Labor Day Weekend is in the rear view mirror, maples are starting to show a bit of red, and you can usually (OK, sometimes) find a parking place on the streets of Boothbay Harbor.

Our summer friends are packing the cottage and on their way home. Meanwhile, kids are heading back to school for another chance to learn with their noses glued to smartphone screens.

Oh yes, it is the fourth quarter of a presidential election like we have never seen before.

As I paged through my ragged notebook, I found some short items that are interesting to me and maybe not so for you.

Did you watch the CNN interview of the Veep and (maybe) the Veep to be? Did she do good? Did she flub? The opinion gurus in the hallowed halls of the New York Times called it this way: It was either a solid first effort. Or, a vague, vacuous TV interview that didn’t help the Veep.

What was your take?

Me? I sat down after dinner, poured myself a nice adult beverage, and turned on the Red Sox game. At 9 p.m., when the Veep’s interview came on, my old bones were worn out, so I slipped upstairs to bed. So, I didn’t see it and therefore don’t have an opinion on her performance.

The next big event on the campaign calendar is the great debate – on Sept. 10.

I think I will probably be able to watch that one. So will much of America.

As I write this column on Friday (it had to be in on Friday as Monday is a holiday), the newspapers and TV networks (including Fox) report a series of polls showing that the Veep is now slightly ahead in a series of states dubbed battleground states. Most interesting to me was her leadership in some of the southern-tier states.

But, and you knew there would be a but, although she is ahead in some, it is not by much, if at all. The polls seem to be within the statistical margin of error. They may, and probably will, change over time.

The bottom line, for me anyway, is that she might be gaining. But it is still early, and the pundits say fewer voters are focused on the race before Labor Day. It ain’t over til it is over, said the sage baseball pundit, Yogi Berra.

We are clearly in campaign mode. Early voting begins in Pennsylvania on Sept. 16, Minnesota and Virginia on Sept. 20, and in Illinois on Sept. 26.

Here in Maine, voters can request an absentee ballot, either online or in person at the town offices. Officials say they will mail absentee ballots about a month before the Nov. 5 election.

Also, on Friday morning, NBC aired an interview with Grandpa Don where he said he was in favor of IVF (in vitro fertilization). He even said the feds should pay for it and mandate insurance companies to cover the costs. I am told it can cost $50,000 or more.

That position seems to be at odds with some of his most vocal pro-life advocates. I am sure we will hear more on this subject in the future.

Some of my pals ask me if I am worried about some of the online comments readers attach to the online version of this column.

The answer is no. It is my job to raise questions. Secondly, the posters care deeply about our great nation and the political process we use to choose our leaders. Thirdly, the folks who comment on my work are good Americans who have a right to submit their opinion, and I welcome them all. Nuff said.

Here are a few leftover items from last week.

The federal judge in Grandpa Don’s Florida purloined criminal documents case dismissed it because Jack Smith, the special counsel, was improperly appointed. Smith appealed her ruling, arguing the government has used special counsels for years, going back to the prosecution of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. As part of his argument (on pages 42 and 48), he cited a 1998 Georgetown Law Review article backing his position. The author was Brett M. Kavanaugh, a conservative judge Grandpa Don appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

College life is getting complicated for Maine’s young basketball sensation, Cooper Flagg. He signed a financial deal to wear/endorse (Maine’s own) New Balance sneakers, but he will play for Duke, and they raked in a bundle to endorse Nike. Oops.

Did you notice you hardly ever see basketball players wearing Converse Chuck Taylors and knee pads anymore?

Finally, a quiz. What event do you think will sway the most votes – the Sept. 10 debate or a rumored very public Taylor Swift endorsement?

By the way, are you registered to vote?