Distracted by...
May 2026
This is a regular post featuring the best of what has been distracting me each month. It could be anything that has made me think: the hidden gems of Substack, a book, a podcast or even something on the telly. I would love it if you shared what you have enjoyed this month too – come join me in the comments on the app or simply reply to this email.
I am writing this in the days before half term in disbelief really that it has come around so quickly and I have barely anything to show for my time.
I wonder, when I will stop assessing my value against how much I can do while the kids are at school? I am trying to rest and relax - make the most of my quieter work schedule as a project comes to a close, but I will always beat myself up about doing less. I doubt that will ever change.
Speaking of work, last week I had a work day out. As part of my role in overseeing a packaging redesign, I was required at a photo shoot. I love going to photo shoots. They are always fun. The photographer and food stylist do most of the work, and as the designer you are there to make sure the design is realised (or can be with a little photoshop jiggery pokery) and make unrealistic demands (Quick - make a decision - the butter is melting under the lights!!). I was able to meet one of my clients, someone that I have been working for on and off for years, in real life. It was strange for me as someone who almost entirely works from home, but it was really nice. Nice to be around people, and to chat and get to know each other - nice to get out of the house.
The stressful bit was getting home before the nursery closed, and I made it just about. My son was none the wiser and both of them actually despite having had long days were the good kind of tired. I realised I needn’t feel guilty about it. They had fun too.
The photo shoot was near Lewisham, which is in the corner of South East London in which I live, but it’s still a 45 minute train journey away. For the journey home, I went to St Johns station, which is the same station I took an injured parakeet to in search of a volunteer bird rehabilitator just over 2 years ago. It was the evening when I dropped him off with a broken wing in a cardboard box, his little chirps calling to the birds in the trees around us as I walked up the hill from the station. I cried as I left him. I felt guilty for taking him miles away from his family and I worried I would never know if he got any better. I never did hear anything from the lady I gave him to, but as I waited for the train last week at the same station I got off the train to take him to his new home, a parakeet flew past me chirping away and I thought that could be him. He seemed pretty happy. I hope it was him.
Here are some gems I have uncovered from Substack and elsewhere this month and I would love to hear yours. Come join me in the comments. Until next time,
In case you missed it
On Substack
Am I choosing writing over motherhood? Alice Vincent and Emma Gannon
Classic Books For Moms Amanda Montei (There’s that lighthouse again!)
Is your Man just doing the dishes, or is he actually doing the work? Kerala Goodkin
Bryony Gordon’s motivational Why Not You?
Things Millennial Moms Treat Like Luxury Experiences Big Little Feelings
TV
Race Across the World, BBC (2026)
I always enjoy this show. It’s the people that make it so watchable. What did we think of this year’s bunch?
The Queen’s Gambit, Netflix (2020)
I really enjoyed this. I think as we hurtle towards a world of AI, I found comfort in this period drama with real life chess playing, analogue boards and wall mounted phones. Set in the 1950s and 1960s the story follows Beth Harman, who is an incredible chess talent, in her quest to become the greatest chess player in the world.
Books
Soldier Sailor, Claire Kilroy (2023)
Kilroy writes so vividly about being a mother during a child’s early years, I had moments where I felt like she was pulling memories out of my own mind. She doesn’t hold back and I loved that about it because that is how motherhood feels for me; absolutely relentless.
Podcast
Emilia Clarke on How to fail with Elizabeth Day (2026)
It’s humbling when someone who is so incredibly talented and legendary in a show you really loved (she was the very best of them as well) just doesn’t believe she’s all that good. Yet her story of surviving two brain aneurisms is proof that she really is incredible. A really good listen.
Come meet me in the comments and share what has been distracting you this month,
Until next time,
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