Monday - Friday:

Ok, I blinked. It was the wretched mosquitoes; by Tuesday morning I was
in the sort of agony that leads people to rip their lower limbs off with
their bare hands to get relief.

I don't mins sharing a bit of blood from time to time - but why do the
whiny little buggers have to leave huge great burning wens in their wake?

I didn't have the patience to walk the extra 10 minutes towards an
independent chemist (stopping every 100 yards to scratch) so I dashed
into Boots and begged for antihistamines.

Apart from that, I kept to independent shops and market stalls all week.

This would have been easier if I didn't need to leave the house at 7am
to write for 70 minutes before heading into work. Over coffee.
It's surprising how few West End cafés open before 8.30. The streets
are deserted, the espresso machines silent.

I've found a Portuguese run bar, with a fan, and coffee at £1.10. I
suspect I am now a "regular", because by Friday I was getting free
refills.