Yesterday was hot, and people were glad of the water fountain in Roysse Court.

Down by the Mill Stream, birds not usually thought of as water birds had joined the ducks and moorhen and swans

— drawn by the need to drink or dip their feathers.

It wasn’t a weekend or school holiday, but there was already a queue of people glad to find the open-air pool open.

The lone parent swan family are surviving. Having lost one parent, there are still eight siblings — already in the water, they come ashore in search of food.

It was a hot day with temperatures up to 32°C. Not a cloud in the sky.

The hole in Bridge Street was filled in yesterday and tarmacked today, with the temporary traffic lights now removed – to the relief of drivers.

At Abbey Meadow, the open-air pool was brightened by sun umbrellas and people with beach towels.

Over by the splash pad, children ran screaming through the fountains of water

The town began to have a holiday feel.

It rained most of the morning until sunshine brightened the Market Place about midday. The market stalls were arranged with their vans, like a Wild West corral against the rain.

The Fruit and Veg stall had its usual poetry: “Lovely nanas, lovely nanas! A pound a bowl. Lovely nanas!” Alongside were stalls selling bread, and Indian cooked meals. And vans with meat, fish, and eggs, but none of the non-food stalls.

By mid-afternoon, more rain came, followed by lightening and thunder and ice cubes that made the ground slippery.

The flag on the County Hall was for Holocaust Memorial Day 2025.

Sunset brought stronger wind and rain, giving Abingdon almost every weather in a single day.

People are not able to walk to Tesco or the Fairacres Retail Park by the scenic route at the moment as it is again under water. They have to walk by the Marcham Road. At Fairacres, Homebase still seems to have stock to sell off. The person I asked hadn’t been told a final closing date yet.

The fields near Tesco are frozen as we go through a cold snap this week.

Last Saturday, I wished the Abingdon parkrun success in the coming year, but unfortunately, the event scheduled for 11th January 2025 has already been cancelled due to frozen flooding. It seems well-wishing isn’t always enough.