Tripping over the carpet

| Misc., Places, Reading

Days that feel like older days. Lazy suburban summer drives, windows open, listening to a short story read on the radio. Sitting by the lake for an interminable length of time. Browsing at the bookstore I used to spend so much time in, tripping over the carpet. While my mother looks at religion books, I turn around and consider the wicca books, the angel books, remember my teenage bedroom full of ornate candlesticks I imagined would fit in […]

Tripping over the carpet Read More »

Hark, a Vagrant!

| Myth | Lore | History | 2 Comments

My husband bought the Hark, a Vagrant! book recently and insisted I read it too. I’m so glad he did. Not only is it great to read funny things from someone who is also mystified by the “sex sells history” trend (and shares my love of early political cartoons), it’s fun to see Canadian history given the comic treatment. (I also squealed and clapped my hands when I saw this comic about Napoleon’s height, as my

Hark, a Vagrant! Read More »

Pretty much why I love “everyday” history.

| Myth | Lore | History, Reading

“Well now, history is not just the tale of the victors,” he said, “It’s the tale of the privileged. The men in the mud of the battlefield didn’t leave much of a story behind, and the stories they did tell were mostly ignored or forgotten.” – A Desperate Fortune, Susanna Kearsley. Strangely enough, I never really read historical fiction. This book might just convert me, however.

Pretty much why I love “everyday” history. Read More »

I quit writing.

| Writing | 2 Comments

Maybe. Can one quit being a writer? This is a post I’ve wanted to write – and dreaded writing – for a long time. For about as long as I have no longer considered myself a “writer,” at least outside of my freelancing career. How long has that been? It’s hard to say. There wasn’t a single defining moment when I decided. It came gradually, in waves. I would realize I hadn’t written anything in

I quit writing. Read More »

Turku Castle/Turun Linna

| Myth | Lore | History, Places

Last month, my husband and I spent a couple of weeks visiting family in Finland and Germany. The historical site we were both most excited to see was Turku Castle, in southwest Finland. Turku was the capital of Finland until 1812, when Alexander I, thinking Turku was a little too close to Sweden and too far from Russia, gave Helsinki capital city status instead. However, the castle itself is much older than all that – construction began

Turku Castle/Turun Linna Read More »

I kind of feel sorry for the woodpecker.

| Myth | Lore | History, Reading

Many buildings outside London had thatched roofs of reed or straw, and in January 1784 Woodforde noted: ‘I rejoiced much this morning on shooting an old wood-pecker, which had teised [teased] me a long time in pulling out the reed from my house. He had been often shot at by me and others…For this last 3 years in very cold weather did he use to come here and destroy my thatch. Many holes he has

I kind of feel sorry for the woodpecker. Read More »

“Instantly,” 18th century-style.

| Myth | Lore | History, Reading

We had no such thing as printed newspapers in those days to spread rumours and reports of things . . . but such things as these were gathered from the letters of merchants and others who corresponded abroad, and from them was handed about by word of mouth only; so that things did not spread instantly over the whole nation, as they do now. – A Journal of the Plague Year, Daniel Defoe, 1722 (check it

“Instantly,” 18th century-style. Read More »

A Mrs Beeton recipe: Tomatoes, Stuffed, With Mushrooms

| Food, Myth | Lore | History, Reading

Last year, I found a copy of Mrs Beeton’s Household Management in a secondhand book store, and snapped it up eagerly. It isn’t obvious when it was printed. A previous owner wrote her name and the year 1944, but certain things made me believe this was already a few years old when she got it – for instance, references to “The War,” and nothing written about rationing. Based on dates I found in the “Legal Memoranda” section

A Mrs Beeton recipe: Tomatoes, Stuffed, With Mushrooms Read More »

At least I’m dependable.

| Misc.

In 2008, my friend Suzen and I started making short video diaries as a way of keeping in touch across the country. I’m clearing out some files from my computer and I found the videos I’d made. Here are some text excerpts that prove no matter how much I think I’ve changed, I’m still very much the same in some ways: Video 1: I kind of am not sure yet if I hate the story

At least I’m dependable. Read More »

Scroll to Top