IT’S OFFICIAL. THE Irish summer is almost over, in fact, some might say it never really started.

1. Grim breakfasts are back in vogue

Forget your fresh fruit and fancy cereal, it’s back to porridge and mountains of tea to keep warm.

Keith Tomlinson / Twitter Keith Tomlinson / Twitter / Twitter

2. The traffic is bonkers again

Back to school traffic is the bane of every motorist’s life. Now you’ve gotta give yourself an extra 15 minutes each morning and it’s just not fair.

Anna Kavanagh / Twitter Anna Kavanagh / Twitter / Twitter

Julien Behal PA Archive Julien Behal PA Archive

3. TV is designed for staying in at the weekends

The Late Late is back on Friday and all the talent shows are back… T’will be Christmas before we know it.

RTÉ RTÉ

4. Brown Thomas opened their Christmas shop

The countdown is on…

Maria Heffernan / Twitter Maria Heffernan / Twitter / Twitter

5. The Grand Stretch is truly gone

Dark, by 9pm? What kind of wizardry is this?

Comic Books.ie / Twitter Comic Books.ie / Twitter / Twitter

6. The 6.01 is an hour long again

Stuff is happening! Look at Dobbo there. Delighted with life.

RTÉ RTÉ

7. Shops are full of back-to-school clothes and good heavy jackets

Bye bikini sections and short PJs, it’s all about the fluffy socks.

fabfrocks fabfrocks

8. First years are getting smaller and smaller

They swarm the roads in their little uniforms and massive bags and make you feel ancient.

FRQfm FRQfm

9. The rent market is an absolute shambles

Every student is vying for a place to stay and it’s pretty much the hunger games out there.

Survivingcollege Survivingcollege

10. You’ve put the heating on at least once this past week

sara / Twitter sara / Twitter / Twitter

11. Chatter of an Indian summer is rife

Please God now, when the kids go back to school.

- Your nan.

Wishful thinking, it’s not happening.

- Written by Nicola Byrne and originally published on DailyEdge.ie.

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