We were going to the make the most of the peace of quiet on the last morning at our cosy rental cottage. However, rather than enjoying a lie-in as planned, we unexpectedly played host to a seemingly unending string of visitors.

Amongst those who called in to see us were P and SM. The pair of them were chain-smoking roll-ups with the excuse of a stressful few months due to the decline of SM’s father. AH also surprised me by (a) coming along without CS and (b) greeting me with a kiss full on the lips.

We were so preoccupied with our guests that it was 11:55 when we remembered our midday check-out time.