1. It is still raining. I suspect it may never stop raining. In a month or so we will all be going two by two into the nearest ark. It is all very depressing. I'm meant to be going to a barbecue this evening but I suspect it will end up being a plain old party.

2. I have caved in and started watching The Wire. It really is the greatest TV programme ever. No, seriously, it is. A zillion times better than the Sopranos, too - as Patsington said, The Sopranos in Shakespearean - big and grand and not really very much heart - and this is Dickensian - sweeping and socially conscious and funny. And also very moving at times. The people behind it really give a shit about the characters, and it shows. Anyway, we're nearly finished Season 2 and I have no idea what I'm going to do when it's over. I don't want to say goodbye to these characters forever!

3. Did I mention it was raining? Very, very hard? Sob.

4. I am reading an excellent book called The Suspicions of Mr Whicher, or The Murder at Road Hill House, which is about the investigation of a sensational murder in 1860. It's a gripping mystery in its own right as well as a fascinating account of mid-Victorian detective work and also looks at mid-Victorian attitudes to the police and the sanctity of the family. Recommended to anyone who likes Wilkie Collins (who based the detective in The Moonstone on Mr Whicher!).

5. You may remember (although you probably don't) my unfortunate tummy ailments. They have slightly improved thanks to the magic of an anti-tummy-spasm medicine called (I think) Spasmodal (I can never remember the names of medicine that I am meant to be taking, which isn't very sensible). But what's really helped is the biofeedback specialist's advice: drink hot water. It relaxes the tummy muscles very quickly. Also, it's free! So if you do get stomach cramps and spasms and what have you, I strongly recommend this magically simple technique.