readings bookstores order my cookbook + 20k on YouTube + enjoying the last of winter!

*Ding ding ding* it's spring! I was really starting to enjoy winter – they say... as the days were lengthening, sunrises were breathtaking and blue skies were aplenty...

Anyhoo – I hope this finds you going okay! Apart from some shitty sleep (thanks to my usual Melatonin-brand no longer being available in Australia), I feel a bit more rested from August. The cookbook was out of my hands (it's been printed and is on its way) and I worked away designing packaging goodies, writing about house sitting and vegan chocolate for (future issues of) frankie magazine and just generally felt more present.

I'm really enjoying volunteering at the toy library now. Mainly thanks to an older woman I've been rostered on with, who's like-minded and always up for a laugh or a winge (very regulating!). By the time I made my mind up on doing the diploma of library and information service I missed the enrolment date (grrr), so I will now be doing it next year. Not the end of the world, but still a bummer I couldn't get it going this year.

Readings Bookstores officially put in their order of I Want Dopamine for Dinner copies (in the case loads!). The above photo of me is from the day I dropped off my proof copy so they could look over it before ordering. Here's a little vlog from that day. I also got a surprise order from the Stoneman's Bookroom in Castlemaine (Victoria) – as the owner is late-diagnosed Autistic himself and thought the book would do well within their community. How good!

In other cookbook news, there's a small afternoon tea / talk event in the works for Saturday 15th November, so keep your eyes peeled for that Naarm/Melbourne friends.

The recent US tariffs have meant I've had to pause US shipping for now – but it should open up again in the coming weeks. I'll mention in the usual places when it does.

I've had more time for things which make me feel like myself recently – like op shopping, cooking my own recipes, seeing friends, reading, being outdoors, curling up with Merlin. All important too considering I've been in the throws of setting up my NDIS plan – which involves a lot of meeting new people. I've just started seeing an OT and I'm liking it so far – they're kind of like a handyman for your routines, day-to-day activities and sensory struggles.

YOUTUBE.

I posted two videos this month – one about living with a grumpy gut...

... and another days in my life vlog !

WRITING.

There's a piece of mine in the latest frankie magazine about my experience trying to avoid post-purchase dissonance. It's available to read on their website too!

KITCHEN.

Here's the usual round up of eats this month...

L–R: Green curry laksa noodle soup (an I Want Dopamine for Dinner recipe), a veggie quiche leftover bowl (quiche ad-libbed off this Cauliflower Cake recipe) and veggie spaghetti bolognese with animal gluten-free pasta, how cute!

L–R: Potato and leek soup with tofu sourdough croutons, this rice tofu cauliflower bowl and my stock standard sushi bowl.

L–R: A very good tofu caesar wrap, Greek marinated tofu plate and a cheesy kimchi tofu rice plate.

L–R: Vegan/gf double chocolate muffins, a tofu Greek Souvlaki wrap and some weekend meal prep.

L–R: A veganised version of this Chinese ground beef and cabbage stir-fry, some mac & cheese with leftover ratatouille and nachos which used up leftover mac & cheese sauce.

WATCHED.

I watched Columbus (via SBS on Demand) and LOVED it in a gosh, this is painful kind of way. It's about a young woman who struggles to leave the familiarity of her hometown and the paternal (architectural and human) figures within it. It's beautiful, slow (but never boring), human and does a 10/10 job at conveying the weight of living with trauma.

READ.

I Who Have Never Known Men is as good as they say! This mysterious, dystopian story of captivity told through a young mind was addictive to read. The story and characters felt more real than I anticipated and the story was less terrifying than I feared. From a writing perspective it's such a feat of the imagination and lesson in gripping writing that doesn't leave a whole lot for the reader to go on. If you're in a reading funk, this book will make you sit up and engage with the text!

I really enjoyed The Housekeeper and the Professor, until I learnt that the author's latest book contains anti-Palestinian sentiments – so disappointing, because it's such a sweet book! It reminded me of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime and The Rosie Project (think Autistic-adjacent, mathematically gifted male character in a story with heart).

Arrangements in Blue is a memoir by 40-something British author and poet Amy Key, about making a life without the anchor and love of a significant other. I have mixed feelings about it. The writing's beautiful and I related to the themes, however (to no fault of the author's own), I think we need to be a bit more furious with the notion that we're not complete until we've found "the one". There's currently a lot of rhetoric about chronic-singleness and late-bloomer-hood online and a lot of it makes my eyes roll because it's so victimising! I don't think being 'single' for most of your life is something we need to diagnose! Too many thoughts for right now, but the lack of nuance around the topic of love, relationships, being 'single' feels very connected to the conservative geo-political climate we're in right now.

An Unquiet Mind is a phenomenal, very succinct memoir about a woman's life with bipolar disorder, who also happens to be a clinical psychologist and bipolar disorder researcher. It's written in a very accessible way, while also being detached enough that it's not a triggering read. Highly, highly recommend!

Hospital took my eye at the library. It's an incredible diaristic account of a Bengali-Australian woman's third psychosis and stay in Melbourne's mental health hospital system. The author is interested in philosophy and psychology and so her writing is deep and questioning. I recommend reading this when you're in a good place mentally.

RECIPE.

In an effort to write up the "recipes" I use regularly that I haven't officially passed on – here's my go-to way of making Gluten-Free Porridge. It's cheap, oat-free, tastes good and is texturally similar to the real thing. Hope it's helpful for some of you!

Thank you for reading,

Phoebe x

You can tip my work or adjust your subscription here 🖋️