Using magnetic shelving and false ceilings, two architects have made the most of their home Most of us have stylistic disagreements when we move in with our partners, so imagine what it must be like for two architects. Torquil and Jessie McIntosh met 14 years ago, when they were both working for the now defunct but influential practice Future Systems. But they have "not worked together since thi..
placebos can work - evidently some people are desperate to believe More and more, I realize out lives are based on faith. Not in a goddy sense, more a domestic, personal, dull-edged way. Relationships, for example: faith. The economy: faith. Health:faith. I come to this having spent some some time recently thinking about placebos, as I watch ministers consider whether homeopathy should be put on..
Stella has been chatting online to a wealthy man who hasn't mentioned sex once - he wants to meet but could they possibly be a match? For months now I've had an intermittent dating site conversation with a Spanish man called Tony. He is a wealthy business owner who can't believe how difficult it is to find a wife. He's awful - that's almost certainly the reason - but hilariously awful. I've been..
When their cat Sox got ill had to be put down, Olivia Lichtenstein and her family were not prepared for how deeply they would mourn The house feels quiet and empty, pulsing with that deafening silence specific to death. We are a family in mourning. Last Friday morning, five of us got into the car and drove away in the sad knowledge that only four of us would be coming home. We were taking a much..
of course, now that I've joined, I wish I'd done it ages ago, but you definitely should: it's wonderful to keep up with what the grandchildren are up to and to see all their funny photos, though for some reason my stupid pooter won't let me see all of them Trying to look like fish seems to be the "in" thing, though why they do it in their underwear, heaven knows. And they write such funny things..
There's much to amuse at our fingertips - we've never had it so good. But is it good for the soul? I have written before about my concerns over how technology - via PCs, phones, tablets and so on - is driving the family household into separate, isolated cantons. This is the way the robots are taking over - rather than lurid inventions of 1950s sci-fi imagination, they are chainging us, in isolat..
If I'm congratulated for changing my password, does it mean anything when I congratulate you on your new baby, or your Nobel prize for chemistry? The other day, after resetting my online banking password, I received a message in all caps: "CONGRATULATIONS" I like to imagine the ripple of applause spreading from desk to desk as news of my triumph arrived at the bank's headquarters. Meanwhile, Fac..
In the shelter of a Victorian walled garden, we laid out the world garden My garden had traumatic beginners. It's 15 years since my friend Paul and I went on an ill-advised orchid-hunting trip in Colombia. We were captured by guerrillas, and held hostage in the jungle for nine terrifying months. In June 2000, three months into our ordeal, an AK47 was thrust into our faces, and we were told to pr..
Dungarees should make a comeback - they had a decent-sized pocket on the front for an iPad, phone and keys' I don't go anywhere fancy, because I don't want to go somewhere where there's a rule about clothes. If someone says you've got to dress in a formal way, that's basically saying to me, "You're not welcome." I'm already on edge, because I don't really like going out, so I don't want to have ..
We must make snap judgements, on the basis of various shortcuts, or we'd be unable to function According to a big crop of recent studies, you're sexist and you hate the poor. Well, not you personally. Except - quite possibly you personally, actually, even if you believe otherwise. In one study, men liked the idea of dating a hypothetical smart woman, but were less keen on actually meeting a real..
Out in the wind and rain this weekend or staying warm and dry on a treadmill? As always, share your running exploits below the line Yesterday I didn't manaage to do my long run as I was a bit busy meeting Father Christmans (worst/best namedrop ever?) so only managed to escape in the evening for a short run. Howling winds and driving rain in the dark beckoned. I did have a moment of wondering if ..
I tried to recycle my bed to do my bit and save some of the world's resources. I failed, but there's still hope - not everyone has given up I've had a horrible feeling lately that the world is sliding down its final slope, with the brakes off: filthy seas, burned and ruined forests, vanishing species, flattered cities, millions of displaced people, desperate refugees and endless, murderous wars...
It's not about giving something up: owning less means buying less means having to earn less means working less means having more of your life to actually enjoy One year ago I owned a house. Today I rent a one-bedroom suite with my daughter. There were dozens of factors contributing to this drastic shift in my life, the majority of which were beyond my control. But from where I stand now, even af..
The key thing is that you know why you're there. Increasingly, people have more than one thing they want to mention at an appointment. Get the most important thing out at the beginning. Men are especially bad at this, as they're scared. But it really doesn't help if you get to the end of your 10 minutes, then say,"Oh, by the way, every time I mow the lawn, I get this pain in my chest that goes r..
Most of us find the prospect of walking into a room full of strangers daunting. Instead of thinking, "Who will I have to talk to tonight?" say to yourself,"I wonder who I'm going to get to meet tonight." There's a phrase I like to use: "The roof is an introduction", which means that if you're in the same place, you always have something in common. Remember that most people in any room feel uncom..