Welcome to September. Every year, around this time, we are suddenly jolted back to reality after the revelry of summer, with a brand-new pile of books to read, problem sets to finish, papers to stress over, and professors who often forget that human beings require sleep. But before the strain of classes can fully take hold, we are granted a wonderful bit of a reprieve — the return of all our favorite television shows! Now, although I will remain “Lost” until the return of my favorite flight 815 survivors in January, there are several shows to tide me over until then.

First out of the gate, feel free to revisit the “scandalous lives of Manhattan’s elite,” with the return of the second season of the ultra-chic and frighteningly addictive “Gossip Girl.” The season premiere aired on Monday, but episodes are available online for those who missed it. A couple things to keep an eye out for: First, count the number of times Vitamin Water is referenced (trust me, you’ll enjoy it — the product placement is hilarious) and second, watch out for a shout-out to your beloved Hilltop! The show that caused an uproar with the Parents Television Council is back with a vengeance, and just as “mind-blowingly inappropriate” and delicious as ever.

Also on The CW network is the premiere of the new incarnation of the iconic “90210,” which started on Tuesday (wait, it started on 9/02? Wow, what a coincidence!). Following a bit of a theme for The CW, this generation’s “90210,” like the last, will follow the lives of the rich and powerful offspring of the Beverly Hills elite. Think “Gossip Girl”, but with more palm trees, bikinis and fake tans. However, several of the original cast members are back, but now as adults watching the uncontrolled debauchery of the younger set, which promises to be interesting.

Over on the major networks, some old favorites are also preparing for their returns.

On ABC, everyone’s favorite medical romance, “Grey’s Anatomy,” is set to return with a two-hour season premiere on Thursday, Sept. 25. Questions waiting to be answered from last season include: Will Derek and Meredith finally make it work? Are Callie and Dr. Hahn in a relationship? What the hell was up with Izzie and George? Will anyone actually practice medicine?

On the same day over on NBC, the always chipper employees at Dunder Mifflin will come back and — spoiler alert — we’ll get to see what happens when Michael institutes a weight-loss initiative at “The Office.” About a month later, Tina Fey’s award-winning “30 Rock” will return for its third season (Oct. 30). Also coming to NBC is the highly anticipated return of “Heroes,” which this season will look into the heroes’ evil alter egos, and is being referred to as “Villains” (Sept. 22). Also worth a mention on NBC is their new adaptation of “Kath & Kim” (originally from Australia), which began Thursday and stars Molly Shannon and Selma Blair as a quirky and dysfunctional mother and daughter in suburbia.

HBO and Showtime also don’t disappoint — both with returning series and new additions to their line-ups. This Sunday at 9 p.m., HBO will premiere its new sci-fi drama “True Blood,” about a world where vampires not only exist, but are widely known of and actively discriminated against. The show has been getting great buzz, especially among former “Buffy” fanatics (myself included). Following this, at 10 p.m., the beloved “Entourage” will return for its fifth season. Over on Showtime, the new season of “Weeds” is already underway, airing every Monday at 10 p.m.

Due to last year’s writers strike, most shows had dramatically truncated seasons, and many new pilots were put on hold, however several returning programs have promised either longer seasons (“Gossip Girl” has a planned 25-episode run this year, instead of the normal 22) or longer periods of uninterrupted new programming without repeats (“Grey’s Anatomy”), so for those souls who suffered last year through months of darkness as I did, fear not!

This year promises another wonderful season for television’s brightest stars, hopefully far outshining last year’s disastrous strike season. With a host of promising new programs, and many widely anticipated returns (and my perpetual countdown to the season five return of my Lost-ies in January — no, I will not let it go), it looks as if your study-break TV time will not disappoint. So grab some popcorn, plop down on the couch, read through my recommendations, watch and enjoy. As Gossip Girl would say, You know you love me, XOXO…