SeamStress continues to scrape along from day to day although business is perhaps not booming to the same extent that it has in the past. Perhaps the credit crunch has impacted on all those Brownie, Guide and Scout groups or perhaps manufacturing playchutes which last forever means that most people who want one now have one.

Greg continues to do as little as possible and was shocked and dismayed to be recognised for his “Excellent” contribution to the work of Oxfordshire County Council in November. We suspect someone nominated him as a joke but the result was drinks and nibbles with the Chief Executive and Leader of the Council. Unfortunately, the opportunity to insult the leadership and thus earn his redundancy did not present itself so it looks as if retirement will have to wait until the summer.