I don’t know about you, but I’ve always been way more excited in the Office Depot or the Staples than I have ever been in the shoe department. Yes, I’m warped. But still, there’s something about fresh, new Dixon Ticonderoga pencils, Pink Pearl erasers, and riffly sheets of notebook paper that just gives me the shivers. New school supplies mark the beginning of an unblemished school year, where I can teach everything perfectly and all my students soak up the learnin’ like baby sponges. One week in, and it’s all screwed to hell (so much for perfectionism), but right now, it’s still perfect. And that makes me very happy indeed.