I hardly ever check my letterbox any more, do you? Remember when it was an exciting repository for postcards from friends traveling overseas, letters from pen pals and monthly newsletters from fan clubs and badge makers (OK maybe that last one was just me). Now there’s just the occasional bill you’ve forgotten to switch to... Continue Reading →

I am quietly panicking about the looming deadline for my book. I tried to break the back of it over the weekend, but life kept getting in the way. I was madly typing on Saturday at 11.55am when I got a text from the youngest about borrowing the car. I replied that she was welcome... Continue Reading →

I got an email yesterday from a nice man/editor called Jeremy at a publishing company that said: "Looking forward to your manuscript!" Before you get too excited, it's not the manuscript you might be expecting me to write. It's a commissioned gig via Drinks Digest. But it still sounds exciting don't you reckon? My name... Continue Reading →

Jameson Irish Whiskey and fashion label Dickies have launched a collaboration called Crafted Together and I was invited to the launch party last night at a very cool bar called Earl's Juke Joint in Newtown. It was quite the scene, with Jameson cocktails, free Dickies/Jameson t-shirts, a DJ, live music and food by a famous... Continue Reading →

I dragged poor DD into the city last night to attend the Nikka Perfect Serve competition after party at Burrow Bar. When the invitation arrived weeks ago it seemed like a fun way to spend a Tuesday night, sipping Japanese whisky cocktails mixed by the best bartenders in Australia. But yesterday dawned pretty wet and... Continue Reading →

DD sent me a TikTok last night about a three-year cruise that costs $50,000 a year including all meals and wifi. When you think about it that’s actually a bargain. For three whole years you’d have no car-associated costs, no electricity or gas bills, no rent, no groceries … It’s less than $1000 a week... Continue Reading →

It’s like an angry shareholder meeting inside my head most of the time. There are so many questions, crazy ideas and recriminations, coupled with fears, hope, panic and outrage ... These are just a few of the thoughts I had on Saturday night, during my drive home from DD's place … How did Stevie Wonder... Continue Reading →

There was a woman on the bus last night with a calico Zabar's shopping bag. It brought back so many memories and I REALLY wanted to jump on a plane and get one for myself (probably to escape all the work I have to do in the real world). Zabar's is a legendary deli that... Continue Reading →

You know you are still carrying the scars of workplace bullying when a speech about kindness by an Illinois Governor brings a tear to your eye. Earlier this month, Gov. J.B. Pritzker gave Northwestern University graduates practical advice he learned from some of his favourite characters on the TV show The Office. At one point... Continue Reading →

Some days I worry that AI will steal my job and other days I reckon it's welcome to it. There has been a welcome-to-it vibe to this week and it's only Wednesday morning. You know that little gauge on the front of the vacuum cleaner that shows how full the dust bag is? Well, my... Continue Reading →