Sandra, the fashion for not-brown furniture is beginning to ebb if I am to believe what I see in American videos and articles about home décor. The fixation on all-grey interiors has definitely relaxed, and I’m seeing more and more blather about “warm” interiors that doesn’t cover draft exclusion and central heating. We’re heading back to hygge, and not before time.

What I dislike most is fake anything. I don’t want laminate or plastic-coated pressboard that “looks just like” or “is just as good as” wood; I want wood. What’s more, after a lifetime of financial prudence, I am finally in a position to insist on getting what I ask for.

After yet another “snow event” — not a storm, just enough new snowfall to gum up residential streets and drift dangerously across arterials — the forecast high today is -17°C with an unspeakable wind chill. The church choir is having a potluck supper that will require me to assemble a cheese tray and actually leave the house, so I devoutly hope I will have a good enough time to repay the effort.