Northeasterly rain: the wet, persistent, three-day kind. I’ve strung the washing up under the house, wiped the windows off for the second time, split some firewood, and huddled up to the wood burner; even the fire slouches along in this weather.

I wouldn’t mind something to snack on — something reminiscent of warmer days — so I’ve checked through the i-photo cake tins and come up with … Oriental lily anthers, dredged in pollen, to be chomped down with a glass of fresh rain water.