1. Leaning on a gate listening to the summer noises -- a distant aeroplane, voices from the garden over the road, seedpods clicking, a cricket at my feet and creatures buzzing at my head and then away again.
2. The whooping chuckle of a moorhen.
3. When I was young and had no sense I worked hard at defrosting the freezer, scraping away the ice with a spatula and a pan of hot water. Now I just open wide the door, put down a bowl and some clothes to catch the water and sit back with my book while the ice melts. I like the noise of the water dripping and the occasional clatter as a big chunk of ice falls through the shelves.
