As the Covid-19 pandemic drags on to 2021, I think we can all agree that shallow stuff like shoe buying is more entertaining than a pandemic wallowing. So I’d like to share a review of Carmina Shoemakers‘ women oxfords, the 2nd big purchase I talked about last year.

I’ve been searching for a pair of white, leather lace-up when my derby’s gave up on me after 7 years (read here). But two years of scouring physical and online stores didn’t yield “the one”.

I realized that quality pair of women’s oxford shoes are hard to find simply because only a handful of good brands are making them. Oxfords are still largely considered men’s dress shoes while women are still expected to cram their feet into stilettos or ballerinas. While I do own a few pairs of stilettos, I use them once or twice a year, which makes the cost per wear ridiculously expensive. Maybe it’s my age but I now consider oxford shoes a woman’s best friend. They’re practical for both office and casual wear. I think it’s the one pair every woman should have in their closet, especially working moms.

an you buy happiness? In fact you can! According to the study Prosocial spending and buying time: Money as a tool for increasing subjective well-being conducted by a group of researchers from Harvard University, University of British Columbia, and Simon Fraser University, spending money on giving (including charity), experiences, and time can actually buy you happiness.

I made a couple of big purchases lately. By big purchases I mean more than €150 and none of it among the 3 things mentioned above. Which led me to ask myself, am I trying to buy happiness?

I was a few months shy of 25 when I moved to Holland. Yet in the first few years, I would always be carded if I buy alcohol or cigarette. I don’t remember exactly when they stopped asking for my I.D. but last week at work, I jokingly asked a colleague if I still looked 27 and he looked at me confused and sternly said ‘no”, as if my question was the most bizarre he heard that day.

Eleven years of living in the Netherlands and I barely noticed how time changed. I recently turned 36 and since my immigration, the years have been grinding steadily, albeit boringly consistent. I fell in-love, I migrated, I worked, I amused myself with wine, travel and marathons in between, I bought a house, I started a family and since then life had been about motherhood and working to pay the mortgage, debts and house renovations.

(Don’t worry! This is not a quit-my-job-to-travel-the-world kind of post)

Another weekend, another day to make home-made chicken broth. I try to have frozen broth all the time because I don’t like using broth cubes because of its salt and junk contents.

Depending on the time of month (before and after salary) I buy either “regular” chicken or stewing chicken, what they call “soepkip” in Dutch. The first is used for regular chicken dishes while the latter is an old hen which was retired from laying eggs, and the meat has become too tough for normal cooking. Obviously organic soepkip is cheap, it’s sold between €6-10 for about 1.2 kilos depending on where you buy it. Free-range chicken sells twice or even thrice as much. I always buy frozen, whole organic chicken because they are cheaper than pre-cut ones. The downside is I have to make several dishes at once.

bought new shoes, a pair of derby called Farley from the brand Bertie. When my favourite pair finally gave up on me after 7 years, I waited a bit before buying a new one. I wanted the same colour and the same quality.