Hello readers! August was a slow blogging month but a fairly busy IRL month. I went home to the States for a nine-day visit with the family in Michigan, and then to Washington DC for a few days for good friend’s wedding. Adam stayed in Algiers for most of that, although he did fly to […]
We’ve been in our new city for 10 days now and each day I decide to put off blogging a little longer until I get a better feel for the place that will be our home for the next three years. “Jerusalem is a complicated place,” everyone keeps telling us. I’m already seeing a bit […]
As anyone who lives in a city knows, having a little outdoor space – no matter how tiny – is a true luxury. When we moved to our Madrid digs in the winter, our 1970s ugly-tiled little balcony didn’t look like much, but I wasn’t about to let an outdoor space to go waste. When […]
Both my mom and I have been having a recurring dream for years where we discover hidden rooms in our homes that we never knew existed. One time I dreamed that my guy roommate had a bowling alley and a garden room through the closet in his bedroom. Here we were sharing a small two […]
I had no idea that traveling overseas with two cats would be so difficult. Mr. Dame in Spain and I thought we were checking all the boxes to prepare for a smooth travel to Madrid with our two cats, Gus and Boj, whom together make up the fat and feisty duo known as The Diplocats. […]
Growing up, I loved having tons of neighbors to be friends with. Our subdivision was full of kids my age. There was the girl whose backyard was filled with McDonald’s playground equipment. And in addition to burger-themed slides, she had a trampoline, making her backyard pretty much the most fun thing in existence. Then there […]
I’m officially a New Yorker. At least for the next three months. Yesterday Mr.YemenEm and I picked up our beloved Diplocats, from whom we were parted for the past 14 months, packed a U-Haul van, and drove to a furnished apartment in Manhattan. This will be our base for the next three months. The place […]
As a lifelong animal lover, vegetarian since adolescence, a one-time dog, hamster, and degu owner, and several times cat-owner, I have a soft spot for animals. Had my life taken a different trajectory, and I hadn’t moved to a big city full of small apartments, I could see me still living in Michigan with several […]
When I told people I was moving to Yemen, common first questions were “Will you have to wear a burqa? Will you have to cover your hair? Your face?” No, no, and no. But still, how to dress in my new life in Yemen was a major concern to me. I should preface this by […]
