I’m writing this extremely late this week, because the usual chaos of the last working week of the year has combined with some unexpected chaos. But that’s for next time.

We went to watch Stewart Lee on Tuesday. It was a surprise: L— booked it, but all I knew was the time, the place, and that I didn’t need to wear anything special. I loved it. I’ve tried and failed to get tickets to see him live before, so this was a very welcome surprise.

We sang in the Christmas carol service on Sunday, and L— even did the solo first verse of Once in Royal David’s City. We joined the choir almost by accident last year, after enquiring about a carol service, and over the past year, the weekly practice session has unexpectedly turned into one of the highlights of my schedule. There’s not too much pressure, the standard is good, the people are lovely, and we always go to the pub afterwards to chat.

On the same day, one of L—’s university friends, who lives in France, visited for one night with her (fourth!) baby. She came to the carol service in support and seemed quite surprised by the fact that we know people in the local community. Not everyone in London lives in an antisocial bubble, even if many people do.

Children are engines of mayhem, even when they’re too small even to crawl. It was a relief to have the house back to ourselves on Monday.

I read that a national memorial to the late queen could cost up to £46 million. Instead of a static memorial, I humbly suggest a polyvalent solution to the nation’s problems: the Queen Elizabeth II Memorial Sewage Treatment Facility. Maybe I should start a petition on that website. It wouldn’t be the most half-baked idea on there.

Links of the week: