My new printer arrived yesterday. Which is just as well, because I needed something to cheer me up after my broadband stopped working. Oh yes, not content with being unable to receive incoming calls, my phone decided to stop me making outgoing calls as well, before disconnecting my shiny new 8meg broadband for good measure. In fact my phone line was so buggered, even my old-fashioned dial-up refused to work. Meaning that by 4pm yesterday afternoon, I could only contact the outside world by post.

I considered writing Bulldog (the chirpy face of Cable & Wireless) a stiff letter, but as I only had second class stamps, I eventually resorted to my mobile. And rang my Mum. Who joined the customer services queue on my behalf. I refuse to be put on hold on my mobile for anyone.

Anyway, I could go on, but to cut a long, tedious, and life-sapping story short, an engineer came out, fiddled about underground like a maladjusted Womble all afternoon, and at 5pm this evening I was finally reconnected to the modern world. If there's one thing I've learnt, it's that I'd be no good on Survivor. I can't even put my Woody Allen videos in order without going online for half an hour.

But anyhoo, back to my printer. It is in fact the Canon MP150 (that's Labour's majority) printer, scanner & copier. In Argos it's £69.99, at PC World it's £59.99, but on the PC World website you can get it at the web-exclusive price of just £43.25, including delivery. What I didn't know when I ordered it last week however, is that it comes with a black ink cartridge worth £14.99 and a colour one worth £18.99. Meaning you get the flashy printer, scanner & copier for £9.26. So if I can find someone willing to give me a tenner for a brand new Canon 3-in-1 printer, then it will actually work out cheaper to buy a new one every time the ink runs out.

In other news, I've discovered that no matter how many times I wash my new biscuit barrel, it's impossible to place a chocolate chip digestive inside for more than two minutes without it tasting of lethal chemicals. So I think I'll have to take it back to Asda (the barrel, not the biscuit. The biscuit may have tasted of lethal chemicals, but that doesn't mean I didn't eat it).

I've also set up my music stand, my microphone stand, and taken my mandolin out of its case for the first time in five years. I can only actually remember three chords on it, but it's enough to play most Hanson songs, so I've spent an enjoyable afternoon doing the folk version of Mmmbop. Tomorrow it's Take That on the penny whistle.