When They're on Break

When they're on break
The streets are empty
Dead empty
And it is--wonderful

It is serene and peaceful
Like the air
Before it snows

It's like soup weather
All the time
Soup and PBS weather

There's no yelling
No drunks in the street
No brawls
No girls taking off their heels
To hit other girls with them

No accusing someone of being a hooker
Just to find out
That they're actually a grad student
Studying mechanical engineering

When they're on break
The intoxicated guy trying to pick up a mailbox
And throw it through a store window
Is just some crazy town drunk
And not a Medieval Literature professor

There's no 'us' and 'them'
Just 'us'
And it's...nice

It's nice to have the town be
Just us

Of course, the local economy takes a hit
The restaurants are dead
The clubs and bars, even more so
And the lovely quiet becomes an eerie calm
Faster than you would think

When they're on break
We visit each other
At our stores
And homes
And talk about how nice it is
To have the students away on break

And then we talk about...

...Well, nothing

Because nothing
Is actually
Happening

Fridays and Saturdays
Feel like Mondays
And Tuesdays

Whole events become pointless

Sunday brunch
Becomes sleeping in

Thursday Happy Hour
Becomes Go-to-Bed-Early Night

Saturday afternoon shopping
Becomes standing behind counters
Watching the clock
Wondering where we'll go tonight
Since everywhere...

...is sort of...

...lame

When they're here
We talk about how much
We hate them

How they destroy everything
How they're so obnoxious
How there's no parking or peace--ever

But when they're on break

We really, really
Want them back