1. The rattle of the hail on the porch roof.

2. I make a vertical ham sandwich from two horizontal ham sandwiches.

3. I consolidate the luceting skills I learnt at the Knitting & Stitching Show and make a few cords. I use a gradiated embroidery floss and the colour change works brilliantly.

1. We pull the last of the slow cooked beef, melt some cheese on top and serve them with dill pickles and salad. It makes it feels like less of a leftover and more of a planned meal.

2. B-dog sees us, looks back at his dad for permission then charges over.

3. Tilda sits on John’s thigh – a very rare event.

1. The stripes of colour when John bends over to do his exercises – the green of his sweatshirt, the maroon t-shirt below, a strip of skin, then grey marl of his underwear and the grey-brown twill of his jeans.

2. The plane trials form a cross, white on blue like the Scottish flag.

3. Yes John, the slow cooked beef is nice, and the gravy incredibly moreish, but it’s the parsnips that have been cooked most perfectly.

1. Kaufman is too big for the small cushion on my desk.

2. I systematically edit out the negativity.

3. The fig vinegar is deliciously sweet and fruity. I lick the last of the dressing off the spoon until my face scrunches from the sourness.

1. The cat – black and fluffy – run over for a tickle. It mews and rolls on the ground as I talk to it.

2. I clear away some things – the chilli plants in the porch, the box of misc in the dining room – which have overstayed their welcome. The rooms look transformed.

3. After (delicious) soup for lunch, hunger hits us like a hammer. With no time to look into a recipe, I throw things together in the wok with somewhat random flavourings. The result is quick and surprisingly good.

1. I spin a tiny bit of yarn – less than 1g of wool – to make a highlight strip for the annoying-hat-that-will-not-end. Because it’s such a small amount, I use a drop spindle rather than my wheel: it’s more than a year since I’ve spun on a spindle and it takes a little practise to get back up to scratch, but I’m pleased by the simplicity of it.

2. When Lily stops to sniff at the old gatepost, I notice how the paint around the signpost has cracked in even horizontal strips.

2b. A white-bellied squirrel sits on the wall.

3. The lasagne seems stickier than normal but it’s not a bad thing.

3b. Tilda makes a nest in the blanket between John’s legs.