Suze is on a diet. Nothing too amazing about going on a diet in January, you might think, but Suze never diets, claiming she doesn't believe in the politics of weight loss. (She can't bear the thought of life without a special offer pack of Fruit and Nut at her side, more like.)

So it's a shock to the system when I turn up on Friday night bearing a couple of bottles of New Zealand Sauvignon: instead of the usual Family Size Dip Pack and two tubes of Pringles, it's Very Low Pleasure vegetable salsa and a few chopped carrots.

Under interrogation it transpires she's been invited to a party next week which Rugged Richard is rumoured to be attending - oh, don't ask, it's someone she met at a 'writer's workshop' although I don't know about work, they seem to have spent most of the time giggling in the kitchen - and it's to be fancy dress, with Suze intending to wear a sari, hence the diet.

Suze in a sari certainly sounds pretty scary, and I agree she needs help, so I act all encouraging and pop out to the corner shop to get her some fizzy mineral water, and stop off at the chip shop for a large bag of chips on the way home.

My new year's resolution to meet more men is in full swing, and my two-pronged attack - extending my social circle beyond the school gates and remembering to wear underarm deodorant - seems to be working a treat.

Things got off to a flying start at the first session of my new evening class on Connecting with your Spiritual Energy: on my way to the loo I discovered an adorable man (unbearded) in the kitchen making mango smoothies.

Given my obsession with mangoes, I took this as something of a sign, and in no time at all we were getting on like a house on fire and discovering our spiritual energies had a lot in common… Anyway, it turns out that one of the mothers at school knows him, so I manage to get invited to a party on Saturday - and he'll be there! It's on a global theme, so I'm going to turn my wedding dress into a sari, although the children were a bit rude about this, so I'm pretending to be on a diet.

Annie, bless her, fell for the diet story hook line and sinker, and got really virtuous on Friday night when we were watching the lovely Dan Pearson, so later on I slipped out to take Muffin for a quick walk, and popped into the chippy for a battered sausage…delicious.