Feeling A Bit Sh*t #072

Old-school Martha, Nightiecore, bookbinding, reading retreats +

above photo by Susuan Wood

So good to see you back here, friends! Let’s do this thing!

Three Good Things

1/ There was an elderly grandmother at the op shop with her granddaughter. She only spoke Urdu, so she was having trouble understanding that there was a special deal on kids’ toys - $6 for a big bag full. I could see she wanted to buy something for the little one, but was not sure of the cost. I tried to help her understand, but we were at a language impasse, despite much miming on my part. Then her son entered the store and I pounced on him and told him about the $6 bags. Ten minutes later they were checking out a huge bag of toys, little girl grinning broadly. The granny approached me and grasped both my hands to say thank you for the help. Grannies looking out for grannies is what I’m all about.
2/ Watching birds land on the tippy top branches of the neighbour’s leafless tree. It’s like a winter x-ray!
3/ A little boy standing at the jewellery counter at Saver’s telling his dad “I want a watch that ticks! Not a digital watch. A PROPER watch.”

Exterior of Beatrix Potter's cottage viewed through the garden at Hill Top and Hawkshead, Cumbria©National Trust Images/Annapurn

one/ Was Beatrix Potter the original queen of cottage core? (Adjacent - Nightiecore is a new old thing now.)
two/ What you lose when you stop reading physical books.
three/ Speaking more languages may help slow brain ageing.
four/ I loved reading Laura Marling’s account of that slippery concept of ‘home’.
five/ First look at the impending new adaptation of My Brilliant Career.

six/ Adelene Koh’s amazing bookbinding skills are something to behold.
seven/ “More than 30 Aboriginal language custodians have released a statement on keeping Northern Territory Indigenous languages strong.”
eight/ Caitlan Moran has a new podcast about gardening and it’s very alottmenty and cottagey and funny.
nine/ Parents say the darndest things.
ten/ This Falafel Salad looks nutritious. As does Bang Bang Chicken Salad (found via Foodie Crush.) One Pot Pasta Primavera looks veggie packed and yum. I vote yes to Focaccia Sandwiches! Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars look cheerfully decadent. From the same source: have a crepe day! Burnt Honey Salad Dressing (via Joy the Baker) sounds very, very good - here it is in a tomato salad. Chilli Crisp Triple Cheese Toasties for a cosy and decadent night in. This Thai Inspired Corn Salad looks delish, also.

eleven/ A new KrisAtomic video is always a treat!
twelve/ This marble pillow is a delight.
thirteen/ A beautiful long read (grab a cuppa) - My Almond Archive - “A tree can tell you the story of a family, of past care and present abandonment, and of visions of the future. Of what it was, and what it might yet be. Anti-inflammatory, emollient, soothing, refreshing.”
fourteen/ I loved peeking inside this airy Portuguese cottage.
fifteen/ Lucy Sparrow sewed a supermarket! (Below)

sixteen/ How about going on a reading retreat?!
seventeen/ Brighter days are linked to better sleep, according to science.
eighteen/ Bureau Betek crafted an enchanted garden for Chanel.
nineteen/ Great archival photos of Martha Stewart and her various homes. (Top and below.)
twenty/ Author Susanna Clark’s fascinating Piranesi back story. (She has ME/CFS like me!)
twenty-one/ (Thanks Kate for this recommendation!) A summer/winter mending checklist, so you’ll never be caught short.
twenty-two/ The mother and daughter behind a charming cooking school in France.

Around the grounds

It’s been a week of family lawn mowing (my front lawn was going nuts!), Duplo playing (I found a bunch of zoo-themed Duplo for June), oven replacing (Rin’s oven was out of action, so their landlords installed a new one) and Saver’s catch-ups (the family that shops together tops together!) Among the Duplo was a crocodile with a mouth that opens and shuts, so June and I spent a bit of time together singing ‘Open, Shut Them’ and opening and closing the toy’s toothy snout. She was very impressed with the teeth, and less impressed with the snap the closing mouth made!

What podcasts have you been listening to?

I’m nearly all of the way through Love Trapped and it’s mortifying, but also I don’t know WHAT to think about Laura … Have you listened? No spoilers plz. Also keeping up with The Solo Bureau, as usual. It’s mint.

Do you remember …
These?! (below) via

Joke of the week

What do you call a pig who knows karate?
A pork chop!

x pip

If you fancy, buy me a coffee. —>