The sun was up yesterday and I was in Wembury. My feet must have sensed this and were reluctant to wear socks. It was a dog grooming day so I had the beach to myself while the fluffs were being pampered. The last time I was here was in the midst of a really cold snap of weather, the overnight frost had stayed well past noon. Socks were definitely needed. Yesterday walking the coastal path was a bit unpleasant with cold toes but wandering bare foot on the beach was not so bad at all.

Usually, at Wembury, there is a splendid cafe almost on the beach but January is the time small businesses take a break. There was nowhere to warm up, once my toes had decided that being liberated from shoes and socks, and paddling in a river and the sea was not the smartest move in the long term.

The actual plan for the morning was to finish my book club book which required all my concentration just to keep a grip on the characters. With my feet wrapped in a blanket I stepped into the warm but hazardous world of Cyprus in 1974.

With my reading mission accomplished, I collected two clean and fragrant dogs from the groomers and returned to the real world of January life. I am not a fan of January. Like the back end of the beach, it is strewn with unremarkable stuff that probably needs clearing up.