The weather's fab in Abersoch but we're reminded of how chilly English autumn can be. NY didn't seem to get long-sleeve cold until November time whereas now there's already a bite in the air, despite gleaming sunshine.

It's quite relaxing to be out of London though. All we've done the last couple of days is sit around in the sun reading newspapers and failing at easy crosswords, then wander down to the beach with Jody when she needs a bit of a run around. We had to take her to the doctor again this afternoon though, because she's been covered head to toe for the last couple of days in a very angry looking rash. Apparently it's just another unidentifiable viral thing that should cause no concern. Lets just hope she didn't pick up any nasty lurgy germs from the boy who came in with a very nasty case of chicken pox or similar while we were waiting.

Jody's been in the mill a little these last few days. On Thursday we left for Tarporley where I spent Friday while Roj did some work up in Manchester. Friday day went OK. We had a leisurely breakfast then headed out on recommendation to Cheshire Oaks designer outlet mall. It's a good place to go and stock up on end of season deals but it took 1.5 hours to walk round the place, with no time spare for focusing on the stuff I really wanted to look at. And I ended up back in Mexx - the first shop I went into - buying the baby clothes I'd selected 1.5 hours previously. Plus we got caught in really nasty traffic both ways so the whole outing was extended by an unecessary hour.

Still, we got back in time for a late lunch and then were playing on the bed waiting for Roj to get back when Jody got very boisterous and slithered off head first, hitting her head (but not too hard) on the sidetable on the way down. It was more of a shock than anything - it really wasn't the worst fall Jody's had - compounded by Jody subsequently puking up all of her lunch in the space of about 15 seconds all over me, herself and the bed. It took a full hour or so of bathing and changing and comforting to calm us both down! Unfortunately this meant that we were late to arrive in Shropshire at my parents' house and had to rush Jody to bed and explain the events of the day in one go.

The next morning, still marginally concerned about Jody's wellbeing, I had to wake her up an hour later than usual and really had to force her to stay awake. This just added to my concerns, and we ended up booking her in to the local doc's clinic to get her checked over, not willing to risk ignoring a head injury. So Roj and I swiftly forced some breakfast down her and zoomed off in the car by 8:50. Only once we got there and Jody had consumed her second piece of toast and jam, she suddenly started to liven up. She went from Miss Lethargy (never before seen in our child) to Miss Exuberant (more familiar) in the space of about 2 minutes. So much so that we knew nothing was wrong (she must have just been severely depleted after throwing up all her lunch the previous day) and decided to leave the surgery forthwith. We actually got a chance to explain the turnaround to the doctor before we left and he reassured us that we could come back if the situation took a downturn but by then we were totally convinced that I had over-reacted. Better to over react though isn't it?

And the other issue is that her canines are currently poking through the surface and creating quite inflamed and obviously painful spots on her gums. She hasn't been bothered by most of her teeth (barring the top front two) but these ones are causing quite a lot of whingeing. Thank goodness for Calgel (again).

So Jody has seen enough doctors to last the next few weeks (barring her measles shot on Monday) and I will be hoping that she has a few days (or weeks, even) clear of cold - which she hasn't had since starting nursery at the end of July. I want my healthy baby back!

Tomorrow we're planning a trip up Snowdon. And not on the train either. I think Roj is a little ambitious to lug our hefty little toddler up the highest peak in Wales in the backpack but he's determined to stay on some sort of health drive and we have to do something active while we're here or we'll turn into sofa spud supremes. I just want to go up there for a chance to dust off my camera which has been shamefully inactive these last few weeks - partly after the disappointment of losing so much stuff with the laptop.

The next step computer-wise (contrary to my brother's advice to get a Mac) is - on Dave's advice - to get a hardware firewall. No other way to ensure a clean Windows install it seems. Ah well ... if that's what it takes.

And oh! I've been forgetting the very very exciting news that I have ordered - been cleared for - and will be acquiring a mobile phone next Tuesday! I finally found a network (thankyou Orange) that uses Experian rather than Equifax as its credit reference agency. And on investigation the Orange deal I'm getting is better than any of the others I've seen. 120 minutes plus 30 texts per month for £15. That is a bargain! And (for a reasonable price) I can get the Motorola V600 - same as Roj (good for sharing chargers etc.) - and they'll even throw in a free bluetooth headset. Woohoo! The only drawback I've heard with Orange is that coverage is a bit crappy outside London, but even if it's true that's hardly cause for concern considering where I live! I am beyond excited!

I can't believe it. This week is getting unfunny.

I've been having stop error issues with my PC for the last couple of days after what had seemed a successful install. I've been able to log in for about 20 minutes before they hit, so I've been able to fiddle around in the interim, hoping that uninstalling various pieces of software would sort it out. But this morning I got a different error and the computer can no longer find the hard drive. Which means I'll be ordering a new one methinks. I give up on getting this one sorted.

On the bright side it means I've finally installed broadband on my laptop (which I should have done two months ago), and am just hoping that my laptop survives the next week or so until I get my PC sorted out.

On top of which I'm now getting a million virus alerts on my laptop. Not of quarantined or deleted viruses, but of ones that have actually made it onto my system. Which isn't funny. It took the best part of a day to sort them out the other day and I'm faced with the same thing all over again.

And as if that isn't enough, the problems continue with the builders. They finished yesterday mid-morning but on inspection we found several ridiculous problems with the work which will involve the entire re-tiling of one wall and some other serious changes. I've talked them over with the boss man this morning who seems ready to get them all fixed - and hopefully all next week so that by the time we get back from Abersoch everything will be sorted to our satisfaction. They hadn't even sealed the shower cubicle so that when I tried it out yesterday for 30 seconds, the floor ended up flooded. Unbelievable.

What I need to do now is abandon the computer, abandon the flat and its bathroom fiasco and get into the park for some quality time with Jody. And then later get my packing done so that we can leave for Tarporley at about 7. Can't wait to get out of this place to be honest.

Good weekend. Officially relinquished my tomboy status on Saturday morning by buying a pashmina. A pashmina! Am now a proper girl. Then off to Madeleine's wedding in a bit of a rush because it wasn't until 12:45 that I realised it was at 3, not 4 as originally thought. Speedily got ready and zoomed down to Richmond with mercifully little traffic and beautiful weather. Very much enjoyed a short but intimate civil ceremony followed by an elaborate reception in the grounds of the Home Guard's Club. The weather was so lovely that they'd put the tables outside (buffet lunch) and there were so many kids that they'd hired a bouncy castle and we could just let Jody run around on the expansive lawn (interrupting guests' games of football by grabbing the ball). The only drawback was the risk of sunburn because of lack of foresight (luckily averted). Very enjoyable afternoon, and we even got Jody back to her bed by 8:30pm which was very human indeed.

Sunday we did some shopping for bathroom accessories (with limited success) and had a lovely lunch at Giraffe (with kiddie menu sausage and mash for Jody), which is swiftly becoming our Route 66 replacement. Then back home to allow Jody (and Roj) to sleep while I began the laborious task of archiving my PC files in preparation for formatting the hard drive.

The builders finally returned yesterday for half an hour at 4pm and are back again this morning. I have high hopes that they'll finish by the end of today but you never know with these fellas. Spent most of yesterday formatting and re-partitioning my hard drive (thanks to Partition Magic, then installing XP, and Norton Internet Security (not before infection by 2 different viruses mind you). By 4:30 I was finally happy with the status - just 20-or-so different programs to install now before we're up and running. It's certainly nice to have the hare back after dealing with a tortoise for so long. And a relief to have archived all my files especially since hearing of friends returning from holiday at the weekend to find their computer (including 2 years of digital photos of their little girl) stolen. Yikes.

Fiona visiting for tea this afternoon (and putting up with the mess, I hope). Then not much planned for Wednesday and Thursday. Thursday evening though, we're off up to Tarporley so that Roj can stop in at his board of directors job on Friday. Then back to my parents' in Shropshire for 24 hours (including a mountain bike ride, weather permitting) before heading up to Abersoch for a week's holiday. Looking forward to it already.

And also looking forward to the return of Sven and Charlotte from 5 weeks in Norway this weekend, and hearing a bit of their news.

Soddit. Builders stalled on Wednesday and despite emphatic promises from the boss man about finishing by today, we are not getting them back until mid-morning Monday which means that they won't be finished til end of Tuesday which means I won't be able to spend Jody's nursery hours making the house spic and span. I'm furious! He didn't even ring on Wednesday to let me know there were problems, he waited until I'd phoned three times - late this morning - before ringing back and telling me I'd have to wait. I rang back to give him a piece of my mind and it didn't work. For one of the first times ever Lara-in-a-fury was thwarted. He was just so calm he was making me sound silly dammit!

On the bright side, because the tilers have finished, I can start the clearup upstairs so I have assembled the desk that I lovingly painted during Wimbledon (can you believe how long we've been in disarray?) and my PC. Which means I'm back to Broadband. Which means I can sort my photos without losing my mind. If I had any.

There are other benefits I'm sure.

Enough of the rant. I shall be continuing the clear up tomorrow in the hope of having the flat in a reasonable state (the upstairs anyway) for when Fiona visits on Tuesday afternoon. And then I'll be off to Madeleine's wedding with fambly Taylor. Fab.

I've had quite a social couple of days actually. Big walk with Rachel and Amy on Thursday and then spent the morning today with lovely Alex. The weather was nice so we met in Regent's Park and took elevenses at the Honest Sausage (yummy Park Porkers!), then meandered via the Inner Circle to the kiddies playground until Jody got too tired and hungry to whine, at which point we went our separate ways. Lovely to see her in very good form (looking lean after visits to the gym) and talking about a possible foray to London. Hooray.

And can you believe that Jody has another bug? She hadn't even recovered from the last one. This one brings a bit of a sniffle but mostly a dry cough which keeps her up at night. I am administering Tixylix.

A recent update on her achievements: She now says 'shoe', 'hi', 'bye', 'light', 'tickle tickle', 'dog', 'door' and some other words less regularly. She points to noses, eyes and tummies. She likes to walk backwards and undress herself (particularly if snap fasteners are involved). She attempts to dress herself but ends up with onesies on her head or dresses half way up her legs. She likes climbing up steps and onto anything sofa-height. She now likes to reach out for adult hands to help her climbing. She is still the happiest little girl on the block. And I am still the most biased mum.

Wowee! The builders are here today. And we've ordered a new toilet to replace the cracked one. And that means that by the end of this week - touching wood and barring any disasters - we will be done!! And no, I won't be counting any chickens.

Then it's just the floors to sort out, and the painting, and the clearing up, and the coffee table, and the sofa covers. The light is at the end of the tunnel but only just!

I wonder when those builders are turning up ...

Had a lovely Thursday night with Rose although she is contemplating an eventual return to NY which just makes me jealous! (More reason to visit though). Met her at St. Christopher's Place since there are a million yummy restaurants in the area, but ended up at the palest Pizza Express imitation I've ever experienced. Soggy bruschetta and awful canned-tasting pasta, culminating in the most inedible profiteroles (how can you mess up profiteroles?), covered in an inch of powdery chocolate Angel Delight. Yuk. Still, the location was nice, the coffee was good and the company was excellent so who can really complain!

Friday I finally logged into my Experian credit report to discover a very acceptable score and a verdict that I would be 'unlikely' to be refused credit on the basis of my report. If only Equifax could follow suit.

Friday evening we drove up to Shropshire to spend the weekend with the mother-in-law. Usually we're only passing through on the way to Abersoch, or we try and split the weekend between my parents and Roj's mum, but this time we spent all our time in one place which was much more relaxing. Nice to see Uncle Olly and Aunty Zo in good form. Walked up to Rodney's Pillar on Sunday with Olly to demonstrate to Roj how heavy Jody is nowadays and also to work up appetites for a three-course carvery lunch. Unfortunately we decided to stop at a pub on the way home, rather than go out after showering and changing as originally planned, so we were left with a smelly baby and no clean nappies. After contemplating improvisation, I did a 15-minute return trip to the nearest garage to pick up some nappies. Not only did they only sell one size (too small), but they were also charging £6.50 for nappies that should have cost £2.50 (I know this because £2.50 was printed on the side of the packet). Unfortunately I was in no position to refuse (eating Sunday lunch to the sweet smell of Jody's bottom is not an appealing thought, let alone putting her through it) so succumbed to the extortion.

We decided to return to London at Jody's bedtime (driving is always best done when Jody is asleep) and the trip was okay despite inevitable encounters with weekend roadworks. In fact I snoozed most of the return trip having found the relaxing weekend utterly exhausting!

I really do hope the builders turn up this week. Apart from anything I'm sick of the stink of open drains which meets my nose every time I open the front door. I've made a list of all the niggly little factors I'm unhappy to put up with so the plumber will not be happy when he gets in touch. Lets hope he's refreshed and raring to go after his unfeasibly long holiday.

Not much planned this week. Completion of the door-painting at last and some other bits and bobs to organise, but any more house stuff is dependent on the return of the builders. Need to find a smart top to tie in with existing summery wedding outfit so I don't freeze to death on Saturday at Madeleine's wedding. Not sure I can stomach a pashmina although it might be my only option.

Missing Jody already and it's only 11:15.

Still no builders and still no phone. I finally ordered a new credit rating which told me that I was a 'poor bet' for credit due to the fact that I'm not listed on this year's electoral roll (only I am), and that I've had 4 searches done in the last 6 months (only I've had 2). On top of this, my ancient credit card account has disappeared without trace (and the credit reference agency refuse to do anything about it unless Barclaycard notify them, which they say they have). I've done what I can about the issues and apparently things will improve as the information is corrected, but not so far. I'm now ordering a credit report from the other reference agency Experian who are apparently more reliable (according to Westminster City Council) and may - you never know - give me a higher score. If they do, I will then have to find a way of discovering which mobile phone agencies use Experian instead of Equifax, because obviously random applications for mobile phones will just create more searches on my report, subtracting from my overall score. I can't believe in this day and age people with debts up to their eyeballs are able to get a mobile phone contract and here's me ... no debt whatsoever, homeowner for several years and with good financial stability all round. Not allowed. It's a farce.

And as for the builders. I'm absolutely sick of living in what closely resembles a rubbish heap. On top of which I have discovered - on close inspection - several major faults with the work that has been done including a crack in one of the toilets. And the builders aren't due in until the second half of next week (if then). There will be large celebrations due on the day they leave (if they leave), that's for sure.

We've pretty much decided to put wooden floors down instead of carpets, despite the difficulty dealing with a staircase. At the moment we're leaning towards oak oiled white to keep the overall appearance light (we have quite low ceilings) and the colours uniform throughout (our bathroom tiles are of a similar colour). Of course we're yet to receive a quote for the job (I don't want the measurers in until there is floor space which they can measure), so we still reserve the right to change our minds. The whole minor renovation project has cost us almost what we budgeted for already and we're not even halfway done. Sigh.

This weekend we're off to Shropshire again (getting out of the tip) to visit my mother-in-law who we haven't spent much time with for a while. Not sure the weather will be good though. Perhaps I'll have to buy Jody some wellies.

Off to meet Rose tonight for dinner in the neigbourhood. Haven't seen her for a while so am looking forward to catching up. Always good for a girlie chat. Roj will be babysitting with a Sainsbury's chicken saag marsala (and videoing the BBC's Real Story about private nurseries gone to hell). Poor sod!

I can't believe it. My laptop died again. Windows XP corrupted. No choice but to format and reinstall. And there was I thinking that there was no way it would happen twice in as many months, so I wasn't as fastidious as I should have been about burning files to CD, resulting in the loss of at least three months of photos including the only existing photos of Jody's first birthday, some excellent snaps of Blockette's hen party and possibly the best landscape shot I've ever taken. Serves me right I suppose.

On the bright side, Roj is back! It's fab to have him home. Despite galivanting around the country these last few days, I'm never quite as happy as when he's around. We've had to endure a little disappointment since his return, about something I haven't even mentioned up here, but it's nothing we can't handle. There's plenty in the pipeline that is positive so we'll focus on that for a while.

Jody's in nursery again today. She almost looked wistful when I left, or was that just my overprotective imagination? I will miss her like crazy as usual (I tend to count down the hours until I pick her up), but will try and be productive with door-painting and a bit of admin. Eagerly awaiting Equifax news too, in the hope that I can order myself a mobile phone and stop going on about it at last!

31 degrees this evening as I drove down Marylebone Road. 5:30pm. Blimey.

It's been quite cold up in Ratlinghope though. I took a ton of summer clothes and had to wear the whole lot at once. Typical for that area though. I was looking forward to hitting civilization on Tuesday, as I left our chaotic bathrooms. But an hour after arriving, a massive lightning strike took out the electrics and even when power was restored 32 hours later, we realised that the water pump had been destroyed in the strike. Which means minimal running water, no showers or baths and loo flushing only with buckets of water from the stream. Marvellous. Luckily we were able to take advantage of my grandmother's running water only 15 miles away but it was still an inconvenience. I only hope the pump gets fixed quickly so my parents don't have to suffer for too long.

Other aspects of Shropshire were good. It's always nice to have a bit of help with Jody and the grandparents love it. Even managed to see Maggie and Zoe briefly on the way up.

Went for a long walk on Wednesday (in drizzle) in an attempt to find a pub with electricity at which to have lunch. Fun, but Jody is getting very heavy to be sitting in the backpack for 2 hours at a time. Thursday we finally took Jody out on the much-anticipated bike ride. It was quite easy to deal with once you achieved a bit of speed, but stopping and getting off was a bit of a challenge. Enjoyable, but Jody seemed more confused than anything, and got thoroughly fed up by the end of the ride. She also got bitten by another wasp on Wednesday - this time on her thumb - and made up for last time by screaming bloody murder. Poor mite.

Due to the water issues we didn't manage to experiment with Jody's new sandpit either - which Morfar had slaved over as a belated 1st birthday present. By the end of the visit though, we had to let her have a bit of a play and it was very amusing to watch her stomping around in by then totally waterlogged sand.

Got to Camilla's at about 6:15 on Friday night after a very stressful journey. Jody woke after an hour and screamed angrily for the remaining two hours, with only 20 minutes respite eating ice-cream at an M40 service station. And when I say she screamed angrily she screamed at the top of her lungs with real salty tears pouring down her little cheeks. That's the first time it's happened when I haven't been in the passenger seat and able to distract her to some extent. It was not only deafening but quite traumatic. I was certainly glad to see Junction 5 when it came along.

Got Jody to bed quite quickly though, and then had a lovely relaxing dinner and evening with Camilla partially entertained by the final of Big Brother. Wandered into Marlow today for some gorgeous Espresso Frappucinos from Starbucks (never had one before but will be making up for it now) and a meander by the river. Very enjoyable but very hot. More chatting and lovely food back at her place and then finally back to London this evening to prepare for the return of Roj tomorrow morning.

Can't wait actually. This week has been very enjoyable and has gone very quickly but it doesn't compensate for an absent daddy. Very much looking forward to getting back to normal next week. And also, maybe, getting a mobile phone at last. After an email from the credit bureau stating that I am not listed on this year's Electoral Roll, I chased the council and found that I am. So they have now sent me confirmation which I will fax through to the credit bureau on Monday and finally, finally hope to get my records straightened out. Although I'm obviously not stupid enough to count my chickens on this one.

And while we're talking about counting chickens, I'm also hoping to see some builders this week. Although completion of bathrooms will be nothing short of a miracle.

Tired now. Cuppa tea, honey sandwich and some naff telly methinks. What a party animal!

Just taking 5 minutes to update before I get on with packing. Heading up to Shropshire this afternoon after taking Jody out of nursery at midday. Looking forward to a few days out of the city, Jody's new sandpit (as created by Morfar), taking her cycling, and then spending some relaxed girlie time with Camilla on the return. Just can't stand living in the hell-hole that is (still) our flat, so anywhere is better than here.

Still no word from the Equifax people who were supposed to take 'a couple of days' to confirm the existence of me at this address.

However yesterday I finally managed to change the address on my Barclays bank account which had been hanging over my head for 6 months. When we first moved back to England in January, I changed the address to my parents' since we would not be back in London for a couple of months. At the end of that period I went in to a branch to request they change it to my London address. They told me they couldn't do this in a branch and I would have to send a letter to head office which I did. I got a reply to say that Barclays had been unable to verify my signature on this occasion and I could either go into a branch or send another letter. So I sent another letter. In fact in the space of 3 months I sent 4 letters, each requesting they change my address. And each time I got a reply back saying either that they were unable to verify my signature or that they were just unable to make the change on this occasion. Needless to say I opened a Natwest account, prepared to finally abandon my childhood bank. After receiving the fourth reply I angrily phoned the customer helpline and explained my predicament. The man explained that I should go into a branch and request they send a letter internally authorising the change of address. I've put this off for about a month in the hope that my new Natwest account would work better. Unfortunately I've been let down by Natwest too, who have failed miserably to phone me to set up my online banking details despite three requests from me. I can therefore not access my accounts online which is no damn use to me. So yesterday I went into my Barclays branch and queued for half an hour to request this internal letter. The woman turned to me quizzically and then just changed the address on her computer. It took her two minutes. TWO MINUTES. All I needed was my passport, she said. I took my passport in the first time round, I said. Grrrr.

I've also sorted Jody's MMR out. After thinking long and hard about it I realised that I am not as comfortable as I need to be with the combined injection. I have succumbed to media sensationalism. I have therefore ordered a single measles innoculation from a nearby GP practice (which my health visitor recommended). She is booked in for early September and will receive the other two injections at 6 month spacings. A weight off my shoulders.

Well. I'd better go and pack as I'm leaving in 2.5 hours and historically it takes me about three days to get everything ready (it doesn't help that the flat is in such disarray).

It's so hot. This is the hottest summer I can remember in the UK although most people are inclined to disagree with me. I'm wearing a vest for goodness sake. A vest. In England. Cool!

Roj has disappeared to China and India leaving me to cope with a very sick baby all on my own. In fact I'm doing nothing of the sort - I'm off to Shropshire mid-Tuesday to enlist the help of the grandparents, and hopefully Jody will have recovered by then anyway, even if that means she'll have passed it on to me. Just another cold (another one!), but quite a nasty one this time, resulting in sleeplessness and grumpiness.

Have crammed quite a lot into the weekend so far so am compensating by sitting quietly in front of the telly this afternoon with plans to do little else (at least while the baby catches up on her sleep). We all went down to Bournemouth on Friday night to spend 24 hours with Will, Pippa and Rosie. We had plans to go cycling in the New Forest but it being such a lovely day, decided to spend the morning on the beach, which meant there wasn't really time to get on the bikes (plus the hire shop was all out of them). The beach was good though, as was the paddling pool, but by 12:30 Jody was way too tired and way too hungry to cope and for the first time in a long while spontaneously burst out crying. She was a bit better when we got back to the house after a quick nap in the car, and enjoyed her barbequed sausages, Rosie's trike, and sliding into the paddling pool. She also got nastily stung by a wasp on her arm (witnessed by both Roj and myself) but didn't even blink. Hard core! She slept almost all the way back to London (which only took us two hours thanks to a shortcut via White City that we haven't used before) but was quite upset and unwell as we tried to rush her to bed before I went out for Madeleine's hen party in Soho. It was great to see the gals, but a shame that the volume was quite so loud. I'm becoming a real granny in my requirement for quiet amenable atmospheres. And for sleep too (I left at 10:40!). Glad to see Mads so happy though.

Was hoping to see Miranda and Ellie for lunch today but didn't think it fair to inflict them with Jody's lurgy, and am actually completely worn out. Looks like an evening of dvds and rubbish food ahead of me, followed by an early night.

Not much else to report. Jody has grown out of her first shoes already (into size 5s which I'm sure are for 2-year-olds). I have booked us in for swimming lessons at the Queen Mother Leisure Centre in Victoria, but not starting til September. And the child seat for the bike has been delivered so I have also invested in a cute little kiddy cycling helmet. Can't wait to introduce her to the joys of cycling (am also hoping that entertaining her will aleviate the general tedium of being on a road bike).

Oh, and did I mention the wooden spoon I won on Thursday? I'd been down to Topps Tiles in Vauxhall to pick up the final 4m² of tiles that we thought we wouldn't need. I'd been told on the phone that the delivery was expected before 12 so I decided I'd go down there and lie in wait so that our tiler wouldn't have to hang around longer than needed. Course Thursday was a baking hot day and the delivery ended up arriving at 1:40 didn't it, so I spent nearly 2 hours in the sweltering car with Jody (who was asleep for the first 45 minutes or I would have found friendlier territory) getting more and more frustrated and more and more convinced that the tiler wouldn't hang on for me to get back. So I finally got back to the flat at 2:30 to find that the tiler had indeed vanished and Jody was getting hungrier and hungrier by the second. So I did what any mum would have done, I fed Jody her lunch and put her to bed and sat down with my own nosh and a cup of tea. It was only at 5 o'clock when Jody woke up again that I realised that the 30 minutes of pay-and-display time I'd bought to unload the tiles would have long expired. In the desperate hope that the traffic wardens might have overlooked the Rav 4 illegally parked right outside our building (fat chance) I ran downstairs to find that they had indeed not. In all fairness it hadn't been towed, which was a big relief, but it did sport those enormous "WARNING DO NOT ATTEMPT TO MOVE THIS VEHICLE" stickers all over every window. Yes it had been bitten by the yellow clamp bug. How embarassing. I am truly an airhead.

So after all that, I will return to my lazy afternoon, though I can't sign off without a huge congratulations to Jon for finally succumbing to the big L and M words, and overcoming whole worlds of cynicism.