It's when the students next door pop round to tell you they are having a party for Halloween but it won't be loud, will be finished by 11pm and they aren't having any more this year. Very polite and sweet!

The party involved no music but lots of chat in the garden and... sparklers and apple-bobbing using their recycling bin. They were so quiet we went to bed and fell asleep as they 'partied' on.

Today, I wandered round to their garden (which I keep an eye on for the absentee landlord) after I'd shot a rat in ours and seen two more go under the fence. A quick dig out of what may have been their hideout, remove the grass and lumps of stone to frighten them off and job done in under an hour. Had a very pleasant chat with one of them who is doing a masters in Civil Engineering.

This afternoon a lovely student pops round with a bottle of red to thank us for 'putting up with their party' and sorting the rats.

Worth recalling next time someone remarks that young people are useless, rude and ignorant. This sort of loveliness to others was pretty much my daily experience too for my 34yrs of teaching (with a dose of very notable exceptions which do make great pub stories) mostly in very tough schools. I often wonder how so many adults become so unpleasant.