WE WERE RUNNING LATE. The law school classmate I had come to Spain with convinced me there was no way we would make our train. Around 8:45, we gave up and decided we would have to take a bus from Madrid to Toledo.

LAST WEEKEND I DECIDED to follow the advice of our president and get back to normal life: I agreed to go to my sister's annual pumpkin-carving party. The fact that I was the reigning champion no doubt helped sway me, but so did the feeling in the air since September 11. Usually, before one of these…