkins, I was confident at least one was perfect.

I took it back on the hayride with me to buy it for just over $5 and left the pumpkin patch with a perfectly good pumpkin in hand.

Overall, I enjoyed my time at Carolyn’s farm a lot. I loved seeing the young families and their young children playing in the grass and riding the “kitty” train around in circles. It was a heart-warming reminder of the arrival of fall.

PUMPKIN SPICE LATTE

I had never wanted to be one of those classic “white girls” who were excited when the pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks came back into season, so I had never tried it before until now.

I pulled through the drive-through Starbucks on Mission and handed the barista my $4.66. She shortly came back with a warm latte in hand.

I got a wiff of the thick pumpkin smell when I went to set it down in the cup hold of my car. It smelled as strong as my Grandma baking pumpkin pie in her kitchen on Thanksgiving.

I couldn’t help but close my eyes and remember moments spent with my family during Thanksgiving break, in the kitchen cooking or outside raking leaves.

It tasted of a liquid version of a pumpkin pie, with a hint of coffee and cream added. The drink was too hot at first and burned my inner cheeks. I then took the lid off and raised the cup to my face, letting the warm steam permeate into my skin.

I will definitely be going back to the Starbucks drive-through when I’m craving the warmth of a Pumpkin Spice Latte late at night or early before school.

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Annie Jones

Sophomore, Co-Assistant Spread Editor & Page Designer Annie plays tennis and swims even though in order to not drown she has to float on her back during practice. Annie collects the wrappers found on McDonald’s dipped cones because she is in mad love with them. She spends her free time in the “cute” section of Buzzfeed wishing she had more puppies in her life. She reads her horoscope daily, becoming creeped out when they’re true. If you ever need to find her, go to Panda Express. »

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