My iPhone 4s returned from the repairers yesterday, though curiously its hard drive capacity had doubled to 32GB. I guess that means, in the absence of anything genuinely mysterious, that my phone has been replaced. Will it last more than 30 days? Watch this space!

My new garage project moves forward slowly and more expensively (see photo). Tree roots (and what to do about the tree), the need for an excavator and a concrete pump and sundry other items have meant that something that seemed relatively straightforward has become more complicated.

Complication and uncertainty. Not my favourite bedfellows on the whole, but ones that I need to live better with. Why not ease and certainty, my mind inquires, and why not now? Truthfully, things, stuff, going smoothly, is probably rare.

My backyard, which only minutes ago was bathed in the golden light of an obliging afternoon sun, has fallen into shadow. It is now growing cooler. Soon I will take Tom to soccer training. As the kids train in the artificial light, I will walk the perimeter of the field listening to podcasts. Again and again.