I've lived alone a couple of times in my life. When I studied in Paris and actually had an apartment to myself, I was mostly eating pasta with goat cheese. Like, every other day. I did try to be healthy and cook vegetables as well, but I have to admit that it never really tasted right (goat cheese helped).

Then I moved to Oxford where my lovely flatmates usually invited me to eat with them. And for the past 3 and a half years, I have been living with Matt who (thankfully) is a pretty good cook. Hence I find myself in a dilemma: whenever he is out of town, I see myself forced to actually try and make myself something to eat...

And so, while searching for an easy recipe online, I got inspired to do write this post: 7 signs that you are really bad at cooking. And here we go:

Whenever winter is right around the corner, and especially on a cold, rainy day, everyone around me seems to be complaining about the horrible weather. It's such a common opinion that whenever I dare to disagree - or even confess that I actually really love this kind of weather - I get looked at like an alien. I mean, I get it. The cold is not exactly inviting you to go outside. But let's talk about the positive sides of this season, shall we?

1. Drinking hot chocolate with marshmallows

I've been obsessed with this for the past couples of weeks! Oddly enough, I had never tried it before, but seeing pictures all over the internet has finally pushed me to buy some marshmallows. And let me tell you, I didn't know what I was missing all these years! To compensate for that, I'm probably adding way too many marshmallows now...

2. Netflix days on the couch are actually acceptable

In summer, everyone expects you to go outside and enjoy the nice weather, when all I actually want to do is stay inside, right in front of a ventilator (air conditioning inside your house it not really a thing here in Europe), eat frozen anything and most of all, avoid any movement to keep as cool as possible. While I'm probably a vampire and most people don't feel this way, you have to agree that there's something nice and cosy about staying in without being judged for it, watching Netflix and drinking hot chocolate with marshmallows (just saying...).

3. Cosy clothes

Okay, it's true, I'm absolutely obsessed with jumpers and will use any excuse to wear one. But it's not just that! Any item of winter clothing is more comfortable than their summer equivalent. I very gladly switch my ballet flats and sandals to boots and sneakers once it gets colder, and the same goes for jackets: winter coats can be soft, furry and comfy, while summer jackets.. well, I wouldn't know, because I would be way too hot if I wore a jacket in the summer!

4. Decorating your place with fairy lights

Nothing makes a room feel more cosy that cushions, blankets and fairy lights. They're such an inexpensive way to decorate your home, but they make a world of a difference. Plus, they add perfect lighting to a comfy Netflix night with marshmallow hot chocolate...😉

5. The Holiday season and Christmas markets

If Christmas was happening in June, it would definitely not be the same! How could you not love the festive season with it's decorations, treats and family dinners? Aren't Christmas markets and mulled wine the nicest thing ever? Don't you love going gift shopping for family and friends?
I'm not going to lie, I love the pre-Christmas season way more than anything after New Year's. Why won't they leave Christmas markets open until March, anyway?

When I decided to get a cat in Paris, a lot of people were telling me not to. For various reasons. Our apartment was too small, it would smell really bad, we didn't have enough room for the litter box, we didn't have enough time... I heard it all, but when Matt and I got the possibility to save a little kitten, we didn't hesitate for a second. And let me tell you, I don't regret this decision at all!

So, let me address some of the most common stereotypes about cats:

There’s two types of people in the world… book lovers and those who aren’t. I’m totally the person to always prefer the book over the movie, to read until the middle of the night only to realise that I have 2 hours left to sleep, and to get so obsessed with a certain story that I reread it right after I finished it, because I’m not ready to let go.