The Unofficial Guide to Life
A cozy corner. Glowing candles. The smell of freshly baked bread. Whether you live in a grand palace or a cramped one-bedroom apartment, you strive to create a personal sanctuary, understanding that home is more than just a pile of bricks. Let’s evoke feelings of warmth, of comfort, of contentment. A place where you find joy in stillness, indulge in little treasures, and appreciate the company of family and friends. Welcome to our home: we hope you like it here.
It’s the time of the year where it’s possible to smell chimney smoke again. Last week, when I was in Glencoe, I looked out the window and saw a row of white houses set against a backdrop of rolling hills, chimney smoke rising into the air. Everything felt warmer after that.
Continue reading “Chimney Smoke”
I have a dream. Covid restrictions are over, and we’re allowed to see people again, and I can host a dinner party. That’s it; that’s my dream. As soon as the world goes back to normal, I don’t want to jump on a plane and travel somewhere far away: I just want to have people over, and take their coats, and sit next to them in my living room, drinking wine and waiting for the moment to announce that dinner’s ready.
Continue reading “Dinner Party”
My kitchen was one humongous mess the other night. I may have been more clumsy and careless than usual, but basically everything that had the potential to spill actually did. There was milk on the counter, and broken egg shells, and spoons on the floor, and an ever growing pile of sticky dishes in the sink.
Continue reading “A Mess”
Lately, I’ve been trying to get into baking. I shouldn’t say trying because I think I’m actually doing it. I like baking. Or at least, I think I do. Maybe I just like eating whatever I bake, or maybe I like the smell of it, or maybe I like that baking makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something and that I’m somehow better than I was when I didn’t bake.
Continue reading “Baking in the Real World”
I bought myself tulips the other day. Lavender ones – pale and pretty. The kind that would make me smile if I saw them neatly sitting on a windowsill. The kind that would inspire thoughts of one day, that’ll be me if I saw a girl walking down the street, carrying them in her arms.
Continue reading “Flower and Flour”
I’ve done a lot of things lately. I completed a 1000 piece puzzle all by myself for the first time in my life, and I don’t think many people can say that. I also watched all of Schitt’s Creek in way too short an amount of time, googled how to fry an egg, and finished reading two books. I read every morning while I drink coffee and eat breakfast. Sometimes I read during lunch too.
Continue reading “Ordinary Things”
If you hate wasting food and can’t bear to throw away any kitchen scraps – like a lettuce head – I’m happy to report that my mom experimented with regrowing lettuce from the stem.
Continue reading “How to Regrow Lettuce From the Stem”
I’ve been sitting by my window every day for the past three months. It’s quiet at times, noisy at others. When it’s quiet, the only sound is the clicking of my computer. And when it’s noisy, it’s like a symphony’s out there playing a private performance just for me.
Continue reading “Sounds I’ve Heard From My Window”
Written July 10, 2014
The world’s an awfully big place. There’s a million places you could go, but after you walk out your door, maybe your feet always lead you back home. And maybe that’s not a bad thing, maybe that’s a beautiful thing.
Continue reading “When Life Drifts Along”
Things I Learned Growing Up 