Every time I got down to some work, something happened that needed to be dealt with. Nothing bad, just a priority. Then last night, I thought I’d have a lovely early night with a good book. I was in bed by 9 or so and looked forward to reading in comfort for at least an hour.

A few minutes in, a friend from overseas – over a lot of seas, in fact, he’s visiting from NZ but now in Scotland – texted me to ask if a video chat would be convenient? Being shameless, I said yes of course, I’m in bed but decently covered. He was amused. It was good to chat – I’ve known him a long time as he used to live in this country, though a New Zealander, but really don’t know him very well. Well enough to receive a call in bed, though. It’s age, darlings, old age, I’m beyond embarrassment.

We chatted for a quarter of an hour or so and then I’d hardly put the phone down and started reading again when my dear friend and adopted cousin (her late husband’s grandmother and my mother-in-law were cousins and I can’t be bothered to work out the distance although, in any case, there’s no blood relationship but we feel close enough for there to be one) video called me from Atlanta.

By the time we finished, it was nearly midnight. And then I slept for a couple of hours and was awake again, presumably over-stimulated. This morning, I got on with the photography for all of 15 minutes when another friend rang – landline this time – and I simply gave up. I’d promised to take my sister out for lunch, Wince the gardener needed help putting up the gazebo, which is a big one and impossible to do by oneself and then Wink had a hospital appointment this afternoon. When I got home, feeding the barn cats and the chickens turned into several jobs taking well over an hour and then, about 8 o’clock, I went to cook dinner. Lunch had been a lovely salad with chickpeas, aubergine, roasted tomatoes, green beans and various other salad ingredients, so I was going to do a simple vegetable mixture with some eggs. I was just frying courgettes and garlic when I heard a car draw up and saw my friend Graham getting out. So I fetched him a glass of wine and we chatted for a while – I’d taken the pan off the heat – and it was well after 9 when I was alone again. The courgettes and garlic were the only veggies. Everything else is still in the fridge. I just cracked eggs into the pan, sliced and buttered bread and ate it. With another glass of wine.

I have so much to do tomorrow and Saturday. It’ll still be fun. The World Cup final is on Sunday morning at 11, so I’ve asked Wink to host a tv party, so that those who’d like to watch it can come early. Zoe, Mike and Sarah will be here already. I’ll potter around cooking the final dishes. while they cheer on the Lionesses. I won’t watch, if they lose I’ll think it’s my fault because they were winning until I muscled in.