Recently my mother and I were chatting on the phone and realised that we were both admiring the butterflies on the buddleia bushes in our own gardens. Up to this point it had been a normal conversation, but then she suddenly exclaimed, “A garden is a lovesome thing, God wot.” “God what?” I said, “I…
Bringing eccentricity home
I recently read that more than half of Britons claim to belong to a subculture. This sounded fascinating and I was imagining all sorts of seemingly conventional people who quietly indulge in obscure hobbies like mountaintop poetry reading, traffic-cone collecting or extreme ironing. I should have stopped reading there, but instead I continued and learned…
The Yoga Challenge of Last Resort
There are those among us who are starting to panic – lockdown is easing and what do we have to show for it? Those Spanish conversation podcasts have been cast aside in favour of the BBC’s Friday Night Comedy and Fortunately with Fi and Jane. John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress sits, neglected and dusty, in the…
The day I had my hair cut and other big adventures
Yes, I have had my hair cut. I don’t like to show off (especially if you haven’t been able to visit the hairdresser or barber yet), but I do feel transformed. Like many others, I’ve realised that covid-comfort eating has caused me to put on weight, but I’ve now convinced myself that most of that…
How comfortable are you with risk?
I think we all have an idea of where we fit on the thrill-seeking scale, whether our perfect day out would involve white water rafting or a visit to a National Trust property followed by a cup of tea and a piece of carrot cake. The recent easing of lockdown restrictions has only highlighted the…
Can cinemas tempt us from our sofas?
Welcome news for all film lovers – cinemas are re-opening at the end of July. Watching movies on television from the comfort of your sofa is pleasant enough and it’s certainly cheap. Plus you get exactly the choice of snacks and drinks you want, and can press pause anytime you like for a handy loo…
Empty plinths
I have a plinth. Which I stand on. Before you become jealous, I should add that it’s a wooden structure, only a few centimetres high. And it was very kindly made by the resident carpenter so that I would have a flat surface for my tai chi practice in the garden. What passes for our…
My “Don’t Do It” List
Although I have tried very hard not to make lists since losing my flowery Filofax, I haven’t been entirely successful. Without realising it, I have been mentally compiling a list of things that I will never do. I know that this isn’t in keeping with the self-improvement spirit of our age, but I think that…
Pining for a simpler life
I know this doesn’t make much sense, but as we emerge blinking into the light I’m feeling nostalgic for the early days of lockdown. Not that initial period of panic buying when the shops had been cleared of loo roll and long-life milk, when everyone was trying to figure out how Zoom worked and what…
Everything must go!
I know I said that organising drawers was at the very bottom of my ‘to-do’ list, but that was several weeks ago and things change. The barrel is being scraped and sorting out drawers and cupboards is my activity of last resort. I’ve been surprisingly ruthless at getting rid of things because I have decided…