Yesterday as I arrived at our 200 Newbury Street office a sight reminded me that the students are returning to the city.  What I saw was an SUV, from out of state, a mattress and box spring on the roof - tied down by a thin length of rope, looped once around and through the passenger compartment and secured by the drivers left hand. Yes the students are returning, like the swallows to Capistrano.  Some new, some for the second and third times and a many who will be unfamiliar with the the physics of moving.  Boston.com has a photo essay on the return, you can see it here.   While the Herald touts "Allston Christmas" the end of summer free for all of dumped and discarded household good.  All of this is either an entertainment or an irritation to the local, residents.  

Expect to see SUV's, station wagons, U-Hauls of all shapes and sizes parked, double parked, illegally parked flashers on throughout the City for the next week to ten days as our student population returns.  Plan a little extra time into your commute, leave a little early...walk or take the T, it just might be faster.  And, if your plans include Storrow Drive, you may want to check the traffic feature on your iPhone, since every year some poor driver of a rented truck finds out the hard way that, the bridges on Storrow are (as they say in Boston) Wicked Low.  It happens so much there is even an notation in Wikipedia, "A newcomer to Boston might be surprised at an abundance of signs giving road clearance height.  Periodically, despite the signs, a truck or other large vehicle will get wedged under a bridge, which causes traffic to back up for several miles.  In one incident a truck full of scissors became stuck and spilled its cargo, causing over 30 cars to get flat tires — two got four flat tires — and the road was backed up well into the afternoon."