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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick

Herald Scotland

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Susan Swarbrick: Sorry, Jamie Oliver - I'm over the cult of the air fryer

Here I am, yet again, thinking about air fryers and pondering how they have managed to permeate the collective consciousness to become so highly...

sunday 4

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: I held onto things 'just in case' - here's the trick to letting go

MEMORIES are the currency of our lives and often, when it comes to the past, we like something tangible to hold onto. It is a subject I have thought...

14.04.2024 10

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: The daft myths about midlife that we need to stop buying into

I am a big believer that making mistakes in life is all part of the journey. Often the greatest successes come on the back of - what feels like at the...

07.04.2024 6

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Is anyone else sick of the incessant rain of this so-called Spring?

Every day for the past week I have looked out my window at the garden and watched the dance of spring unfold. There is always something new to see....

31.03.2024 5

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: I finally made it to Dundee - what took me so long?

Exactly four years ago this weekend, I wrote about how I had never been to Dundee. It was styled as a light and funny piece reflecting on how in our...

09.03.2024 5

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Shh... the best kept secret of running is the post-race buffet table

The thing that nobody tells you when you take up running is how much time you will spend thinking about food. Yes, there is a lot of chat about...

02.03.2024 4

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Any Scotsman turning down a leap year proposal could be fined

HOW will you spend this Thursday? The reason I ask is that I’m endlessly fascinated with the traditions and superstitions to mark February 29. One...

24.02.2024 4

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Don't waste life waiting for the perfect moment – it might not come

I ALWAYS love this time of year. There is something about mid-February where the light gets a little bit brighter and possibility blossoms. It is...

17.02.2024 6

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Valentine’s Day is a hellmash of expectation clashing with reality

I DON’T know about you, but I tend to find Valentine’s Day a tricky subject. It’s one of those topics that seems light and frothy, yet the...

10.02.2024 6

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Night life? No thanks. Let’s go out to the dry cleaner’s instead

NOTHING good ever happens after midnight. Or so the wisdom goes. My younger self – who once went bar-hopping in New Orleans into the wee small hours...

03.02.2024 4

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Finding a starfish in your garden - how very Storm Isha

When it comes to the weather of late, we seem to be living in a twisty meteorological thriller. One that has thrown all its budget into big,...

27.01.2024 8

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: I passed my driving test at 46 - proof it's never too late

I PASSED my driving test last week. A sentence that for many years - decades in fact - I couldn’t have imagined whispering quietly in my head, never...

20.01.2024 2

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Gladiators returns to TV this weekend. Are you as on-trend as me?

I HAVE a friend who is robustly stylish and always seems to have her finger on the pulse of all the latest fads. Be it kitchen gadgets, clothes,...

13.01.2024 3

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: My dreadful Reese Witherspoon-Legally Blonde moment haunts me

HAPPY New Year. Apologies for the belated salutation. You find me in a new column slot for 2024. New year, new me (or something like that). With...

06.01.2024 6

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Why it's time to break the stranglehold of Christmas traditions

CHRISTMAS traditions. For some, these are two words that sparkle and glitter like tinsel or a fresh fall of snow. While for others, it is akin to...

21.12.2023 7

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: What does your favourite Christmas movie secretly say about you?

HOW do you like your festive viewing? Are you all about the classics? Do you prefer a comedy or something a bit more thrill-packed and gritty? It is...

06.12.2023 2

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: When did garden centres become the new nightclubs?

Garden centres are my happy place. There is something joyous about strolling through the aisles of seasonal bedding plants and topiary. A sense of...

23.11.2023 4

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Is feeling older inevitable - or is it simply a state of mind?

I HAVE a birthday next week. Not a big one that ends in a zero, but a number that takes me significantly closer to 50 than 40, which feels like...

09.11.2023 3

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: From Barbie to the Beckhams – how trendy is your Halloween costume?

MY childhood memories of dressing up for Halloween are cheap and cheerful. A witch costume made from a bin bag. The upcycled green baize from an old...

26.10.2023 2

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: The perils - and joy - of making new friends in middle age

FIND your tribe. This simple phrase - which refers to seeking out kindred spirits who share your outlook and interests - has echoed in my mind a lot...

12.10.2023 3

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Help! Does hoarding junk come to us all in middle age?

For months now I have been ignoring the growing mess in my spare room. It started out with a few things neatly stacked into one corner, yet over time...

28.09.2023 3

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Susan Swarbrick

Susan Swarbrick: Harbingers of autumn, restlessness and a balm for the soul

IS anyone else experiencing the existential restlessness that comes with the changing of the seasons? Granted, this year the late summer heatwave has...

14.09.2023 5

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Susan Swarbrick

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