It’s the time of year when I usually start to get a bit snaky. Walking the tightrope between the usual thing and the need for a break. For almost my entire adult life, this is the time of year I’d usually be putting the finishing touches on my holiday plans. When I was younger, driving […]
The Pseudonym’s Bride
Happily ever after… Or not Celeste Celeste Baillieu’s husband seems a perfectly normal person, but he has a secret. And it’s not that he’s rubbish at renovation. When she starts taking the cottage apart, she finds a body. And that’s just the start of it. Because it looks like she might be next. “The Pseudonym’s […]
5 Tips for Updating Your Home Without Updating It
In April, I mentioned we had started a list of renovations for updating our home. I had even gone as far as short listing some builders to do the work. And then in May, I mentioned the shortage of building and therefore the hight cost of building supplies, and my intention to focus on home […]
Tell your fear “Silenzio Bruno!”
I recently watched Luca, a Disney movie about two young sea monsters meeting humans in search of a Vespa. Among other things, Alberto (one of the monsters) tells Luca (the other monster) that the voice of his fear belongs to someone called Bruno. His role is to stop him doing anything interesting. That when he’s […]
Dating Spending Plan
I heard on the news the other morning that the divorce rate in Australia (and presumably other contries) has skyrocketed. The going theory is that we’ve spent so much time in lockdown together, without the distractions of other people, that we’ve realised that we don’t in fact like each other very much at all. Which […]
Cracking the Code: a common or garden variety hero short story
Sometimes you get a second chance. A woman is missing. Perhaps injured. Maybe dead. The Police failed her. Gemma Jones failed her. Now she has a second chance. Can Gemma find her in time? “Cracking the Code” by Alexandria Blaelock, is free on this website for a month. Currently only available as part of Common […]
The Day the Schedule Broke
Take an ordinary moment. Add golden light and dramatic music. Now you’ve got a movie. Sandra (not Sandy, Sands or Sando) Lockwood works in a basement storage cupboard come office. That just self-destructed. Now she has Daniel Carruthers, movie star and Gorgon Studios CEO to deal with. Is it possible she’s in the right place […]
Forgetting and Remembering
I find I’m forgetting a lot lately. And I’ve been thinking a lot about how to expand my memory, in part to recapture some of what I lost after the stroke. A couple of years ago, when I had a reliable memory, I wrote about Remembering and Forgetting; the difference between intending to remember, and […]
Puppy has Sharp Teeth
It’s hardly groundbreaking news for anyone who owns a puppy (or is owned by one), but they have sharp teeth. They chew rocks, and twigs, and the skulls of things they dig up in the garden. Their beds and blankets. Empty packets and bottles they find in the recycling bin. And those sharp teeth work […]
Decisions Big and Small
Lately, I’ve been finding that I’m wiped out by about lunchtime. Sometimes I get as far as mid-afternoon. I put it down to all the decisions I’m making. It’s like all the small decisions take just as much brain space as the big. I start out fine, but as the day goes on, I get […]
It’s Not All Just Dumb Luck
I admit it. In fact, I proudly declare it. I am a “bleeding heart liberal.” It’s probably because I grew up poor. The seemingly dumb luck of it. I mentioned in the dedication to Holistic Personal Finance that my mother saved the one and two cent pieces for herself. She saved the 5c for me. […]
The Ghost Detectors: A Hayward Hall Short Story
Zoo doesn’t believe in ghosts… Zoo hosts The Ghost Detectors show. As far as he’s concerned, it’s all mass hysteria. When his show visits Hayward Hall, he’s not prepared for what he finds. It will challenge his assumptions. And change his life forever. “The Ghost Detectors” by Alexandria Blaelock, is free on this website for […]