A New School Year: Gearing Up For A Great Year

It’s about that time again.

Time to start getting ready, to pack my bags, and ramble on.

You see, I like to think of each year as having two beginnings, and this next one is my favorite one.

We have the normal New Year’s Day celebration in the US on January 1st. But that is not the case around the world.

Some countries in Asia celebrate it in late January to mid-February. This coming year, for example, it will be February 6, 2027, for China, Malaysia, South Korea, and Vietnam.

Some countries celebrate the new year with the zodiac, around mid-April when the sun enters Aries again (e.g., Cambodia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand).

I like to think of the year as having two New Year’s: the traditional January 1 of this culture, and the beginning of a new school year.

I particularly like to think of September 22 as the start of the “new year’s celebration” of the school year. This date is both Bilbo and Frodo Baggins’s birthday.

At the beginning of The Lord of the Rings, Bilbo throws a massive birthday party for himself on this date. Bilbo was turning 111 and Frodo 33 (his coming-of-age celebration, a mere youngster in terms of how Hobbits age).

Nerding out on the Rings aside, I really like the idea of the beginning of Fall starting the new school year.

Growing up in Oklahoma, we started school in mid-to-late August, and it always seemed barbaric to me.

Are you kidding me? It’s still hot as Hades out there!!

Two-a-day football practices? Are you trying to weed us out?!!

Can’t we just continue to enjoy the warm summer weather and our freedom?

No, not down there. It’s barbaric.

Later, I went to graduate school in Minnesota, and the quarter system started around the end of September that year.

Marvelous!

I loved it and think all schools should follow this type of calendar.

Everyone could be let out in early June and start back around the beginning of Fall.

Perfect in my mind.

But what do I know?

Well, I spent June of 2025 in the Southeast and left for the PNW toward the end of the month. It was just starting to get “too hot” for my tastes. But most of June was pleasant.

As an intern, I had the same experience when I lived in South Texas for a summer. I went camping on Padre Island in May and June, and it was fantastic. We went back in August, and it was miserable.

If I lived in Texas, I would want to get the heck out of there for August!! Hard to do if you have kids that need to be back in school.

But I digress.

My main point for all of this is I think I have come through my depression of the last couple of weeks and am ready to set my sights on a great new year!

I love to time my migration to the Southeast around the beginning of Fall. My biggest question this year is What route I will take and what I want to do along the way.

Whatever I decide, it would be a great year to test “slow” travel versus my normal 12-hour drive days.

What is my hurry?

I’ll set the cruise control to 35 mph and say, “It’s going to be a great year!” (Revenge of the Nerds movie reference for those who don’t know what I am talking about.)

Over the next few weeks, as we move towards Fall, I will be sharing some of my planning for the coming school year.

For example, I have a lease on an apartment that runs through the end of May 2027. I really love the place, but I may decide to let it go. Whatever I decide, I want my time there to be meaningful and fulfilling.

Also, what is the curriculum for the coming year?

Since I have decided to take on the identity of “student” as the central organizing principle of my life for the next 2 to 5 years, that is a very important question. That’s equivalent to the time required for a normal master’s or bachelor’s degree.

But what is the “degree” I am seeking?

Gosh, it’s cool that I can design it from scratch, but I also need to create some structure and intent that I currently don’t have a grasp on yet.

I will be figuring this out in the next few days and weeks.

And how much time do I really want to put into this?

20 hours per week? 30? More?

The last brick-and-mortar school degree I earned took me a minimum of 35 hours per week of class and outside study and creation time, and that was with 3 courses per quarter, in 11-week sprints.

Additionally, I held a 20-hour-per-week part-time internship.

And, I was putting at least 10 hours per week into a research assistant position. (I was probably slacking there, as I think 20 was the expectation!)

Am I really wanting to structure my time this tight again, with 65-70 hours per week accounted for to do it?

Hmm. Maybe.

We’ll see.

Regardless, I am getting pumped up about possibilities again.

The shadow of the last couple of weeks is lifting, and I am ready to jump back into the abyss and continue this fool’s journey.