Sally turned forty. It was brilliant.

I hate parties, actually, and I think it was the best fun I've had in years. We were, to Sally's credit, incredibly organised. All the food  was prepared in advance. The house looked great. We had a band, and a light show. Paddy was barman (up to a point, don't fret) and Anna had a ball. I cooked a couple of big paellas and there was much other yummy food too. I saw people I hadn't seen for yonks and generally, it was mega.

Hey, it's swim night again! I finished the first eight weeks not much better off than I'd started, but I signed up for another 8 lessons with the other teacher. Huge difference. Huge. He tells you what you're doing wrong (amazing concept) and he's very encouraging. There's only six in this class and I'm the worst swimmer. It's great.

Let's see. What else. Assessment time came around and my boss said some very nice things. The related bonus will pay for the party and for a bit of our holiday -- which isn't that far away. It was really sunny today and I don't have to go to Israel on Monday.

I'm full of optimism and good stuff and I'm refusing to question it, so if it's all the same to you, I'll stop here.