The day came on like spring, too warm for coats, but skipped over summer. By rush hour we were well into fierce autumn skies and the kind of torrential rain that whips the last of the leaves off the trees, except that the leaves have been off for months now. By the time the dog and I made a last trip outside, winter had shown up in full force. The sky sparkled with stars and the temperature plummeted down, down, down. We headed inside and off to bed to listen to the shutters rattle and the wind howl around the corner of the house.