Even with the world turned upside down lately, there are still some things that everyone in Longmont can count on in the fall.

The leaves will still begin their annual riot of color.

The Broncos will still struggle to find a quarterback unless he’s been picked by the Colts first.

And starting Oct. 13, the black marks will return to Longmont’s sidewalks.

The last one may require a little explanation. Every year, our meter team goes out to paint black marks on the sidewalk. These are for homes that have a “meter pit” in the front yard. That way, even if the meter gets covered up by falling leaves or drifts of snow, the meter readers still know where to find the right spot – the mark literally points the way.

Of course, paint’s not the only way to make a meter reader’s job easier.  

You can remember to shovel off the meter pit when the snow flies so that our readers can do their visits quickly and easily. If you have a meter on the house, shoveling an access path helps, too. (When you’re visiting around 75,000 meters a month, speed matters!)

When the weather’s good, you can make sure to clear away any vegetation that might get in the way of an easy read. (That includes remembering not to pile your raked-up leaves on the meter pit – oops!)

And of course, if you have a meter in the backyard, it always helps to be careful with your dog so that our readers and your pooch don’t have a startling encounter with each other.

It’s simple courtesy. And between your thoughtfulness and our black paint, we can all work together to make sure everyone gets a quick, accurate read.

That’s pretty re-mark-able.