Some folk kill two birds with one stone: by booking a short holiday abroad they can escape miserable winter weather and the strained atmosphere of a family Christmas with the relatives.

I had assumed our babies would SAP us of our strength and kill any hope of training through the brutal New England winter for the Boston Marathon.

The swine flu at the moment appears to cause a mild illness, whereas the flu strains that arrive in the winter can kill thousands of elderly and vulnerable people.