My nest box brings all the owls to the yard
Hey buster!
I resigned from my permanent, full-time job three weeks ago. I’ve decided to go freelance as a writer and editor. Scary shit – I’m feeling well brave*.
Naturally, I’m thinking about how my life is going to look, what new skills I can acquire, how much of my time will now be spent in goblin mode, etc etc. Loungewear is likely to feature quite heavily.
This may explain why this week, my dabblings are more on the practical side. Whether it demonstrates an inner fear that I’ll end up on the streets, dancing for pennies, I’m not sure, but I figure this kind of stuff – 23 ways to use Scotch tape, how to cook in a natural disaster – is always worth knowing.
If you know any good survival tips (post-apocalypse or post-employment), email back and let me know.
May your loungewear always nestle and never chafe,
Ps - if you’re interested in the confidence course that gave me the guts to do it, here's an affiliate link.
Let’s dabble!
As the world falls down
If you want to distract yourself from the horror that is the clocks going forward, there are plenty of daylight-saving bits and pieces to read here, from tips on how to love the changes to how time marginalises certain groups of people. Plus, look at it this way – at least you don’t have to rescue your baby brother from the Goblin King armed only with a plastic bangle and a lipstick.
A *real* hoot
Want to see more owls in your yard? Well you should – they’re amazing. Here are some ideas for tempting them; just don’t try it if you live in an area where they are likely to get injured. Personally, I think it’d be nice to have a bird in my garden that hasn’t been torn into three by my triumvirate of cats.
Cooking up a plan
Do you ever imagine what you’d do in an apocalypse? Who you’d have on your team? I’ve not thrashed out the details yet but I’ve made a strong start: I do know a guy who can punch someone so hard they shit themselves, and a woman who could turn bunting into a garrotte at a moment’s notice (Hi, Ruth!). If, like me, you’ve not considered how you’d actually eat, you might want to bookmark these eight tricks for later, including how to cook using spits (an apocalypse-survivor classic) plus how to rig up a reflecting oven.
Up to your Ides in it
If you’re even the slightest bit pretentious, you’ll be familiar with the phrase ‘Beware the Ides of March’. But…why? Well for a start it was a terrible day for Julius Caesar, who was stabbed 23 times, but the phrase also gives us an insight into the Julian calendar. And, if you’re curious, what an ide is.
Tape it easy
I told you I was being extremely practical this week, didn’t I? Anyway this article has tons of lifehacks using Scotch tape (which is, let’s be honest, pretty fun to use anyway). My favourite is ‘to amaze small children’, but I also like ‘repair frayed shoelaces’ and ‘neatly arrange flowers’. Get it in your apocalypse kit.
And finally…
I mean, my cat looks like he’s wondering if there’s a God, so…