Going undercover

I was following a woman in Hull this morning.... that sounds bad!  I wasn't stalking her, just happened to be behind her and going in the same direction.  Anyway, she looked a bit different {Honestly, I've never seen her before - I mean different from other people that I've seen recently} and I realised that it was what she was wearing.... a chunky-knit woolly cardigan.   And she wasn't the only one - other people were wearing them too.  Suddenly it's autumn!

Perversely, for someone who feels the cold as much as I do, I love this season.  It's still warm enough to go outdoors occasionally, but with a sharpness in the air that's just enough to make you remember you're alive.  It's a time of fresh starts, and new exercise books and, yes, woolly jumpers.  I no longer have to dither about getting dressed or packing to go away, wondering if I'll need to take a jumper; I'm already wearing two.

{Interesting semantic point here; what I, probably quaintly,  call a jumper, others would call a sweater or possibly a pullover.  Although I suspect that, if we're being picky, pullovers don't have sleeves.  Now 'sweater' and 'pullover' I understand - the names make sense in terms of the garment in question.  But 'jumper'? The only connection I can come up with is that it refers to the sheep that the wool came from.  Not that sheep jump a lot, except when they're very young, and then it's more like bouncing.  I suppose it could lead to all sorts of unfortunate misunderstandings if we called those garments 'bouncers'.} 

Picture: © Copyright Derek Harper and licensed forreuse under this Creative Commons Licence

Another reason I don't have to think about what to put on is that I have a new job, for which I have to wear a uniform - and it includes a lovely thick sweatshirt and a fleece.  I've never had a fleece before.  I'd seen them, obviously, but never felt the need of one; they're what you wear for hiking, surely, and other general outdoorsy stuff.  And then there are the other kind of fleeces... one of my most surreal experiences was when I went to see a Queen tribute band a few years ago, and noticed that most of the audience were wearing fleeces with pictures of animals on them.

So I've tended to dismiss the idea of ever owning one myself, but I have to admit I'm a convert.  It's so cosy! And it has pockets to keep my hands warm in!  {You will be relieved to learn that my fleece is plain dark blue, and the only picture on it is a discreet logo.}  I don't want to wear it all the time though,  so now I'm home for the day I've wrapped myself up in my blanket rather than put the heating on.  It is only September, after all!

{After I wrote this I tried cooking some pasta sauce, but that didn't feel like a good idea to be doing while wrapped in a blanket.... so I gave in and switched on the heating.}