One of the young secretaries asked me this afternoon if it is really a criminal offence to imitate a policeman. I told her that, yes, of course it is. She was amazed. Think of the possible repercussions, I said. I told her that we once had a client who imitated ambulance men. Imagine the repercussions of that! She looked at me blankly, and then asked, "What? So if I go up to a policeman - or a paramedic or something - and start mimicking him - I could get arrested?" I laughed so much, I couldn't speak coherently. Luckily, she laughed too when she realised her mistake, and wasn't hurt or offended. She is a lovely girl, and very good at the job.

Dreading Wednesday, when Boss is off to Newcastle. That's hours of travel time - hours of phone calls requiring immediate action. I am thinking of going through the diary for the whole year, and taking a day off on every day that he is travelling long distance. Two things stop me: the fact that I would have no real holiday time left, and that I would leave such a burden for Hannah At Work (so called to distinguish her from my daughter named Hannah).

I didn't want to call my daughter Hannah. I wanted to call her Jessica Anne. Jessica, because I love the name, and Anne after my sister. But my husband wanted Hannah after his grandmother, (who was the loveliest member of his family). I agreed, as long as I could have Rachael as a middle name, giving her the initials HRH. The only time I won the name game with my four children was when the third son was born. He having had his way with the first two sons, I was determined to name my third son. When the husband arrived at the hospital, and told menhe'd decided on Ben as a name, I knew he meant Benjamin. When the registrar visited the hsopital, I registered that gorgeous little baby as Benedict, and Benedict he still is. I knew Husband would be too lazy to visit the registry office to change it.

Small memories; big lives.