I've been thinking a lot about homes in the English countryside: their coziness, their warmth, their gardens, candles, white framed windows, perfectly broken in kitchens, comfy reading nooks, books spewing out of shelves. And of course I was mesmerized by the cottage Cameron Diaz stays in in The Holiday after watching it for the millionth time (that's the joy of re-watching movies: you get something different out of them each time). I don't know if I had a past life living in the U.K. at one point or if being there is my true calling, but I always feel a home-like attachment to England. It's the only explanation I've been able to give myself so far. That or the universal sings of comfort and staying in all snuggled up are quite British: hot tea, rainy and misty weather, grey skies, meat pies, soft tartan and sherpa, a Thomas Hardy or Jane Austen novel. If only Cameron Diaz's character could relax for a minute, put the kettle on, watch Love, Actually, and enjoy a British meat pie then The Holiday probably would've been a bit less dramatic but hey, those are the holidays for ya.