It's stopped drizzling and the clouds have lifted for the first time since Christmas Eve - just in time for the sun to set. Sigh. And the weather forecast predicts sleet tomorrow, snow the next day, and drizzle the next. I am taking my vitamin D supplement religiously - this is the first time I've ever lived in a sun-challenged place and I'm trying to help my body adjust to the change.

Tomorrow Sophie goes back to school, and I go clothes shopping. This'll be the first time in more than a decade that I've had to have "work" clothes - casual clothing (as long as it wasn't shorts) was fine when I taught at Promat and Thekwini.

I hope the shopping experience is not too hideous; I don't like shopping at the best of times and there is an element of pressure in this as I currently have exactly one winter outfit that's not jeans. Also, I refuse to spend much money on these clothes, as it irks me to spend money on this job before it's even earned me any. Oh, and the clothes that I buy do of course have to look wonderful. So - picky and cheap. Bound to be a winning combination. Specially considering that I'm also not up for trawling from shop to shop looking for wonderful bargains in the sleet. Still, I'll be alone, which will make the process an awful lot more tolerable.