I began the day in a rather grouchy mood and blogged about it then slowly but surely things came right and I deleted proof of my grouchiness.

And perhaps the reward for dropping the grouchy thing was a reminder that I have some really lovely friends. The reminders didn't just take the form of skype conversations or chats but Matthew mailed me the most remarkable BBC podcast and Mark made me laugh as we talked via my new laptop.

Two old friends from New Zealand arrive around midnight tonight - they're confident about making all the connections between Charleroi and here. It will be good to see them again, it's been more than 3 years.

The apartment is clean and I'm ignoring the grey skies and rain. Mmmm so it's Autumn Mark but we escaped being globally warmed during our Northern Hemisphere summmer. Happy clammy Auckland days to you ;)