Fall officially begins on Sept 23rd this year which is a normal time frame for autumn to start. The start of fall is called the September Equinox, also known as the southward equinox, and is the moment in time (not a day-long event) when the sun stands directly above the equator while crossing from the north to the southern hemisphere.

Most people start to think fall “starts” when school begins in mid-August, or when the Pumpkin Spice Latte (PSL) from Starbucks comes out. People are starting to celebrate fall too early.

Many of us can’t wait for it to get cooler, or for me, my birthday. Just like a lot of other people, I hope that fall comes as soon as possible, but I think that we all can wait a few weeks to start putting up our Halloween decorations and start waiting for the fall equinox to begin.

It’s not even just the general public anymore. Stores like Hobby Lobby start to put up decorations as soon as July. Most of us have seen Spirit Halloween pop up in deserted buildings starting in early September.

We don’t need it to stop entirely, but slow down this madness that’s been occurring for years. This is the earliest release date for the PSL, it came out on Aug 27th. Which is excessive to put it out earlier each year. At this rate the PSL will come out in July.

I get that extending the season of autumn will increase sales, but if they wait longer then people all around will be itching to get their hands on all the spooky things. And it’s not just an isle, it’s the whole store that’s filled. They try to keep you in there for as long as possible to spend the most amount of money on fall decor.

Insights from a 2018 study conducted by the National Retail Federation (NRF) stated that more than a third of consumers will start buying Halloween products in September or earlier. Nine billion dollars was predicted to have been spent on Halloween in 2018. The NRF study also predicted that seven in ten consumers planned to celebrate Halloween in 2018, spending an average of $87 per person, purchasing “everything from decorations to candy to costumes (even for beloved pets).”

 Personally, I think the fall season is a fad and people just love all things associated with it, such as bonfires, sweatshirts, Halloween, football and much more. It is time to slow down and still enjoy summer. We are still able to go to the pool, wear shorts and enjoy spending time outdoors without it being below freezing.

We are all our own people and enjoy different things in life. I love fall just as much as everyone else, but just not this early in the year. If you are one who is all ready to start celebrating and decorating for the season, enjoy. However, if you are like me, let’s keep enjoying the warm weather before it is too late.