I made the very delicious mistake of buying a pasta maker/roller. I'd been hand-rolling pasta for a week or so and although I was getting buff it was not the most economical endeavour time-wise. My favourite make since purchasing the machine was this zucchini, white-bean, and goat's cheese ravioli. I fried them in brown butter and garlic sauce for lunch one day and it was so damn good that I made the exact same thing all over again for dinner.

I realise that I haven't stopped procrastibaking but rather changed from baking to cooking instead. It's probably because of my recently reignited obsession with MasterChef. It's something I used to share with Mum and have somewhat avoided since her death - but now I live text with a mate and imagine what Mum's commentary would be too. She'd probably be aghast at all the coriander they use in desserts now. And me? Well, now I can never eat store bought pasta again. Oops. Yum.

This is the question I posed to friends recently. Here are some of their answers:

- 'SUNSHINE'
- 'My cat and Autumn by Ali Smith... great read'
- 'Being able to offer helpful advice and support to my loved ones'
- 'I made some really good sugar cookies'
- 'Got new cushions and rug for the lounge! Yes, I'm old now'
- 'Taking photos of stars'

My answer was Atlas rolling about in the sun, eating my favourite ramen when I feel poorly, writing something I've been wanting to write for months, and redoing my budget. Small, good, things. What have been your small, good things recently?

...because Tim Minchin's Matilda the Musical is being adapted into a movie! Book to movie to stage musical to movie musical is a wild ride for this story, but I adore Minchin's version so I'm excited for this new film adaptation. It's different to the beloved 1996 version for many reasons but most significantly the addition of music. Here's the trailer for the new movie, and here's my favourite song from Minchin's version. As a note, though, I'm not thrilled about Emma Thompson being in a fat suit. I recommend reading this article by Rebecca Shaw where Shaw blends memoir and media critique to explore the dehumanising nature of fat suits.

If you know me, you know I love short stories. While in recent years I've mostly read stand-alone stories published in literary mags or online, in the past year I've been reading more collections than usual. I'm not sure if this reflects my reading habits, the industry's willingness to publish and promote story collections, or friends recommending them. Likely it's a combination of all three. 

If you're keen to read a fantastic collection yourself I heartily recommend Shit Cassandra Saw by Gwen E Kirby. It's jam-packed full of quirky, juicy, thrilling stories - many about women existing, women revolting, women creating and destructing. Here's an earlier version of the titular story. I also love Lily King's Five Winters in Tuesday which explores character in such interesting ways. Here's an earlier version of one of King's stories. A content warning for both collections for violence and sexual assault. 

As I'm entering the last stages of my PhD (typing this made me hyperventilate a little) I'm ticking off smaller projects from my 'to do' list weekly. From emails to articles to presentations, these tasks make up a part of the larger 'whole' that is a PhD. For someone like me who loves to be busy and loves to tick things off lists they can also be a convenient departure from larger projects like the thesis itself. So, ticking them off is good. But also a little sad! When presenting at the International Association for Biography and Autobiography's 2022 conference this month, I realised that it was the last conference paper I would give as part of my PhD. I have given more than a dozen talks throughout my candidature (partly because I love talking, mostly because I love the community aspect and the chance to bounce ideas off incredibly smart and cool peers) and the fact that this was the last made me a bit emotional and very reflective. Also - excited! I wonder what the next 'last' of the PhD be.

Just because :-)