Friday 2nd September 2016

You know I said that, like, we hadn't had any rain for like weeks. Well, we did on Friday, not much, but water falling from the sky!

But as ever before then there is stuff to do like feeding the cats, making breakfast and generally all the other things that make life possible.

The sun does not rise here until after quarter past six, so when the alarm wakes us at six, you think that it is cloudy outside, but that is because at the height of high summer the sunlight pours in through the spare room window. As the year progresses now, sunrise gets later, and the sun rises in an ever more southerly direction, to the rising sun now lights the back of the house rather than the side.

Anyway, we do have sunshine once the sun rises, and it is tempting to take the coffee into the back garden to soak up some warming rays before the day starts. But there are meetings to attend, travel expenses to file and reports to update.

Open House is coming up, and we have no plans this year other than "churches" or says Ian. Next year I think I have been clever in booking already for the Pink Floyd exhibition at the V&A for Open House Saturday; so that is really something to look forward to. In other news we have booked up the sleeper train to Scotland, and have a cottage for the week and a hire car. Should be magical, just seems a long time to wait until next May.

And so with as events turned out, there might be enough space now for me to take a week off from September 19th this year, before the madness of the installation begins. I have penciled it in on my calendar and will make the arrangements next week. So, just over two weeks until I have a week off! Possibly.

There is time for lunch, then the last of the work for the week. And I am done by about two.

Phew.

I spend the rest of the afternoon and evening trying to fix the computer to see why it is so slow. Pages take an age to load, and it seems so slow online, despite the ping thing telling me we are getting 2.4mbs. We shall see, there are other reasons.

Jools come home; we have coffee, but sit inside as the skies have clouded over, and a strong breeze had started to blow. And soon rain begins to fall; yes, water from the sky. And I watered that morning too. It was good standing by the back door watching it hammer down, and the smell of the damp earth rose and meandered in the house. Mulder came in soaked to the skin, meowing very loudly. Well, we didn't make you stay out in that did we?

Meow.

Jools goes for fish and chips, I make the drinks and wait for her return. It is still hammering down when she returns, and is soon dark enough to have the lights on in the living room as I try to fix the computer and Jools polishes off the plan for the back garden.

And what a treat tonight: a whole hour of the Don and his garden on TV. Well, it has been cancelled several times this year because of either the Euros, Wimbledon or the Olympics.