Column 7 totally underestimated things that make your life better
It's not always the big purchases that make our lives easier and more beautiful. Here, the blue News columnist collects seven everyday items that she could no longer do without.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- From bedside bottles to gray stones: you probably never thought that some household helpers would come in handy.
- Ever since Michelle de Oliveira put on rubber boots for the first time some time ago, she has not wanted to give them up again.
- Today, the blue News columnist introduces you to six more underrated things that make her life easier.
1. afternoon nap
The afternoon nap is the highlight of my day. And I'm not talking about the children's nap, which they have unfortunately outgrown for some time now. I mean my very own.
Escaping reality for a sweet moment - 10, 20 or 30 minutes - and then carrying on afterwards, sometimes slightly enraptured, but also refreshed, should be declared the social norm.
2. rubber boots
As a child or teenager, my last pair of wellies probably became too small at some point and from then on I lived without them for years. I was barefoot at festivals or wore my hiking boots, as well as in the forest and when it rained. Until I recently received a pair of discarded wellies as a gift.
About the person: Michelle de Oliveira
Michelle de Oliveira is a journalist, yogini, mother and always in search of balance - not just on the yoga mat. She also has a soft spot for all things spiritual. In her column, she reports on her experiences with the incomprehensible, but also from her very real life with all its joys and challenges. She lives with her family in Portugal.
And I can say that I love them very much. Here on the Portuguese coast, it is often wet and muddy. No problem with wellies, no puddle too deep, no meadow too wet.
I can enjoy the wonderful view of the sea without having to worry about the next step. Freedom is rarely as great and as convenient as when your feet are in wellies.
3rd bed bottle
This rubber thing, filled with hot water, serves many purposes: it warms you up on cold evenings. When you're sad, it's wonderful to hold in your arms and comforts you. And when your stomach hurts, it soothes the pain.
I could hardly imagine life without the warmth of a hot water bottle. And once it has cooled down, I use the water to water the plants.
4. pencil
Only rarely in life can decisions be undone as easily as when you have written or drawn in pencil. Sure, for a love letter it's not exactly a sign of style, and you might want to be a little more committed.
But for all other occasions: A pencil lasts a long time, is light and can be sharpened with a pocket knife on the go in an emergency. Which brings us to the next point.
5. pocket knife
Of course, the small Swiss army knife should not be missing from your key ring. Cutting off a torn nail, cutting off the clothing label that suddenly scratches so much or even cutting open the packaging of the lollipop (who actually developed such difficult-to-open packaging?) - no problem with a pocket knife. And of course you can also cut an apple into slices.
6. plastic bags
Before you cry out indignantly: Of course I use reusable jute bags whenever possible, have a collection of reusable shopping bags in the kitchen and in the car and use nylon vegetable bags.
However, every now and then a plastic bag finds its way into our household and I think it's fair to say how incredibly practical a plastic bag can be.
I almost always have one in my handbag and rucksack and have been glad of it countless times: A mishap happens to the child, wham, wet underpants in the plastic bag.
Or someone gets sick in the car, train, bus or plane: with a plastic bag in front of your face, the nausea only feels half as bad.
My family and I spontaneously collect garbage on the beach - put it in the plastic bag with the wet, sandy rubbish - we can pick up a lot more than with our bare hands.
7. stones
Admittedly, this everyday object was born out of necessity and its constant presence in my life: stones. I'm talking about normal, gray stones. Large and small, some are rounder, others flatter, some polished, others rough.
But mostly they are quite big and heavy and "very special", if you ask my children. So since there has been a surplus of stones in my household and I have given up resisting them, they have provided me with valuable everyday services: As paperweights, as doorstops or painted as small works of art.
