Do you hear the shofar? Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown, the first of the High Holy Days. The office began emptying out about an hour ago, everyone hurrying home, Jewish or not, it didn't seem to matter.

There's an "end of the week" and "end of the year" feeling to the afternoon. And a kind of settling and completion of old accounts, old grievances, unresolved issues. Not melancholy, exactly, but thoughtful.

Most people are off tomorrow--it's an unpaid day for most employees in my division. School is cancelled for the day.

Friday everyone is supposed to be back at work (it's payroll cutoff) and back in school. Good luck with that. How many employees, I wonder, will make a 4-day weekend of it.

May your New Year be sweet, whatever your cultural heritage.