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The End of Summer

OK, this summer actually has a week left in it, but it's winding down.  Kids are in school, the weather has started to change and soon the leaves will become beautiful hues of yellow and orange.  Then again, we could have what we had last year and the beginning of this year and Autumn might go the way of Spring and never actually show up.

Many sun worshipers are saddened by Summer's passing.  I am not one of these people.  I don't like sweating and summer makes me sweat.  There is something special about getting up on an Autumn morning and feeling that slight chill in the air. Having a hot cup of coffee on a brisk Sunday morning, knowing that your day will be filled with football and friends.  I remember when I was younger hitting the field with friends playing tackle football.  Coming home bruised, but refreshed.  A hot shower and some lunch got me ready for a day in front of the tube.  It was a special time. 

Autumn is also the most photogenic of all the seasons.  There's something about taking a ride down a path on a bike or jumping in the car to take a drive along a tree covered highway that takes your breath away.  Little kids playing in the fallen leaves, the sun glistening off the bright treetops, it all feels so peaceful.  In the winter you have to sit and listen to those tell stories of the horrible cold, the snow covered driveways they had to shovel and the near death experiences they had, all because they needed to stock up on toilet paper and bottled water before the white Armageddon arrives.  In the Spring people start saying how hot the summer is going to be and how schools out and they can't handle the idea of actually having to spend time with their children.  Oh, the horror.  In the Summer, I'm always amazed at how all the folks who bitched about the cold have the audacity to complain about the heat. The summer also brings out way too much skin from people who shouldn't ever be shirtless (myself included).  These complaints, these visions of terror don't happen in theAutumn.  The kids are at school, so stay at home moms can get back to banging the gardener. Dad is off the hook because the kids have play dates and he doesn't have to turn off the Internet porn in his man cave to go have a catch with little Joey.  Kids are reunited with their friends their parents don't allow them to see in the summer because of their ethnicity or religious affiliation.  It's a good time for almost everyone.

Everyone smiles in the fall.  Everyone but teachers.  They bitch and moan about their horrible seven hour days, in which they have to endure five 45-minute classes (and do it for about 80 days less than anyone else who works a 9-to-5).  Oh I know, the preparation.  Because you really need to brush up on your quantum physics to teach a six year old that if he traces his hand, he can turn it into a turkey.  Fucking awesome. I know some of you out there actually work hard at trying to get these disobedient little wankers to actually learn something other than the lingo on the Jersey Shore and how to text in class, but I'm just making a point here, so shut it.  Ironically, I love Autumn, because school is back and I get to teach my after school program.  I get to reunite with the wonderful kids I had the year before and meet some new ones.  Every once in a while a kid who has outgrown the program or the school will come back and say hello.  It means the world to me.  It's the only time, for the most part, I'm truly happy.  Sure there are times when Stoli O has me out at a bar, throwing singles at elderly women, but that's got nothing to do with the seasons and in the end, the novelty wears off and I'm sad again. 

Seriously, the cool weather and the two hours a day I'm with "my" kids is the most special time.  It's the only time I feel I make a difference in this fucked up world.  Sometimes it's teaching a kid how to hold a bat, sometimes it's explaining what sportsmanship is or the importance of being part of a team.  Sometimes it's as simple as showing a kid who is down some attention.  It's these little things that sometimes take nanoseconds that make my day.  Being appreciated, even more, being looked up to, is a wonderful feeling.  Overhearing a kid in the hall telling his friends how awesome you are is the single best feeling you can have.  At least for me.  I do this class throughout the school year, but Autumn is special, because it's the birth of a new year and they just seem to get better.

So next Thursday, while the radio and TV hosts lament about the end of summer.  The person you work next to begs for "one more week."  Or your neighbor starts his leaf blower at 7am.  Take a moment, go outside and take a deep breath.  There will be no humidity in the air and the crispness of the cool air will fill your lungs with excitement.  Realize that the day will look beautiful and the trees and sky will smile back at you. When the day comes to a close, you can curl up with your Snuggie and watch some Norwegian Nazi Zombie flick (no really, there is one called Dead Cold and it's not half bad), while sipping your favorite soup.  I don't know about you, but that's a perfect day for me.

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