I dropped Julia off at work this morning at 6am, then popped down to East Midlands Airport to pick up Number Two Son. He is now doing night shifts as a hotel porter/receptionist and gets off at 7am.

After that we went home and I read some blog posts before packing the laundry and locking myself out of the house

If you say it like that it sounds like it was all part of a masterplan. It wasn’t, but I suppose you had guessed that. Do you know how long it takes to wake a slumbering youth who has been doing nights all week? I rang his mobile, I rang the home phone. I used the door knocker, I banged on the door, I shouted through the letter box. Eventually I borrowed a pole from a neighbour and used it to bang on the window. Repeatedly.

Finally I took the risk of knocking on the door of the neighbour who has our spare key.  Fortunately she was up.I eventually woke the somnolent child by going into his room and shaking him to check he was still alive.

After that I drove to the laundry and sat in hothouse temperatures for over an hour. It was uncomfortable, but I had a good chat with an retired gardener who used to do the brilliant plantings we had in the city parks (before the cut-backs, as we always have to say). I took water in with me to keep rehydrated, but couldn’t find it when I wanted it.

Senior moment number two – forgetting the water.

Or did I?

In fact, as I emptied the drier, I found the water. It was in with the clothes and it was hot enough to make coffee, though not quite boiling. Classic Senior moment as my new friend, the Ancient Gardener, told me.

Yes, I know, as I may have said before. It’s difficult pegging washing out when you have uneven ground and a walking stick. When we redesign the garden we will tackle that problem.