Girlbooker's Tea and Toast

I’ve been intrigued by the possibilities of connection between food and mental health for a number of years now. A few years ago, I went through a really tough time, and one of the things that acted as a life buoy for me was cooking. I had never been an especially engaged or talented cook, but through this time I slowly developed familiarity with ingredients and techniques, and came to rely on the soothing, calming process of kitchen creation so much that I now get sad and moody if I go more than a few days without cooking.  I’ve spent some time musing over what exactly it is that works such magic on me, and I’m not 100% sure, but I do know that I’m not alone in seeking solace in food, and in particular, food creation. I have been delighted to discover some books in the last couple of years that have shared these ideas with me. The Happy Kitchen by Rachel Kelly is most explicit about this topic. It’s been written by a writer who has struggled with depression, and a nutritioni...

Sometimes we need reminders from the world that we are on the right path.  Lately, I've been trying to work out why I am so unadventurous creatively speaking at the moment, when I actually have loads of spare time. I have also been trying to work out how to get a job. I've been job hunting for quite a few weeks now, several more than I ever really expected to be.  I started the 'funemployment' journey with an absolutely gigantic, unwieldy list of life maintenance tasks and proposed actives to check off in order to keep myself from going insane while I looked for a new job. I started quite well but my interest in The List soon waned, and I don't think I have even glanced at it for about a month now. I have to admit, I've started to wallow. Trying to hone your message to potential employers and recruiters is exhausting. What exactly do I want to do with my life?  (Now say that again but in bullet points). How can I package up my achievements...

The other day, I emerged into the sunshine, energised and inspired from a fabulous talk organised by the lovely crew at Creative Mornings. The speaker, Yassmin Abdel-Magied , is such a delightful, articulate, intelligent and warm individual, that it's difficult to grasp why so many people have spent the last few months attacking her so assiduously ... I don't want to focus on that, but rather on the main content of her talk. It's something I badly needed to hear this week, so I took careful note: "Don't underestimate the power of the stories you tell yourself" Abdel-Magied recounted her time working as a mechanical engineer on offshore oil rigs. Apparently, she genuinely saw herself as exactly like her colleagues, which in this case meant "middle aged white guys with random neck tattoos".  It didn't even occur to her that other people may look at her and think she might look out of place. In this instance, the story Yasmin was telling herse...

Welcome to Girlbooker's Tea and Toast! I have started this blog to try, in a small way, to bring my experience of the internet back into balance.  In the mornings when I am getting ready for work, it's a bit of a whirlwind but if I am lucky then I find five minutes of quiet and calm as I have my tea and toast. It isn't really long enough to read a book so I default more often than I would like to scrolling aimlessly through Facebook or Twitter on my phone. I am hoping to post a little something here from time to time that is thought provoking, funny, or inspiring and takes no more than five minutes to read. Something to start the day the right way. I hope you'll join me!