Two new shops opened on Edinburgh’s Broughton Street while we were away on holiday. As an avid reader, I was pleased that one was a book exchange. The other was a posh furniture store full of University of Edinburgh students. They were testing out sofas for the New Town flats that their parents had purchased for them.

Out on the street again I ran into US academic DC. I hadn’t seen him for years – perhaps not since he gatecrashed my 30th birthday party and nagged me about getting ‘terminal degree’. He had a list of questions about Scotland for me, but I refused to answer them. All I wanted to do was play in the snow.

When it started to rain, a gay men’s choir started to sing madrigals outside the Apple pharmacy. I spotted BW-H first. When he saw me he rushed over and offered his neck for a kiss. Now it really was time to go home.