My college town is nice over the summer. Rarely a line at the grocery store, and no problems parking. Traffic? Schmaffic. No need to fuss over that. You can go to whatever popular restaurant you like and expect to get seated promptly.

Suddenly it is over. The streets are full of cars, intersections are backed up. God help me if I want to go to the grocery, or, even worse, that den of iniquity known as Walmart.

Times like these make me glad I am a bicycle commuter, a natural avoider of the worst of the traffic.

I feel not really close to prepared for the new semester, but I will surely have something ready when I need it to be. I care about my students too much to do otherwise. Right now I dread getting prepared for Monday, but I am happy to start a new semester, meet all my new students, and see what hope and possibility is ahead.

Let me do a good job with them. If there is one thing I care about more than anything else, it is providing a healthy, happy environment in which even a scared student can find the courage to learn.