Editor’s Diary: Keeping Warm


Shutterstock / Elena Arkadova © editors diary

I am typing this week’s Editor’s Diary with hands encased in fingerless gloves! A sure sign the weather has taken a turn for the worse.

Autumn has well and truly set in on the east coast of Scotland. Temperatures are in single figures, and wet, blustery days far outweigh the sunny ones.

It’s part of the normal seasonal progression, of course. And it’s going to get an awful lot colder before winter is out!

But working from home brings its own challenges in cooler weather.

Yes, it’s wonderful not having to drive in the wind and rain — or in snow or frost. Not having to set foot outside on dark mornings is a bonus!

It’s amazing, though, how much you feel the cold when you’re sitting at a computer for hours on end.

That’s something that wasn’t really a factor in our well-heated office. In fact, we often used to complain about being too warm!

At home, I don’t want to have the heating blasting out all day long. Not only is it expensive to run, it’s also really bad for the environment.

So I’m already returning to some of the methods for keeping warm I adopted last winter. Fingerless gloves, as already mentioned, are brilliant for keeping hands warm.

Real wool socks inside slipper boots are bliss for feet!

One tip someone passed on to me this week is to place a lit scented candle on your desk. Not only does it smell nice, but it can generate quite a bit of heat. And apparently it’s very relaxing, too.

I’m not sure I’d find it relaxing with my cats, though — I’d be terrified of a wafting tail getting too close to the flame!

Luckily, Matilda is usually happy to spend much of each day being my own furry lap-warmer!


For more from Angela’s Editor’s Diary, click the tag below.

Angela Gilchrist

Angela is Former Editor-in-Chief of “The People’s Friend” magazine. Her passions include cats, Highland ponies, good books, vegetarian food and long walks in the Scottish countryside. Her favourite place to get away from it all is the magical Isle of Skye.