It looked like somebody had scraped out a bowl of colourless jelly and dumped it on the tiles under the gazebo. It had no smell. Being the curious scientist that I am, I wanted to know what it was and how it had appeared in such an unlikely place. My first thought was that the grandchildren had emptied squidgies, those water absorbing gel beads on the patio, but nobody in the family knew anything about it. On closer inspect...