Are You a City Mouse or a Country Mouse?
I love an elegant city library! I also love a charming small-town library! What about you?
Are you a city person or a country person? Really, it’s such a silly question, because can’t we be both?
(And of course I realize most people live in something in between. But painting in broad strokes to make a point is ever so much more fun than nuance, don’t you think?)
I grew up in a city and live in one still. (The same one!) I admit some of my bravado and cheerleading for city living might stem from insecurity and minor defensiveness and yes, lifestyle envy of others, of friends who live a genuine rural lifestyle, or in picturesque small towns, or in all-American family-friendly suburbia. Really, I think I could live any number of places and love them all. This is home for me, and my coping tactic is to embrace it.
However, although I’ve never really lived in the country, I YEARN to. I have elaborate daydreams about Country Me. (They might involve vintage French linens, muddy boots, a scrubbed pine kitchen table, an orchard, maybe even some bee keeping thrown in to engage those new-skill-learning neurons.)
Something I’ve noticed is that cities are good to live in, but can be challenging to visit. Living in the city, I get to take advantage of what it offers, but still come home to my cozy little street with The Best Neighbors on Earth.
Other cities I love are also ones I’ve resided in—New York and Paris. I got to know them on a livable level. I belonged.
But the times I’ve visited a new-to-me city, I’ve more often than not felt taken down a notch. As a tourist the stakes are high but your confidence is low. You don’t know what you’re doing, it’s intimidating, and you have no comforting home base. We’re visiting a new city this summer, and I am planning our stay very strategically to make it a positive experience.
Anyway, give me both, please. The city, where you can walk to school and the shops, where teens can get around on public transit (THE BENEFITS OF THIS CANNOT BE OVERSTATED), where independent coffeeshops abound but drive-throughs are nonexistent, where beautiful architecture literally stops you in your tracks, where living in close proximity to other people necessarily gives rise to a spirit of community, solidarity, and human kindness.
And give me the country, where I can indulge my craving for personal space but still drive into town when the groceries get low, where we can grow tomatoes and let our dogs run free and gather wild blackberries on long solitary walks, where we shoo the deer away from our garden in the mornings, and listen to the crickets at night.
So give me both. Is that too much to ask, life of mine?
Here’s what else is going on:
Audio-Visual - What we’re watching
This Wes Anderson film was a Very Important Movie in my life when I was in my 20s. Did not disappoint as a rewatch, and the soundtrack is as perfect as ever. (If the kids didn’t like it, they were kind enough not to say so.)
Checked Out - What I’m reading
The Substack Julia’s Bookbag, which romanticizes life in the most enchanting way (and romanticizing life is what gets me through the hard days!). Keep up the important work,
Here’s the stack of books I picked up from the holds shelf today. Can you guess which books belong to which Smiths? (I refuse to be embarrassed about my girly choices. I refuuuuse!)
And lastly, this delightful book! It’s making me itch to forage nettles, gather sea urchin, infuse cocktails with Douglas fir needles, and dry seaweed in my backyard. (My sister-in-law Maria actually does this—the seaweed thing!)
From the 641s - Food & cooking (What we’ve been eating lately)
This main-course salad, which several friends have shared and raved about. They were right! The crispy tofu is game-changing for salads! You can sub any hearty grain for the wheatberries (because what the heck even are those?).
Creamy miso pasta with walnuts and roasted cabbage (truly one of the best recipes I’ve encountered lately, and also THIS IS NOT MY PICTURE because my picture came out blah and not worthy of the sublime dish itself)
And a few more with recipes linked when possible: marry-me chicken (so good!!), strawberry custard tart (sorry about the cut-off head, Cate; it’s Substack’s fault), warm strawberry-rhubarb crumble with vanilla ice cream YUMMMM and I’m not even a dessert person, and random cooking selfie in a new cute retro apron (#cottagecore).
And lastly, a weekend brunch for family - tomato quiche, grilled zucchini and peppers, butter lettuce salad with piri-piri vinaigrette. (The quiche was inspired by Meghan Markle’s cooking show, which apparently the internet hates but I love. In the last episode she has Alice Waters on and they make this amazing quiche together.) Plus Cate’s darling cake in the background, for her aunt Emily’s birthday! It was a rich vanilla bean cake with browned butter frosting.
Starred review
When we go to Chez Panisse, we wear Converse with our fancy outfits. It was fun to bring Cate to this legendary Berkeley spot. The food was good but the real star, for me, was the gorgeous Arts-and-Crafts interior.
Crafting
My neighbors Mandy and Anna came over, along with Mandy’s son Oliver, for an afternoon of sewing. Potholders were made! Quilts and tote bags were begun (or at least thought about)! Chocolate was consumed! I need more crafternoons in my life.
Local Interest - Neighborhood news
My brother Andrew lives just 10 miles south of SF, in Pacifica, and his house appears to be on a veritable wildlife highway. He snaps the most amazing photos at night. Gorgeous bobcats, Jurassic-looking opossums, wily coyotes, wise owls, cheeky raccoons. Follow his Insta for more great pics (including hopefully soon of the MOUNTAIN LION he saw the other night!!!).
Seasonal display
My sweet peas are finally blooming! Thanks to my friend
(Also, this is my most favorite wallpaper! I have it on one small wall in our dining room—I couldn’t afford any more. It’s called Apothecary’s Garden, which makes you feel like you’re in Lord of the Rings or Outlander or some such.)
Bulletin board - Industry news
I spent the day on Alcatraz signing books. On the ferry home, I sat on a bench outside, wind in my hair, spray in my face, and marveled at the silvery, sparkly views.
From the 910s - Travel
Average high/low temps for Edinburgh in July: 66/51.
Average high/low temps for SF in July: 67/55. We are weather soulmates!
In a week we are going to Scotland, and we are in packing mode. And because of that weather forecast, guess what? We get to bring sweaters! SWEATERS, people! We might also BUY sweaters when we’re there, those lovely Fair Isle ones. And it’s not even fall—which as you might know, is the season I await patiently throughout all the lesser seasons! (In Scotland, you see, it’s basically always fall. That’s the nice thing about Scotland. Also: castles, cobblestones, islands, shortbread, whiskey, glens, moors, and those shaggy cows with the horns.)
Next posting I’ll hopefully have photos of all those things and more! Meanwhile, to tide us over, some Scotland photos from the Days of Yore:
That’s it for now! Hope you’re all having a good week! I would love it if you would leave me a heart or even a comment, but regardless, thanks for reading!
I loved every tidbit in this post. And I'm going to make that salad this weekend - I love wheatberries! So chewy!
I love this and have long felt the tension between the “country mouse” and “city mouse” sides of my psyche. I’ve lived in both and loved both and, like you, could see myself living happily in all kinds of settings. Now I think of myself as an “edge of the village” mouse. I want easy walking distance to a few necessary amenities (general store, post office, pub, library) and a yard big enough for chickens, a garden, and two or three goats. It’s not easy to find villages that allow for that kind of life these days but if I had to describe the perfect balance for me that would be it!
p.s. those animal photos are incredible!