Good evening. You don’t have to be a student to appreciate the joys of back-to-school season. Plus …
“I’m not ready for summer to end :(” a friend texted last week. An innocuous text! A relatable text! A text that left me speechless. You see, here in Maine, for 12 weeks and 12 weeks only, the weather strums in perfect harmony with the topography: Hot days pair with cool nights, bracing waters accentuate lofty forests. June hits, and it’s a sprint through lobster shells, beach towels, and pockets loaded with ice cream napkins — straight on through Labor Day. It’s transcendent. It’s singular. And when it’s over, some of us breathe a secret sigh of relief. I am always ready for summer to end :) My longstanding, if unpopular, love for the start of the school year is well documented — and at least partially explained by the privilege of high-gear summers. What’s the perfect antidote to sand, sun, and sugar? Bath, brush, and bed. A regular school night. Presumed fun is a lot of pressure. Found fun? Now you have my attention. We’re not expected to love homework, sharpening pencils, or lugging backpacks. I find joy in rising to that challenge. Each year, as leaves start to singe, my joie de vivre starts to bloom. September is a blank sheet of loose-leaf I look forward to turning. And then, of course, there’s the back-to-school shopping. What other retail event hawks the promise of sheer possibility? The treasures I’ve got my eye on this year pay homage to my favorite kind of starting anew:
Lastly I’ll leave you with something that I’m sure thrills only me: napkins patterned like notebook paper. Just imagine the possibilities.
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My son-in-law is a retired physicist who is very smart and learns everything by reading about it and then doing. He’s an accomplished carpenter, builder, maker of electronics, guitarist, and cook. He has recently tried his hand at pottery, and he’s particularly interested in glazes. What can I get him for his birthday? — R.S. From gifting expert Mari Uyehara: How fun to have a scientist in the family. For a generally curious mind, we love this hefty illustrated tome, which imagines how civilization might be rebuilt from scratch, delving into various subjects. (Crop rotation! Dentistry!) There’s also this teeny-tiny working TV, which can play videos on its 1-inch screen. He might enjoy digging into this beautifully photographed book on the subject of salt-glazing, a pottery technique that creates a gorgeous pebbled, shiny texture on clay vessels. Craftspeople often appreciate crafts, so you may want to consider pooling resources for a special piece, say, a salt-glazed pot from legendary ceramist Karen Karnes or an abstract vase or bowl from Toshiko Takaezu. On the more affordable end of the spectrum, a Japanese donabe or Colombian bean pot might delight a cook with an appreciation for ceramics. And Paula Wolfert’s book on cooking in clay pots may inspire even more meals and courses of pottery study for him.
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One last gift (for you): This 14-karat bracelet’s flat links reflect light, sending out delightful little glints of gold. And it’s on sale right now. Was this email kindly forwarded to you? Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox.
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