Small Comforts That Make Coming Home From a Trip Feel Even Better
Coming home from a trip is easier when a few small comforts are already in place, and most of them take only a short…
Summer and Autumn 2026 updates
My last personal update earlier this year was a bit doom and gloom. My FIL had just passed away, and our comfortable rental house…
7.5 Instructions for a Heatwave
I read this book late in the summer in the midst of our own heatwave. It’s still pretty warm in fact even in mid…
Making Your Home Welcoming for Visiting Parents and Grandparents
Hosting visiting parents and grandparents goes more smoothly when the seating, bathroom, lighting and guest bed suit how they get around. Older relatives usually…
Autumn Garden Birdwatching for Beginners and How to Make Your Garden More Welcoming
Birdwatching in the garden is easy to start in autumn, because summer visitors are leaving in stages, winter birds are beginning to arrive and…
A Day in the Shambles: Witches, Sweets and a Minster on the Skyline
This is the last weekend my mom is with us here in the UK, and so we wanted to do something fun even if…
6.3 The Autograph Man
There are some books that you can appreciate for the technical aspects – the turn of a phrase, a certain deftness in dialogues, and…
8.1 Scenes from a Tragedy
My recent thriller choices haven’t been the best. In fact, this year every thriller I’ve read, apart from The God of the Woods (which is more literary…
Harewood House
Harewood House in West Yorkshire has recently made the news as the filming location (the setting for Pemberley) in the new Pride and Prejudice miniseries, which…
Widow’s Bay
Seeing all the Emmy Awards hype for Widow’s Bay, I decided to watch it over the weekend. I am not very familiar with shows…