There is a widely repeated quote that I remembered being ‘Scandanavian’: there’s no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing. A little research suggests it can be found in A Coast to Coast Walk, written by Englishman Alfred Wainwright and published in 1973. Did he coin it or borrow it? As Abraham Lincoln said (*), don’t trust everything you read on the Internet. Whatever the true source, it came to mind today as I sat in the garden on this, the first properly wet day we’ve had for ages.

In the garden? Okay, in the polytunnel in the garden but it is a good halfway house. There is only a thin sheet of plastic between you and the elements. You hear the wind and rain but you also hear the birds, apparently unaware that you are almost within reach of them. At one point, I even had to rescue a robin, which flew in through the gap I’d left at the bottom of the zipped door. That’s the second time in a week — you have to open a gap, walk down to the far end of the tunnel and then slowly walk back so it can escape and tell its companions about the adventure.

When there is a bit of sun it is also about the cosiest place in our property to perch with a book and still did me for an hour or so. I’m looking forward to more sunny days but let it rain for a little while longer and I’ve still got a place to sit outside if I want it.

(*) … yes, tongue firmly in cheek with this attribution!