Back to school day is always such a relief. Even when the holidays are good, it's pretty great to be alone again and get organized and get on with things. This time, the holidays were... mixed. Kind of horrible in the middle there. I mean the kids had a great time! Two holiday programmes that… Continue reading Early autumn is fresh energy, late autumn is just cold

Good news: Venus turns out to be a cuddle kitty in winter. At least, she's still shy of laps, but she keeps coming to snuggle next to us on the couch, or indeed in bed, which is very welcome. She's also using the litterbox again rather than the Great Outdoor Toilet, so, win some lose… Continue reading Win some, lose some, but I could really use a win some time

I had a few things to report from last week – but I've forgotten them all. Nothing happened last week. Nothing except for the incredibly satisfying telling of a story from 23 years ago. Now, I've told this story many times before, but never to the other people involved, and turns out, that makes all… Continue reading 23 years is a long time to wait for the punchline

I am writing to you freshly back from a weekend sewing retreat – four days in an Alpine chalet with delicious food, lovely women and absolutely no pressure to do anything, not even sew. Which you'll understand is a very good thing considering my absolute terror of sewing. So why did I go? Well, mostly… Continue reading Peak indulgence

I had to keep M home with me all of last week. All. Week. For what was really just a light cold, but you know how it is with kids, if they have a cough it lingers, and plague rules are clear. So. Some days were fine, some days were a total pain. I have… Continue reading No pressure but still a tiny bit of pressure

This past week has of course been mostly about missing Joy. The kids are surprisingly cheerful though; life goes on and even though we miss her, talking about our lovely lost fuzzball doesn't bring on distress, as I feared. Also very good news: Venus is stepping up very well to the demands of being an… Continue reading All about the cozy

Monday was a school holiday in Zürich – there are a few of these scattered through the year: not quite public holidays, people still go to work, but no school. This was Knabenschiessen (literally "boy shooting", a junior rifle shooting competition and a long-standing tradition, not – as C would have it – a day… Continue reading Lolling about in the sun

Things I brought home from holiday: sunburnwasp stingbuggered shouldersmall collection of masks (this year's souvenir of choice)sense of guilt over travelling in plague times, despite our efforts to ensure a "sensible" holidayquestion mark over two planned trips in the near future. One (A's family reunion) is likely to be cancelled, one (sewing retreat) not, which… Continue reading Holiday notes