Summer may have a few official weeks left, but, really, it ended this morning when the school bus arrived.

    Thinking about today, I figured my two sons would have to be dragged out of bed. After all, for weeks they've been staying up late and sleeping in, worn out from the heat, family visits and trips.

   I need not have worried. Bam: They were up and dressed by 6:20 a.m., a good half-hour before the alarm was set to buzz. So my wife and I had to stumble downstairs. By the time raspberry pancakes were eaten, we had 45 minutes to mill about waiting for the bus.

    I hope their enthusiasm continues, though the morning peppiness probably will wane and we'll be back to second and third wake-up calls and, finally, the dreaded yanking of the covers.

    And that's just to get me up.