There's nothing like the imminent arrival of visitors to bring out the sleeping domestic god within so I have spent the bulk of today with duster, mop and hoover, even to the extent of moving furniture to get at hidden nastiness and realign the Moroccan rug.

Above and beyond the call of duty I cleared out the pamphlet store that is the lower level of my coffee table casting into the recycling without a second thought gems that are not yet twelve months old.  I haven't gone so far as to dispose of the 2011 Fringe programme nestling in a drawer in the spare bedroom but one has one's limits.