Today seemed unusually relaxed and organised. I got up at a reasonable hour and went for a walk down by the river in the early morning light. Had some breakfast. Worked out how to use the hoover. Had friends and neighbours round for a drink and a chat. Tidied up and sat down to post my blip. What a great Christmas Eve so far. No wthe long wait to midnight mass.

This morning's walk yielded a few potential blips, but I liked this one because, in my mind anyway, it is seasonal. These two posties are off to make the last delivery before Christmas. In general we rely less on the postal service now than we have done - as a nation - for two hundred years. And yet it is hard to imagine how Christmas would 'work' without it. There is something about the materiality of Christmas cards and personally wrapped presents which is not easy to replicate in the virtual world.