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…
Regular Just Frances readers will know that I have a rare bleeding disorder called idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP). But what they may not know is that…
Some days, I think about how lonely I am, and about how I want to find someone to share my life with. I think about…
I think one of the hardest things about dating as a widow(er) is the guilt that comes along with it. Worse is that some of…
Dating is hard. Dating in your late 30s and early 40s is hard. Dating as a widow is hard. And trying to do all three…
From time to time, I get emails from people reading my blog. And today was one of those days. It seems that a relatively new widow, Lucy*,…
Sometimes I feel like the world is laughing at me; like life is laughing at me. Sometimes I feel like my entire life has been one failed…
I woke up this morning and checked my Facebook feed whilst waiting for my snooze cycle to end. Only what I read angered me so…
My parents were really mean when I was growing up. They were so mean that they denied my sisters and me access to essential vitamins and minerals.…
I decided quite some time ago that I was ready to date again, though I admit to not actually doing anything about it. It’s not because I secretly don’t…
It’s been more than four years since my husband died and I’ve yet to enter into a new relationship. I’ve now had four first dates…
There’s something ever-so frustrating about the way life and love mix. We want so desperately to be part of a couple, but when someone reaches…
I decided to treat myself to a manicure before the Edinburgh Whisky Fringe more than five weeks ago and was talked into trying out the gel manicure…
Today I learned that I have another obstacle to manoeuvre around before applying for my new student visa. Apparently, because I will be in a computer-based…
Today I was meant to run the Donkey Brae 7-Miler in Aberdour, only the rain scuppered my plans. Not because I can’t run in the rain. Not because…
I’ve been a little quiet lately, and it seems that my absence from the digital world has been noticed. I guess that when people expect…
I am a runner. I eat pizza. I drink beer. And I look good naked*. I realise that’s a bit of an odd opening line,…
For the vast majority of my adult life, I have been alone. I’ve only ever had one “real” boyfriend (after having briefly dated a not-nice…
I took a bit of a self-esteem stumble after being pushed by some hurtful words over the weekend. I really let the words get to…
Way back in May, I had a failed attempt at re-entering the dating world – and that was after my ego had already been shattered! At the time,…