Emily writes:

I'm not usually the miseryguts you'd expect from my last couple of posts. And I'm begun to realize that, just when it's all terrible, and it's raining, and my bike's broken again, and I'm beginning to question why I do this bloody job in the first place - the gods smile on me, and I have a really good week, with blazing sunshine, no mechanical failures, and enough jobs to offset my guilt over how much I spend on cookies every day.

This has been such a week - and two things in particular have really improved my working life, and made me look forward to winter with actual anticipation, rather than dread.

The first is, courtesy of my mate Lawrence, a brand new cafe, slap bang in the middle of town, catering to cyclists, and particularly to couriers. As well as all the usual coffee paraphernalia, Lawrence has a track pump, a toolkit, a workstand, and all sorts of interesting bikes for sale. And, most importantly, he offers a huge discount to working couriers - and doesn't mind me bringing my bike in and standing around making the place look untidy while I try to warm up. And his coffee's really really good - just what I need after a chilly dash into work, and the belated realization that I need to start layering again.

(He's at 74 Leather Lane, EC1, in case you're local, and want to drop in and say hi.)

And the second thing? Waterproof socks!

We've had a couple of days of steady rain this week, but it no longer bothers me in the slightest, because, even though I can hear my feet going "squelch squelch squelch" with every step I take - inside they're as warm and dry and cosy as if I were curled up in bed!

The first day I wore them, I rode around for the whole afternoon with a huge smile on my face. Last winter I was regularly brought close to tears by my soaking wet socks and gloves (horribly painful when the cold wind blows through them), and I cannot tell you what a difference it's going to make to my life - and my feet - being warm and dry. Bring on the winter!