New year, new house, new start

... And we're back. Here, and in Cardiff.

Apologies for the abrupt hiatus - blame it on the house move. The purchase only completed on 22nd December and we managed the bulk of the move on the 28th and 29th, with the considerable assistance of my brother and sister-in-law and fuelled by lots of coffee and Pet Sounds. I'd been dreading it, but it was a remarkably unstressful experience, to be honest, with the sofa and a glass candle-holder the only collateral damage.

We're still surrounded by cardboard and bubble wrap, we're still concerned about falling through the floor every time we step into the living room and we're still using a carrier bag hanging outside the patio doors as a makeshift fridge, but we've got a roaring open fire and now - finally! - the internet, so it's not all bad. The Dark Ages are over.

Aside from scrubbing and unpacking, the last few days have been spent starting to explore our little corner of the city, Canton. I can already feel new posts in the Achosion I Laweni series coming on. The fact that I strolled into Chapter on Tuesday and the first person I saw was local legend Ninjah wearing a massive gold necklace thing in conversation with two middle-aged BBC4 commissioner types in open-necked shirts suggested that some things never change, though...