What year is it?

I seem to be stuck in 2020.

I remember the days of writing out cheques and getting the year wrong at cash tills in early January - now I rarely need to write down the date - I pay for everything electronically and it is automatically generated in my electronic communications and on my social media posts.

At the start of 2020 we celebrated the start of a new year with a house full of guests, we all hugged and cheered and looked forward to a new year. We planned ahead, as normal - we booked a holiday and a few weekend breaks away. Then in March we were plummeted into a pandemic.

At the start of 2021 - we didn't celebrate much - we zoomed with some friends and we held a sparkler in the garden and hoped for a better year ahead. 2020 was a lost year.

Now - as I we enter autumn 2021 - I have to confess that my brain has still not fully computed which year I am actually in - befuddled by pandemic delayed timelines? Am I alone in this?

This is how I think my mind is being challenged:

• A relatives 60th wedding anniversary party - but on their 61st anniversary.

• The 2020 banners on the side of the Euro 2020 football matches - but it was 2021.

• The Olympic 2020 banners adorning each venue - the medals were emblazoned with 2020 not 2021 (all understandable but confusing for my brain never the less).

• The students that finished their degrees in 2020 are graduating in 2021 but are the class of 2020!

• Constant re-runs on tv.

• The holiday we booked is now happening next year.

• Working from home has masked the usual working timelines.

• Online retail, seasonal goods just cant be shoved in your face the same way online - Easter eggs in February, back to school items in August, Halloween in September and of course Christmas in October/November. The rhythm of the year has been a bit up in the air.

• The new boots and coat and work clothes I bought in the January sales of 2019 (for use in Autumn 2020) are still unused - and probably don't fit (see my post "keep on running")

• I am using vouchers that expired in 2020, but they are still being honoured.

Good job I don't have to write out cheques anymore.