Driving Short Distances

[svxthc]

Everyday I drive to and from school, probably 3.5 miles each way. I have an option to either take the highway, which is more of a 5 mile drive, or take the sidestreets. Either way, especially on the street route, my car does not really even warm up. And every day it seems like it takes an extra second to start. This I want to change. When you drive short trips, what parts of the car take the most beating? I'm thinking I will start taking the highway just to warm the car up more before turning it off. It's a little scary considering it only has 74,000 now and used to fire up on a dime every day last year when i had to make trips to another school further away. Would revving the engine in the morning make any difference? Any suggestions?