China didn’t happen, so instead I found myself helping to make a Thanksgiving dinner in South Carolina a large portion of last week. And a good time was had by all; Nerf wars that began at 7am (you have to get up early to fire foam darts at your brother, it seems), three different board games, pull-apart stuffing rolls that we didn’t burn to within an inch of their lives (thus atoning for last year’s disaster), and also answering the question ‘what do you do with a kilo of pound cake that didn’t come out of the pan properly?’

(pound cake pudding, it turns out)

Then, all of a sudden, back in the car, driving back to NC early in order to prepare for a last-minute trip to Atlanta. A last-minute trip that will run pretty much up to December 11th, when I fly home to the UK. It’s not exactly the gentle ending of the year I was expecting.