When will it ever stop raining?

Back from a glorious week of sunshine, wonderful food and lots of culture in Italy, and straight onto 7 days of penicillin for the cough, which has persisted. We were lucky, we didn't get flooded while we were away - some of A's friends have been told they can't go home for three months because of the damage done to their houses, and her former primary school is unlikely to reopen fully before Christmas. And its still raining.

Didn't get anything retrieved or written for Verity Bargate, and am a bit cheesed off with myself about that. It's just not happening as far as the play is concerned. I think I need to do something else for a while, because every time I look at it, I hate it and think it's trite nonsense, although my mentor tells me its a really good and interesting idea. I think maybe its a woods/trees situation - I just can't see what's good about it any more.

More cheerily, here's what I picked to go with my lunch:

Five or six types of salad leaves - nothing else is ready yet, but the latest sowings of leaves, rocket and spinach germinated in record time (3 days), and there are loads of tiny green tomatoes on the outdoor tomato plants, and at long last a couple of courgette flowers on the now giant courgette plants. Sadly the snails have discovered my tiny greenhouse, and appear to like the sweet pepper plants, but don't touch the hot and medium hot chilli peppers - does that mean the leaves of chilli plants are hot as well as the fruits?

Am investigating the possibility of getting some hens - would also love a goat (thanks for the tip, Good Dog) but that may be a step too far at this stage.

Perhaps I should give up plays and write a gardening/cookery column instead.