Catherine

Wishing people Happy Halloween seems strange, when it is derived from All Saints and All Souls Day for blessing those who have died. Paula Curan, an author of gothic novels, said,"the farther we've gotten from the magic and mystery of our past, the more we've come to need Halloween". In a scientific and technological age there is something to be said for imagining in the dark. Whilst Hallmark has morphed it in to a night of darkness, orange, pumpkins and candy, I prefer the magic of candles and light honouring the dead and those who believe they saw a

'There is a shade of red for every woman", said Audrey Hepburn. Not for me. I wore a red t-shirt once and for half-an-hour I felt I could take on the world. After another 30 minutes, I felt I was going to take on the world! It is a colour of energy and as a fast talker and walker, cooler, calmer colours are best for my yin/yang balance. A bit of water douses out the flame. That being said, we are on the cusp of Christmas and red is turning up in the stores as we run towards the

Joseph Campbell stated that, "if the path before you is clear, you are probably on someone else's". It felt like that this week as we stumbled through strange journeys and new beginnings. Any new experience is a mix of arriving and leaving with different states and balances that leave a historical imprint. We caught a train to Nice, got off at a strange station due to a wrong ticket and paid for a stranded older Swedish couple caught arriving, being unable to move on. Continuing our journey, we landed in a huge anti-covid health pass demonstration which had its

We finally fixed the internal living room stone wall. It was messy, dusty and one of those ideas that you regret until a week has gone by. It was repointed with some new stones, cleaned up and plastered. Now that the dust has settled, the natural stonework shines through. When thinking of walls, images both positive and negative appear. I recall many years ago we had moved into a new house, a new job had been offered and the Friday before I was to start, there was a re-organisation and my new role was gone. Taking the phone call,

We live in interesting times. Today, Germany goes to the polls with the end of the Merkel era and the Swiss have finally voted for same-sex marriage; better late than never. Australia is still behind the rest of the world, working through the pandemic with no forethought or backward look to 2020 in other countries to learn from our mistakes. The news is sobering, the air is cooling, leaves fall, the sea is like Spanish glass and the melancholy note of Autumn hovers around the corner. I prefer the hope of Spring. I have friends who love snow and watching their

Somerset Maughan said, "at a dinner party, one should eat wisely but not too well and talk well but not too wisely". This resonates with many favourite memories sitting at a table in anticipation of good food and conversation. As we slowly reconnect with people for dining, it is interesting to see how we set a table. While white table cloths and shiny silver look lovely, equally a simple setting with different but matching plates entices our eyes before the food. Many years ago, we visited Japan and attended dinners but the one that stood out was in a

With many of us still working from home, different rooms have been adapted for a dual purpose. Having worked remotely for years, I know how difficult it can be to adjust to a new schedule and environment. The office structure has gone, set coffee breaks and lunches are now more fluid and normal face to face conversations have disappeared. Some have other family members in the same space which can make for some interesting discussions! It can become a big mess creating tension and it is important to choose which room becomes a dual room.   Feng Shui First

We finally moved this weekend and it feels like we have come home. John Le Carré said that 'home is where you go to when you run out of homes'. Perhaps that is our state at the moment. We will put in bifold doors between the kitchen and dining room to give more light. The irony is, these are called French doors and are difficult to find in France! The search is on. The cats have settled in with familiar furniture smells and a dinner has been cooked and wine served. A good friend is visiting on Wednesday to

A New York friend said when we first met, “I am not sure if I should invest in this friendship as you are going to leave one day.” The irony is that she moved to Miami! I write this as we have had several visitors these last few weeks and if nothing else from this bemusing year, we have learnt the importance of reaching out and connecting. There are friendships about past cocktails at Vespers laughing at life’s and our own idiosyncrasies. Some are based on the pure love of music giving space for the friendship to grow. Others