As the calendar page turns to welcome the 10^th month of the year, the odor of pumpkin spice emanates from every coffee shop and donut café. It is fall, that most lovely of times across our great nation.

The weather begins to crisp so golfers don sweaters and school kids argue about having to wear a jacket, opting instead for dark colored hoodies, sometimes with trenchant messages or mottoes known only to those under 18.

The hockey season has started, the football playoffs loom, and Parliament is back in session. The joy is evident from sea to sea to sea. Canadians are once again enjoying the friendly banter and the warm camaraderie emanating from Parliament Hill. It warms the cockles of one's heart.

It also means city councils have resumed their regular schedule of meetings, committees, boards and commissions. Most people don't understand the heavy workload that comes with any political office—at least for the elected officials who treat their job seriously and honor their oath of office.

Workloads are rarely distributed evenly. The fact is that some elected people are more dedicated; some have a larger ambition; a few don't give a damn and avoid any appointments or extra workload.

What has always surprised me is that the public doesn't seem to care much about who does what and how often. They don't understand that most of the legislation is prepared through committees, not in the final vote at council or in parliament. It is the trench warfare of public hearings, reports, spirited debates and hard-fought amendments at committee from which most legislation emerges.

It is also there that lobbyists and community advocates live. Except for the rare occasions when a stacked, angry audience is riled because of one particular issue, most council meetings are relatively tame and run smoothly. The exception, of course, is a rogue councillor or mayor who disrupts and divides.

Pumpkins dropped from any height tend to go SPLAT, and leave debris scattered in a wide radius. Some councils end up doing the same.

The public is, I believe, less and less tolerant of divisive, nasty and contemptuous behavior from those in public office. It can be an exceedingly short slide from power to problems, as we have seen lately with former New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez and NYC Mayor Eric Adams.

In the meantime, pumpkins, a perfectly amiable gourd that make a very tasty pie, will try to avoid going SPLAT. So will our elected bodies. After all, the winter of discontent is looming.

A double-double, anyone?