Happy new (school) year!

I used to be so confused by American bloggers going on about the fresh energy of September, turning leaves and new pencils, because (a) “back to school” didn’t mean very much to me as a childfree person and (b) the school year should OBVIOUSLY start in January as it does in sensible antipodean countries, come ON. But now, now I get it. Oh yeah. Firstly, autumn is so very much more a thing here, where the changing seasons take up a proper amount of calendar space, and after the heat and lassitude of summer it so clearly does bring new readiness to actually get things done. Secondly, the excitement of having kids start a new grade definitely rubs off on a person, and of course if you’re an at-home parent (even part-time), school brings a structure to home life that is so very welcome. And thirdly, there’s something pretty great about having a “new year” energy at this late point in the actual year. It’s less pressure and less demands for self-improvement, more a sense of possibility and enthusiasm. So yep, the last third of the year is the best.

It’s also the most knitterly, and in recent years that’s been a big deal for me as I tried to use knitting season fairly strategically, determined as I was to be a “serious” though exceptionally small-time designer. That really hasn’t worked for me (I don’t like pressure and I don’t like marketing!) so I’ve officially dropped that goal. Although funnily enough, I don’t know if anyone will be able to tell the difference. I happen to have three releases scheduled for the rest of 2020 and I’ll still be designing after that, just… less strategically. And since, as mentioned, I haven’t been very good at the strategic part anyway, any change will probably be invisible to the naked eye. It feels pretty clear inside, though, and that’s the important bit. No more pressure.

So what “new year energy” I’m feeling isn’t really about work. (No job on the horizon, either.) It’s more that I’m looking forward to working with the structure of my hausfrau days to get done whatever I need to get done, and to look after myself a bit better. No, I don’t feel like explaining the details, and they’d bore you anyway. But if you’re also in the back-to-school zone – solidarity fist bump. I hope you’re enjoying it as I am. Sharpen those pencils, literal or metaphorical, and tidy your desk, it’s going to be great.

No 43 of #52recipes: cheesecake brownies, which were rather disappointing. Everyone else seemed to love them, but… meh. It does occur to me that the past few times I’ve made cheesecake anything I’ve been underwhelmed, so maybe I just don’t like cheesecake as much as I think I do? There’s some light, sweetly tangy flavour thing I want to experience that just isn’t happening and probably it’s not actually cheesecake. Might be fridge cheesecake though. Worth checking.