January. The long morning-after. A time of mad diets, tentative declarations of sobriety, and a communal wish to be anywhere but here and now. January does something evil to those of us in a cold climate: it’s so bad, so unrelentingly bleak, that it begins to feel like a judgement from on high. A smackdown. […]
Category: Living a good life
George Michael: My Hero
So this is Christmas. We are divided, between those who are easily swayed by the mob mentality (Chrrriiiistmas they scream, eggnog drunk), and those who deem this season a massive waste of time and money. I would fall in to the latter (because I hate spending money and group projects are the absolute worst) except […]
‘Whatever Gets You Through the Day, it’s Ok’ – Self-Care Strategies for Realists
Have you ever looked back upon a time in your life and thought is that me? It can’t be. I’ve been daydreaming about my summers during university, when I worked part time and wrote sprawling essays and stories for my own enjoyment. I mean, really? I did that? I sat there in that kingdom of […]
Would You Like a Long Life, or a Good Life?
When faced with a choice between two things, I think its’s always sensible to check: can’t I have both? A long life or a good life. Well, one of the reasons I gave up alcohol and cigarettes is because I wanted more of the good stuff and less of the bad (mornings full of nice […]
The Friday Happy list – 5th May 2017
Ahoy! Tis Friday. For us nine to fivers, it’s time to really let loose, strike out and seize the means of production go on a jolly weekend bender. If you are anything like me, you have been getting through this working week with a heady mix of coffee, sugar and confused shouting. I’d like to […]
Secret Style Icon No. 24: Joan Eardley
A few weeks ago I wrote about Womankind magazine and the editor’s vision of a readership that wanted to ‘look outward, not inward’. I was in need of a bit of that. Just when we thought the sun might return, there were unreasonable flurries of snow across grey Glasgow. All my waking hours were structured […]
In Praise of Having a Rest
Sometime in the dark midwinter I was scrubbing at a blue-black stain on my living room carpet for ten minutes before I realised it was actually a shadow. I wanted to cry. It was past my bed-time and my nervous system was crackling with stress. I’d had about eight cups of coffee since 7am that […]
‘Look Outwards, Not Inwards’ – Finally, a Womens’ Magazine For the Real World
Reading, eating, sleeping: are these not the very foundations of wellbeing? Most else, I could take or leave (exercising is only for emergencies; handsome lovers and disco dancing and holidays in sunny places are the extras we get if we’re lucky and/or persistent). As a kid I avidly read cereal boxes at the breakfast table […]
10 Love Stories for Valentines Day
Wandering around the shops today I saw a man walking very fast, carrying a bunch of red roses. Ah, Schmalentine’s Day. Whenever I was single on Valentine’s Day I used it as an excuse to treat myself to all kinds of treasure – baskets of cats wearing bow-ties, a cinema date for one with an […]
A Christmas Survival Guide (for Tired Busy People)
So this is Christmas, the time of year for festooning. Festooning things like mantelpieces and best friends and pets. Festooning with tinsel and fairy lights, cake crumbs and mulled wine stains. Tis also the season for stress and forgetfulness. No matter how dutifully I write things in my calendar, by the first week of December […]
Amy Jardine 