peeping leaves

"So, what do leaf peepers do when they come up here?" Colin asked me this morning.

"They drive really slowly and take pictures. And they usually have white hair," I replied.

"So, do they go to Stowe and look at leaves and then to Warren and look at leaves and then Saint Albans and look at the leaves?"

"Yup, they definitely go to Stowe and the Valley. But they probably don't go to Saint Albans," I said.

"But they also come to Church Street and have lunch and buy knick-knacks," he observed as we headed towards the farmers' market. "Are they leaf peepers or tourists?"

I thought about it for a minute. "Leaf peepers are tourists. They are a specific kind of tourists, because they come here especially to look at the leaves, but they also like to do touristy things like drink apple cider and buy maple syrup." Then I thought, I feel badly for them this year. It's been so dry, the leaves are just turning brown and yellow. It's not the best year for leaf peeping. Kind of drab actually.

But then we turned the corner to City Hall Park and saw the most beautiful tree in mid-change--half green, half brilliant crimson-orange--as though its branches had just got up in flames. I just had to take a picture. And then paint one. Does that make me a leaf peeper?