Can you smell it in the air? No, I’m not talking about the faint, smoky scent of people starting to use their fireplaces. And I’m not talking about the smell of the air shedding its summer musk to a crisp autumn breeze (which is just delightful). I’m referring to the odor of Taste of Suffolk, wafting across the land.

It’s not an aroma that just anyone can pick up. One has to be truly in touch with his inner foodie to appreciate the subtle changes in the Suffolk air when Taste of Suffolk comes around.

It’s the kind of olfactory instinct that lets me know, with party-trick-like accuracy, what every person in my apartment building has cooked that day. And let me tell you, my senses are buzzing over the culinary delights that you, the fine people of Suffolk and beyond, have in store at this year’s Taste of Suffolk.

Last year was the first time I had a chance to sample some of the food booths at the event, and I was very pleased. However, I wanted to kick myself for not getting a turkey leg, a mistake I don’t intend to make again, should the opportunity again present itself.

But I was lucky enough to get a bite or 12 of some bacon-wrapped quail legs from The Catering Place and some North Carolina barbecue that was good enough to more than satisfy my exacting North Carolinian standards.

For those of you who are, in fact, well-rounded individuals and not obsessed with the gigantic food spectacle about to hit Suffolk’s Main Street, there will also be live music, games, and eating and kids’ contests.

So, if you don’t intend to break out the sweatpants and sample goods to your heart’s content, you can actually make a fun day of it.

For me, though — a bulbous foodie with a one-track mind — Taste of Suffolk is like having the wonderful breadth of Suffolk’s culinary bounty dropped right into my lap.

I work just around the corner from all the event’s goings-on. And just when I start to feel that I may be losing Suffolk’s loving embrace, Taste of Suffolk comes around like a gargantuan, char-grilled, deep-fried, honey-glazed outpouring of affection. And I am again reminded that you must love me Suffolk, to bring your tasty wares so very close to my workplace.

And though you can’t see it, Suffolk, a tear that screams “I LOVE YOU BACK!” is now rolling down my soon-to-be food-stained cheeks as I anticipate this Saturday’s event. I truly hope to see all you Suffolkians there.