Happy Friday, dear readers! I hope you had a lovely week and, if you are in the United States, have a lovely holiday weekend planned. Today, I wanted to share a grab bag of articles and things that are fun and useful and may help you to keep some of the summer feeling as we go into the school year and into fall.

I love summer for many reasons, but one of the reasons I love summer is because it always seems like the perfect time to have potlucks, BBQs, and parties. If you didn’t get your fill of fun yet, check out Lifehacker’s article on the top 10 tips for hosting the perfect get-together and schedule one with your friends to enjoy the last days of summer before the frost of fall.

While it is already September and a lot of people are back at school and work, it doesn’t mean we have to sacrifice good design or some fun. Check out the September Desktop Calendars from Smashing Magazine to give your work desktop a refresh. I love changing up my desktop wallpaper each month and this month it was such a hard choice with so many lovely wallpapers combining summer with autumn designs.

It isn’t a new article, but it is a great read, like a pep talk and a pat on the back for librarians as we roll into another school year. So reread Neil Gaiman on why our future depends on libraries, reading and daydreaming because it is wonderful.

And it wouldn’t be a Friday without a bit of fun, so check out this previous Fashionable Friday: word nerd by The Well-Appointed Desk. Seems like a good one to share at the start of the school year.

Also, I can’t help but share this laptop scratching post lets your cat create its own viral content. So cute and silly.

I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day and lovely weekend full of all good things. I’ll be back again with news and notes. Allons-y!