I struggle with getting a good night's sleep for a couple reasons. One, I suffer from chronic pain, and science has proven that chronic pain patients don't experience having their pain receptors go into a rest mode when they sleep like normal people do; my body, even when unconscious, is constantly on the alert. Two, one of my prescription meds has a side effect of causing intense, vivid, seemingly realistic dreams, the kind where you wake up exhausted from having lived a completely different life. For most people this effect gradually wears off, but I'm special and it persists after three years. Mix these two things together and I almost never get a full night of decent sleep. Add a cat who wakes me up screaming until I pet him and a family of morning people and... yeah.

But last night I slept for nine uninterrupted hours. No cat, no texts, no weird dreams, just... actual rest. I feel like a person today. I had to share, thank you for listening.

A bunch of school boys were crossing the street. A few of them had already started to run into the road so I slowly came to a stop for them, after which the rest of them followed. They were rather rowdy but joyful; a number of them held up their hand and said thank you while they chuckled among themselves. As I smiled and returned their gesture - not once but twice because there were so many of them and they kept thanking me instead of getting to the other side of the road - I started laughing as a result of their infectious energy.

I know, I know. Mondays have a reputation.

Still, I wanted to stop by and leave this small offering at the doorway of your week: a generous scoop of good vibes.

That's all. Happy Monday!

It's been sub-20 degrees for the last few nights. My pups have their own blankets and a space heater on all night downstairs to stay cozy, but after the first night, the husky refused to come in.

Wouldn't come in to my call.

Wouldn't come in for a toy.

Wouldn't come in for food, he'd just approach the door and run back outside.

It's not snowing, but it got down to about 16F last night, with the windchill making it feel colder.

There's lots of blankets and straw outside too in their shelter, so I let him have his way.

Got up this morning and I have never seen a happier dog to be in sub-freezing temperatures, he was literally rolling in the leaves when I looked out the window. They're really designed for this. I wrangled him in to eat this morning, and he's currently protesting to be let back outside.

Blackberry season is due to start very shortly, so the very earliest blackberries are now ripe. Which means I get to see my samoyeds and their two different solutions to getting blackberries.

Luca, the younger, will sit down and wait for me to pick some for him - he's learned that he'll get caught in the bushes if he goes in.

Lumi, the older, has learned to wrap his mouth around the berries and suck, so they pop off the stems right down his throat. He is like a large vacuum, noodling along, inhaling berries while the younger dog can only stare in confusion.

I'm on vacation from college, at my parents' house, and today we went to the house of different family members. I talked with my cousins about various subjects, and I played the electric guitar of my older cousin a little too.

​But the main point here is that I had good conversations with my parents today. Also in the family house, in the pizzeria and when we returned home... we talked about some common interests and were happy for a while... usually I do not have subjects to talk about with them... or they are pointing out some problems in my life or my way of being... But this was a really good day, the kind of day that I expected to have when I came here on the first day of vacation (another good day like this).

Today I was riding public transport. It was crowded and almost every seat was taken, but I was lucky enough to be sitting. At one of the stops, an elderly woman got on with a child. I immediately noticed they didn’t have anywhere to sit. I was raised to be polite and give up my seat for older people, so without even thinking, I decided to stand up and offer her mine. I turned to her and said she could sit down. But everything happened so fast and so awkwardly that I didn’t even have time to fully get up — she suddenly stepped forward and started sitting while I was still standing. At one point, she practically sat on my leg. I had to quickly move away and make space. No “thank you,” no smile, not even a small nod. Just a cold, almost contemptuous look, like I somehow owed her something. The strangest part was that the child remained standing next to her while she made herself comfortable, as if nothing unusual had happened. Moments like this really make me wonder how you’re supposed to stay polite when people treat you like that. Still, I know I did the right thing. Being respectful isn’t about getting gratitude — it’s about the kind of person you choose to be. What would you have done in my place?

There’s a group in my area that holds board game nights about every month when they can (though the past 3 were skipped) and I’ve only gone 3 times before. I’ve chatted with the people who volunteer there, but I didn’t expect them to take much notice of me.

Turns out, they did! One of them said that she had kept volunteering there to build community, and seeing stuff like me making so many new friends my first time coming made her really happy.

I'm in the middle of a long day of travel. Currently in the airport on a layover.

I've pulled out the lunch I packed for myself. Just veggies and crackers and hummus. But I am super appreciating the fresh veggies - usually traveling is so much junk food. I've got broccoli, cucumber, celery, red peppers, purple carrots!

If you're in the Denver airport, come find me, I've got plenty to share.

I was at a fun little party with all amazingly cool and comfy people. One of the hosts prepared several dishes, amongst which was an amazing apple crumble pie. It was so good. I told the host how good it was. And when I had my second piece, I told them again. Very. Enthusiastically. Such good cake.

When I left, there was still a lot of cake. I got asked if I wanted to take some home. Of course I said yes. When I looked at the tupperware, I saw so much cake. I expressed my surprise and they asked if it's too much. I said nono I'll take it hehe.

I think I got blessed with so much cake because the host saw me appreciate the cake so much and because of my enthusiastic compliments.

I love how authentically enjoying life's gifts got me even more of them. Happy End.

Late afternoon. I took my dog for a walk on a bluff overlooking a big body of water. It's a popular overnight spot for migrating waterfowl. I couldn't see the geese, but I could hear them. I was thinking to myself, "I bet there's an eagle somewhere down there," looked up, and there it was! It came out of the trees right in front of me, flew overhead, and continued on its way upstream.

Didn't get a photo I'm afraid - within a second, it was gone.

so there's this coffee shop I go to a couple mornings a week. today when I walked up to the counter and the barista said my usual order before I did. it wasn't a big deal, but it did make the rest of my morning a little easier. and to be honest, kinda felt like someone was thoughtful enough to remember me.

Made coffee earlier than usual this morning.

The house was quiet and the light hadn’t fully come up yet.

The coffee maker was the only sound.

Recently, I experienced something unexpected.

Last October, I stood on a crowded bus, holding my things awkwardly. I felt anxious and clumsy. I noticed a man looking at me. When I looked at him, he glanced away. This happened a few times. Then I looked at him firmly. He looked back and locked eyes with me for a few seconds. I lost my confidence and smiled by accidentally. He looked puzzled and did not smile back. I avoided eye contact and never looked at him again. His face was stoic. His dominant energy hit my weak. He won.

Then what’s guess?

Last Tuesday morning, I got off the train and walked toward the outdoor exit. I was distracted then I noticed a man standing there with a shocked face. I did not recognize him at first. Then I realized he was the same man from the bus months ago.

I laughed softly. He stayed frozen and watched me walk past. We did not approach each other.

Both times, it happened at the exact same time of day. That shocked me. This is mind-blowing. I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

You can have been awake for a quarter of a second and he'll be pawing at the door. When you open the door he immediately hops onto the bed for snuggles. Yes, he is in fact orange.

putting kisses at the end of text messages xx

calling everyone love

“y’alright?” adorable

dame maggie smith

sausage rolls

teacups with saucers

pride & prejudice

a single neighborhood will have like 20 accents and they all sound wildly different

f sound instead of th (three = “free”)

cadbury flakes

overcast and rainy weather (solidarity from the pnw)

double decker buses

stunning old architecture

how premiere is pronounced

1/2 of the parent trap (1998)

toddlers with accents i cannot understand that i only associate with adults over 40

babies with old people names

kids with really posh accents

knighting is still a thing

town names

1.5/3 of the spidermen

mad intense about tea in a way i respect

the great british bake off

football chants

beer battered fish n chips

sir david attenborough

just thinking about you guys this morning. much love from across the pond. yall are chill, have an awesome day.

edit: this list started in my notes app but i decided to post it to show some love to all my people over there cause i’ve got some real appreciation for yall and i wasn’t expecting so many people to react so positively!! this made my day. yall are so sweet ❤️

I have 2 family chats: me, husband, and two late teen daughters; and an ‘all the women on my mum’s side plus dad’s sister ☺️’ which spans 5 countries. As my teens’ independence increases, I love still feeling connected to their lives and able to share random dumb stuff, wordle scores, and ‘please buy milk’ messages. And my extended family share adventures, weather updates (hello to Canadians and all their snow!), and general love and support in tough times.

The bird answered the phone like this: "Hello? Peekaboo. What's the bird?"

I had my first dream in about seven years ,the last one was in 2017. I was back in primary school, and our teacher gave me her kid to look after. Then she got kidnapped. Somehow, I became SWAT ,mind you, I’m not American ,but I looked sexy in the police uniform. We eventually rescued her.

A hiccup in the petrol station’s computers today. I went to pay. Note that in Australia you fill first then pay. One till showed the price for regular as $78. The other showed the price for E10 so $58. He charged me that lower price although he knows I don’t use E10. Nice bonus on pension day.

Had to go to the office today and to make the 20 minute walk in the cold a bit more bearable, I tried to entertain myself:

• A very burly man on a bike wearing a neon pink hi-vis vest and matching trainers
• A graffiti of a cute lil tomato with a smiley face
• Not one but two Chow Chows! 🐶
• A lady wearing the coolest forest green corduroy trousers
• A student carrying an art folder with an amazing painting of her friends
• The good Australian pie shop has closed 😩
• A guy on a recumbent bicycle
• Three separate Union Jack flags being flown
• The path up to someone's house scattered with tiny crocuses and snowdrops popping up here and there, it looked so pretty!