tonight, as i went to pick shaun up for a no-longer-weekly evening at the harp, i drove through u of h for the first time since finals were over. i’d forgotten about the daily walk i used to take from the far parking lot to the english building, past the teachers’ lot, across cullen boulevard, through parts of campus. i’d walk under falling leaves and moss, looking down to avoid ever-present puddles of rainwater. i miss that walk; despite the fact that i was usually on early-morning autopilot, it was a good way to start.

when i took shaun home after the harp, we sat on his porch awhile, talking about u of h and writing and the internet. i drove home alone, listening to the smiths, watching don’t-walk signs turn walkwhite in the darkness, with no pedestrians there to respond.