Miner Miner Forty Niner

Yesterday was my birthday, and I turned 49. My last birthday in my forties! I have really loved my forties, and I hope this last year before I can say that I’m nifty and fifty will be just as great. I love birthdays. This isn’t news to anyone who has known me even tangentially – […]

Nicole’s Favourite Things: The Leap Year Edition

Happy Leap Year, everyone! Our last Leap Year was in 2020, and thinking about it now, how strange that time was, having an extra day just ahead of being locked down and going through a global pandemic. When I look at my blog from February 2020, it is all very cheerful and clearly I had […]

That’s The Way I’ve Always Heard It Should Be

Many years ago I was in the playground with a friend and our children; she had an older daughter who at the time was in first grade, and so was not at the playground but instead in school. My friend said something to me that has stayed with me for years. Her daughter, she said, […]

People Who Watch People

The world is such an interesting place, isn’t it? It’s wild that a person can go from this: To this, in only a matter of hours. It has been very grey and foggy this week, but it’s so mild and windless that I don’t mind it at all. Our snow is basically all gone, except […]

Nicole’s Favourite Things: The Gnomevember Edition

I don’t usually leave my Favourite Things until the last day of the month, but here we are! November is an underrated month, in my mind. It’s the month of Tiny Secret Festive Season and Christmas shopping, it’s preparing holiday cards and baking gingery things. It’s Mint Chocolate season, which is my favourite of all […]

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night

A woman was stocking the organic bananas in Superstore, and so I waited patiently as she unloaded. She gestured to me to go ahead, choose your bananas and then looked a bit shocked as I piled thirty or so into my cart. “Do you run a group home or something?” she said, puzzled. “Is that […]

Nicole’s Favourite Things: The Oooh, It’s October Edition

At the risk of sounding like an incredibly demented Little Miss Sunshine, I do not have a Least Favourite Month. I don’t have a Most Favourite Month either; I love April because it’s my birthday, and December because of Christmas, I love July and August because of the heat and summery vibes and I love […]