Insanity
Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Keep reading →
Gritty oysters
When I was little my mum used to play a Bob Dylan record. I think it must have been a kind of 'best of' collection, with Hey Mister Tambourine Man, Just Like a Woman, Like a Rolling Stone etc. I thought the parts where he was singing were alright, though I didn't like his voice much, but I absolutely couldn't stand the harmonica parts. Keep reading →
False nostalgia
Nostalgia is generally thought to be felt for a part of one's own life that has passed and is later fondly recalled. But I sometimes feel something very like nostalgia for times and places and lives I never lived - not even close, in fact. Keep reading →
P’s heart
This is a piece of religious art by a small friend of mine I'll just call P (even though she has a really beautiful name, I think). Keep reading →
Appetite for stuff
I am a bad shopper. Last night I really, really tried. For hours. The seasons are changing, life is changing, surely it would be a good time for my clothes to change too? Keep reading →
Grand Love
A friend of mine, Wilma Davidson, has just published a book of poetry and I received my signed copy yesterday. I'm completely delighted with it and I read it from cover to cover in one sitting! Keep reading →
Oh happy day
Today my lovely editor at Penguin emailed me the whole cover for Sophie's Salon, including the back flap and spine. It's the first time I've seen it all put together and I just love it! Keep reading →
Kindred spirits
Just recently I read the autobiography of someone I had imagined to be a sort of kindred spirit. She collects something I collect and thought no one else did. Keep reading →
Widdershins
What a nice word. It can mean counter clockwise, or to the left of something, or contrary to the motion of the sun, or just going in the opposite direction from the one you were expecting. Keep reading →
Autumn and Squirrel Nutkin
In Surprised by Joy C.S. Lewis describes one of the glimpses of 'joy' that he later understood as profoundly connected with the development of his religious faith. While reading Beatrix Potter's book Squirrel Nutkin he felt a kind of longing for autumn that I can so easily understand. Keep reading →