This post was originally published in 2015, on DigiKids, a webzine created by Stacey Vee & I, that encouraged parents towards guiding their children through the digital world in a safe, secure,…
I can’t wish you a Happy Birthday
Dear Mum, The last time I got to wish you a Happy Birthday was when you turned 67. In 2010. You would not live much longer. But how much time is “much…
The Language of Letting Go
I’ve always maintained that parenting hit me like a brick and a cushion. A brick, because the jarring, unyielding, transformations that you go through are neither kind nor easy. And, a cushion,…
10 Things.
Traditionally, I’ve written a lot to myself (into the void), or passed notes from underneath the table to others. Those letters, written to everyone from my parents, to my child, to my…
Fixing My Face [A Thursday Plantation Review]
[sponsored] I was one of those annoying teenagers: perfect skin, serious attitude, and a determined defiance of authority. Two of those things followed me into adulthood, but it’s the perfect skin I…
Notes, from underneath the leaves in the Midlands.
Over the years, people have quizzically asked me why this blog has always included a reference to being from “underneath the table.” It’s taken on many forms, over time, as sometimes I’m…
The Art Of Growing Up
Twelve You are turning twelve. Did you know? Twelve is my absolute favourite number. Perhaps it’s the combination of 1+2, and the fact that the number itself is a multiple of 3…there’s…
Deadlines For Decisions
In our house, the worst question you can ask anyone is: “What would you like to eat?” We will share memes about it, laugh about our own inabilities to make an actual…
The Blume of Blooms
If you grew up in the decade before, during, or after, I did, you’ll know this book. Maybe you read it, maybe you didn’t – it was, back then, very much “a…
Self Loathing And Other Stories
Hi. Yes, this is awkward. I’ve been cheating on you a bit and writing over here, every now and then. Sorry about that. I suspect, much like many others, that I’ve puddled…