What a great half of term - certainly as far as Newton is concerned. Your Little Men have been tremendous: fun without being overly familiar, engaging, entertaining and generally great fun. Of course they try to push the boundaries from time to time - they're ten year old boys, what does one expect?! But I've always tried to work on the 'extendable dog lead' principle (even though I hate those things, ever since a puppy of a friend of ours ran into the road when it was attached to one, in front of a car, with the inevitable, tragic result), namely that I like to let it out further and further until it reaches its full length - and then, by gosh (I was going to use various other words beginning with g, but I'd probably be in big trouble if I did), I yank it in with a vengeance - and they know all about it! I don't do 'army dog leash', I'm afraid. You can allow yourselves a moment of pride, if I may be so patronising as to say so, and reflect on the splendid reflection that your LMs are on their parents.

I like to think that our own offspring aren't too bad, either, in that respect. Tom has a slight 'accommodation issue' at the moment, but I am greatly indebted to aprticularly helpful Newton parent with connections over there who is so very kindly assisting in the quest. In answer to a reference to an e-mail that referred to 'P rather than L' when expressing the hope that things would work out satisfactorily, I was, to begin with (i.e. during most of today) somewhat confused. Yes, I know you're ahead of me. Anyway, pace my correspondent , I wrote in reply:

'I have spent the best part of this afternoon trying to work out your reference to L and P, thinking that I must be very, very thick! Tonight, while Diana was having a review meeting with Miss Chloe, I took myself off to Joe's bar in Summertown and, while consuming a very nice glass of Pinot Gricio and a load of pistacchios while catching up with the news in the Daily Telegraph, I suddenly realised what you meant - and let out an embarrassingly loud guffaw, causing my neighbours to turn around and see what on Earth was happening!'

Indeed so. I hope that Tom gets his Ps and his Ls sorted out, too.

Oh, Per Lease.