little joys and little sorrows #18

reflecting on october: autumn in norfolk, many cats! it's getting dark again, the comfort of an e-ink screen, adoring autumn fashion

hello quiet reader, i hope you’re well. it’s that time again.

october seems to have vanished before my eyes, like waking up from a vivid dream, memories of which have already begun to fade just seconds after opening my eyes. where did the month go? the leaves have been quick to fall this year. so much has happened in my life this month, but regardless, it seems like i blinked and suddenly i looked out of my window and the floor was blanketed with layers of red, orange, yellow and brown. like thousands of little palms facing the sky. soft. would squelch under my boots. would mimic a very used, flattish pillow under my head.

this month’s reflections will be very ‘new home’ heavy. moving is one thing, but moving into your very first home that you’ve bought comes with an extra layer. “wait, we can drill holes into the walls”, “yes, let’s repaint this a fun colour!”, “let’s get rid of this and make our own”. i’m very excited to make some of my saved images on pinterest come to life.

okay, let’s get into the lists.

little joys

• i don’t miss london at all. a small part of me thought i would be worried to make such a big move to somewhere so different but i’m loving this smaller, slower part of the country

• connecting my cute clickity-clackety keyboard to my e-reader so i can write with an e-ink screen! my eyes are so tired of screens.

• in the same vein, getting creative with the things i already own instead of shelling out money for new gadgets (looking at you freewrite traveller)

• autumn sings in norfolk

• hanging my washing on the line in my garden, a first-time experince for me as someone who’s never had a garden—it felt so peaceful. i can’t wait to complain about forgetting to bring the washing in overnight or when it starts raining

• settling back into routines i had back in our old flat—lighting candles, doing workouts, reading, watching the sky brighten—feeling like i’m slowly coming back to life

• the new mug i bought from sostrene grene, pictured below, she’s very sweet

• wearing my long winter coat again since last year and feeling like slipping my feet into warm slippers. i love summer, but boots, tights, jumpers, scarfs, corduroy, neutral colours and long coats is like catnip to me

• crisp autumn mornings are in abundance here

• anticipating all the cups of tea i’m going to drink in my garden once we get garden furniture, even just the idea of that makes me so excited

• the down dog app for yoga practice. i love how you can adjust metrics to get the exact practice you need. i’ve been taking advantage of the restorative flows recently to remove stress from my body

• there are an abundance of cats around our house! and one has become particularly familiar with us, including perching on the roof of our car like he’s done so for years. he’s so welcome

little sorrows

• all of my hobby stuff is still in boxes since the second bedroom is going to take the longest to sort out and so i too still feel like i haven’t fully settled into our new home

• how much a job you hate can impact so much of your life

• all my books are still in boxes and i miss them dearly

• the clocks have gone back. that is all.

• my nintendo 2ds has been woefully abandoned i’m almost too scared to load animal crossing and find one of my favourite villagers has packed up and left

coming back to myself (2025)

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thank you for reading this month’s edition of little joys and little sorrows. as always, if you feel comfortable, leave your own little joys and sorrows in the comments as your form of reflection this month. i always love to read them.

also, i have something very fun for next week’s paid post. the quiet list may look a little different… i’ll be posting a sneak preview in our chat later this week! keep an eye out for that and consider upgrading your subscription to access the quiet list series!

thank you for reading. i hope you enjoy the rest of your sunday. i’ll see you next week <3