Last year, I conducted a massive “friend cull” on Facebook. It took about a week to complete the process that, ultimately, led to severing Facebook…
On my way to the Death Café a couple of weeks ago, I wandered through a couple of old kirkyards at the base of the Edinburgh Castle.…
I attended my first “Death Café” last weekend. I had heard about these events in the past but had never had the time to attend,…
I have been off on my Homeland Holidays the last couple of weeks, and am now home in Scotland settling back into my daily routine.…
I cleared out my PhD office at Edinburgh Napier University today. It was a bit of a strange feeling as I know that I will be back in the…
I am in Ljubljana, Slovenia at the moment for an academic conference, and I am falling in love! Why? Because much like my visit to (and subsequent love affair with)…
On my way home from visiting my late husband’s grave, I stopped off in Berwick-Upon-Tweed for some adventuring. I thought that it would be a good way to…
Today marks ten years of widowhood; ten years since my darling husband died so unexpectedly in the middle of the night. These past ten years have…
February is letter-writing month, which means I will be writing a letter a day for the whole of February. Regular readers will know that I am…
As is tradition, a new year means a new resolution. Generally, my resolutions are set as a way to focus on self-improvement in realistic terms.…
As 2018 winds to a close, I find myself reflecting on the year and how I’ve fared over the last 12 months. And, as always,…
As any regular Just Frances reader will know, my PhD Dreams began a few years ago. And my actual PhD studies began nearly five years ago. And now,…
I have been thinking about illness a lot lately. Especially about the frustrations of being chronically ill. Even more about the frustrations of being chronically…
Wow! It is the 1st of July already. And that means that my PhD thesis is due in just four months. Yikes! Of course, that means that…
A Homeland Holiday is never complete without a visit with my best friend. And that means a trip to Portland for some bestie time! Rachel and I…
I found myself at the top of Arthur’s Seat this past weekend, which means I’ve reached the summit two months in a row – after not having climbed the…
2017 is over. It was meant to be my “year of doing” but, alas, it would seem that it was a year undone. Undone, indeed*.…
Christmas is coming – as are two of my nieces – so I have decked the halls! But the boughs of holly will have to wait for a couple…
Today’s post* is brought to you by a writing prompt. The prompt is to “write a list of your favourite holiday activities”. I wanted to…
I am a widow. I was widowed when I was a young woman of 35 and my life has never been the same since. In the…