It is a rare breed of human who sees a frozen lake in a frosty Canadian winter and thinks “my this looks like a great place to swim.” Growing up in the frozen north, year-round swimming seemed like something that was reserved for more tropical climes and winter swimming reserved for the insane or for … More Splashing with the Sassy-Squashes
I know this will come as a shock to all of you, but I have switched to (gasp) digital planning! I know. I know. This comes as quite a shock. After more than 2 decades of ardent paper planning, delighting in the thrill of a fresh planner filled with open spaces and possibility, satisfaction with … More Digital planning? (+ downloadable templates)
I have been a dedicated yet deeply inconsistent journaller for my entire life. From about the age of 9, I have harboured a romantic vision of becoming a writer and have spent many hours in my bedroom filling notebooks of pre-teen angst and thoughts. I have not shaken this habit, and over the past (ahem) … More What to do with mountains of journals? Minimalist hoarder conundrums
There were some plonkers, a lot of good but not great books, and a few excellent books that graced my year. My average rating for the 46 books I read this year was 3.5, achieving an almost normal distribution! (Nerd joy!). The pandemic has made it more clear that when possible, I should support the … More Books which carried me through 2020: Top 12 picks
I have talked about this before. Y’all know I am a bookworm. (See The books that made my 2019, 2018 between the covers (of great books), Awesome books for kids, Read good books). Most years, I read between 40-50 books and I get enormous satisfaction writing tiny reviews and tracking the books on Goodreads. I always dreamed of … More Books in other forms
While COVID-19 lockdown has re-ignited my enthusiasm for knitting and cross stitch, I have spent much of the last 3 months feeling deeply unmotivated in most other areas of life, including creating any content for this blog. However, as I do like going on about my latest toys, I overcame my reticence in order to … More Rocketbook review
Amid all the hustle and chaos of 2019 (ahem finishing my PhD, starting my senior research fellowship etc), I have managed to escape to extraordinary places, from the wild marshes of North Carolina, Vietnam in the 60s, the hospital wards of London, and the streets of the fictional Gilead. While I read fewer books than … More The books that made my 2019
We have been having a cozy Christmas season in London. Here were a few of the top moments of Christmas cheer in the Henry/Sparks/Dykxhoorn house. 10k Santa Dash for Great Ormond St Children’s Hospital (aka a fun Where’s Waldo challenge for y’all!) Ogling the Christmas lights at Kew Gardens And a ride on a ‘swing … More A very London Christmas
I share a lot about my travels on this site, as I have had the opportunity to visit some truly incredible places in the last few years. In response to queries about if I like living in London, I find myself often responding that I love that London is such a hub of travel, making … More Moments in my London
Its been a while since I have treated y’all to an update on my PhD life, and that is because I am somewhat done but also not quite done. (That makes sense, right?) You can see the process – the slowly climbing word count (the blue and green lines are total word count and word … More PhD purgatory: the medium place between mostly done and fully done
Lovely Outliers 