My talisman was a 12 inch long clear plastic tube just large enough in diameter to carry my mixed coin collection. It was three quarters full, so also served as a rattle for grown-ups. This provided a comfort as I tried to make sense of our foolish decision to move to London. On the underground it also attracted the attention of tramps, who tried to wrench it from my grasp whenever the lights dimmed in the carriage.

TPR and I asked ourselves over and over again why we had given up good careers, a comfortable lifestyle in Edinburgh, and easy access to the highlands to move south. Here there were no suitable jobs for us, we were forced to live in sub-standard housing, and it took two flights to reach out favourite holiday destination. Our relocation decision simply made no sense at all.