Again, not much. I’ve knit 8” or so of the 14 ½ needed for the body of Miss Rachel. I’m nearly finished with the third ball of yarn – that always feel like progress.

I’m having a terrible time deciding what to ask Carol Sunday for. I’m sort of tempted by the Soutache scarf/stole, a two-colour brioche affair with the reverse side done in a set of tasteful gradient greys. But the Pueblo stole which Carol herself suggested is also extremely tempting – I think I’d go for the Hacienda del Sol colourway, but that, too, is not an easy choice. High Country will make a very nice Fair Isle, Maureen.

One thing I got done today – I don’t know why I was finding it difficult to take the plunge – was to book flights and a hotel for Archie’s and my week in Palermo at the start of the year. It remains to book trains – we’re flying from London – and our entertainment on the spot: the Gattopardo walking tour, “Cooking with the Duchess” (Tomasi de Lampedusa’s daughter-in-law) and a half-day excursion to Monreale.

Google Maps has already shown me how to get from our hotel to the Catacombs of the Capuchins, clearly a must-see. It’s not an over-long walk.

Today is my 60^th wedding anniversary. We never celebrated any of them, so it doesn’t much matter.