Tina Malcolm

Yep, it was just one of those weekends. The sun was still shining, so out came the picnic basket and the bikes. No big plans. No “let’s go here” or “let’s do that.” Just the three of us — me, my husband and our boy — bikes, food, and off we went. Living in France has this way of making even the smallest things feel like something. You don’t have to go far. You just… go. Down a lane, past a field, through a bit of woodland, and suddenly you’re somewhere that feels like a proper day out. This...

We left the château on September 25th, 2018. Our wedding anniversary. I know. Symbolism. Perfect. I’d had my son in March 2017, and almost overnight, the boss turned on me. Not my husband. Just me. Ruthless little digs. Constant criticism. Subtle. Icy. Everything I did was suddenly wrong. And the worst part? I was loyal. The most loyal. If I’d known then about harassment laws in contract law, I would have got advice. Proper advice. Because what she really wanted was for us to give notice so...

Some days, life feels like a slightly melted candle on the kitchen counter, a Pyrenees Mountain dog/Australian Berger hybrid weaving between my legs like she owns the place, and me yelling at my husband while he quietly walks away — apparently, one-sided shouting is my hidden superpower. It should be an Olympic sport! We moved into this house four days before Christmas. It’s now the end of January. Boxes are still stacked like small mountains, curtains are half-hung, and every corner has a...