The Smell of Fall; The Taste on my Palate

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By Jason Nitschke

It was about midnight the other night. I was standing out on my back patio allowing my black and tan mini dachshund and my overweight cockapoo a little time for bladder relief. And that smell was in the air. No, it wasn't the refinery. It was the smell of Fall.

It just so happens that I was enjoying an adult beverage and gazing at Orion. The lovely combination of flavor and smell always takes me back to one specific place: 1110 Gerald Avenue in Missoula.

As a college freshman at the University of Montana I joined the Sigma Chi Fraternity, where during the fall, we spent our evenings sitting on the six-foot brick fence, enjoying adult beverages, and flirting with the co-eds.

Those days remind me of my first bit of adult freedom...and football. So every time I throw one back in the calm Montana eve, I'm right back sitting on that fence, gazing on my pals in search for their next girlfriend, and getting ready for the next morning and the Griz game.

That was 17 years ago now.

My future bride and I spent last weekend at the Seeley Lake cabin of a great friend from those fraternity days. It was the first time the two had met and the first story he told her was one from my freshman year. (Thankfully, he didn't tell her the embarrassing ones!)

Needless to say, the start of the football season always makes me a bit nostalgic. The Griz won their first national title during my college years. I recall the Walter Payton Award celebratory ceremony at Dahlberg Arena when Dave Dickenson was named National Player of the Year. They played for the national title twice in my four years at UM.

Now, I'm starting my seventh season of covering the Griz for KFBB. They played for the title again my first year at the Fun Station. And of course, the last two seasons they did as well.

I'm looking forward to seeing how things go in 2010. And I'm really looking forward to that smell...and that taste.

JN 9/2/10

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