The Queen Elizabeth II bridge

The interesting thing about this new satnav is that I don't know whether it takes me different routes when compared with the old one because its algorithms are different or because it's reacting to traffic news. I suspect it was the latter, today, when it sent me south and clockwise around the M25 to my folks' because I think there were a lot of problems going the other way 'round.

Either way, I had another journey of heavy traffic, culminating in a *very* slow crawl across the bridge at Dartford Crossing. At times we were stationary. It wasn't quite as frustrating as yesterday and I did still arrive in time to go out for a run with my brother, who is stopping over in London with his family en route to the States.

With five miles under our collective belts we were ready for a family curry, joined by our chum and family friend, Danny. And after we'd eaten, we met up with another school friend, Bill. It was odd, sitting around in The Plough, as it's the same pub we frequented 30 years ago. The pub, sadly, has gone downhill - taken over by Harvester - but the friendships have endured.

The best bit of the day, though, was seeing my niece, who's three and a half. She'd learned to draw an 'F', especially for the occasion :-)