1. The melting chocolate is nice enough to counter the annoyance of bits of it plopping in my tea.

2. A day alternating between blue skies and heavy sleet storms. Thankfully the latter happen when we’re in the car rather than out and about. The sleet piles up in a column on John’s side of the windowscreen and speckles the grass verge on the side of the road. On the way back, we concoct a routine about a strange seat left by the curb, as far from the setback houses as possible.

2b. The mustard yellow in my new scarf matches my boots. The red in it matches my other boots. Winter win!

3. She rejects it at first but a few minutes later, snaffles the chew treat I bought her at the chicken feed store. Later, her tail wags the quickest it has done in weeks.