1. The sun – and the pending plot inspection – has brought everyone down to the allotments. This means I do nearly as much talking as weeding but I still get a lot of the latter done. I must pull up about a hundred dandelions (a good portion of which I bring home for the chickens).

1b. To uncover things I’d forgotten planting (the onions at the top of Plot 12) and to free the strawberries from the clutter of bittercress and grass – the plants had looked rather pathetic over the winter but now they’re green and strong.

1c. I have to work in the shade – it’s too hot in the sun. I think how much has changed in a week: last weekend, we were in long johns, woolly hats and gloves at Kielder but today I’m baking in just a vest top.

1d. When I close the greenhouse for the evening, the lettuce seedlings stand out to me – they must have grown more than a centimetre, nearly an inch, over the day.

2. The sunny day has brought people down to the pub as well. John sings two songs: he’s nervous and flubs a few lines but I’m probably the only one who notices.

3. Under the guidance of my new style guru (my friend K’s six year old son), I paint my nails on one foot in a rich orange and the other in turquoise blue. I take a photo to show him and discover that a negative filter perfectly swaps the colours.