There’s rather a lot to tell you this year, but as usual, I’ll limit myself to 2000 words and see how much I can cover.
Communications are big this year, since both Geraldine and I became smartphone users. Geraldine started it off when she saw the benefit of responding to emails ‘on the go’, and in May, she invested in a Samsung phone. This was such a hit with her (we ‘lost’ her to the world of apps for several months) that I was persuaded to follow suit and took delivery of a similar model in late summer. I say similar, but to Gee’s intense annoyance, mine is a better model for the same money. Our lives will never be the same again. The problem now is dealing with the envy from the kids who are getting left behind in the digital revolution. We occasionally text them with our sympathies. We are all using twitter to a greater or lesser degree too. Em & Loz use it as an alternative to Facebook, and I follow certain ‘opinion formers’ to get a different flavour of the news. It is surprising how quickly you can pick things up this way.
Loz has undergone a lifestyle change when he entered the world of work in July. He had only half-heartedly applied to several universities (if it was a word, quarter-heartedly would better describe his approach), but he also applied to a company called Custard (voted “one of the UKs top SEO companies”) and was fortunate to get an offer of an apprenticeship there. He began work at their offices near Longridge, but soon had to move to Bolton when they outgrew their facilities. Loz has since created his own website (partly funded by Custard) to review bands as part of the general education needed by his apprenticeship. Check it out at altmusicreview.co.uk. He loves the work and seems to be very good at whatever it is he does, so that’s all I need to know, I suppose.
He took over the VW Polo that Emily used, but I think the 30-mile daily commute took its toll, and after a run of minor repairs and an unfortunate breakdown, we decided to sell the car and buy a replacement. The breakdown tested Loz’s mettle, since the car spluttered to a halt on a cold and rainy Wednesday in October. After a two hour wait, the AA man pronounced the car unrepairable by the roadside, so dragged both it and Loz home. Gee and I were on holiday, and so for the next two days, Loz’s journey to work involved a 6am walk to the nearest bus stop (well over a mile away), bus ride into Preston, wait, bus ride to Longridge, then a 30 minute walk to work. And the reverse each night. He came home, made himself some tea and went straight to bed. I was so proud that he never succumbed to calling in sick. He now drives a lovely little 206 from my colleague at work (one careful lady owner), and the new car seems fine and doesn’t object to a run down the M61 each day.
Apprenticeships have been taking over my work life too. I run an undergraduate training scheme at BAE Systems, and the huge rise in university fees threatened to make the scheme unaffordable, so we decided to convert the first three years of the scheme to a Higher Apprenticeship in Project Management (the first in the country). This allowed us to claim back government funding to offset some of the increase in fees. It has been a rollercoaster ride dealing with more quangos and agencies than you’d ever believe. The highlight (for me) was being invited to a breakfast meeting at the House of Commons to discuss our scheme with a group including David Willetts MP, the Minister of State for Universities and Science. The scheme is now running and 11 apprentices were signed up in early November. We are now fielding enquiries from the likes of Rolls Royce, the Department of Work and Pensions and the National Air Traffic Control Service. All interesting stuff.
The scheme recently won an award within the company. The Chairman’s Award has three levels, and we were awarded Bronze first, which meant a celebratory lunch for the team at Samlesbury. We were then lucky enough to win Silver, which meant an evening dinner at Windsor, which would have been great if I hadn’t booked a holiday at the same time. If we’d got as far as Gold, it would have been an event in Washington DC!
I was also fortunate enough to be invited to another award ceremony at the NEC where our partners, Blackpool & the Fylde College, were finalists in a Times Educational Supplement award. Although we were highly commended, not winning meant that we didn’t actually receive the award from Fiona Bruce.
Emily is still living the dream. She spent the summer at Camp America and thoroughly enjoyed it. There were a few worrying few months in spring, since she wasn’t offered a place until very late in the day, and then she had fun and games getting a visa. This was all finally resolved, but still required a visit to the American Embassy in London – quite a place. It was hard to believe the bureaucracy involved, even down to the brightness, size and shape of a passport photo. Her work at Camp America was with teenage children who had mild to moderate disabilities, which is just the type of work she enjoys. She made some friends out there, including a young man from Manchester who appears very much in favour just now. Em also works part time at a day care centre in Sheffield caring for severely disabled adults. This job was her first work placement at university and the company liked her enough to ask her to join the staff afterwards. She no longer works at Wetherspoons since the hours were getting silly.
She has recently been struggling with a dissertation, which must be submitted before Christmas and then she has just another 16 weeks work placement before completing her degree. Then it’s job hunting. Or travelling. She hasn’t yet decided which. I keep hinting that job hunting should be happening now, but then, what do I know?
We didn’t book any long holidays this year because things were uncertain about Laurence going to Uni and Emily on Camp America. Instead, we decided to take a few short breaks through the year, which has been great. We have managed to fit in trips to Barcelona, Edinburgh (for the Fringe), the Isle of Arran, Madrid, and Cambridge. And separately, Gee has been away with friends to Lisbon, Oxford, the Lakes and Edinburgh again.
Barcelona was wonderful, since we had glorious weather for February. Every day was spent viewing Gaudi architecture, including the spectacular Sagrada Família and Park Güell. In October, we managed to avoid the rioters in Madrid (we were there a week later) and once more had lovely weather. The city was magnificent, and we had a lovely break, especially as our hotel was right adjacent to Puerta del Sol.
The Edinburgh Fringe was just as good as in previous years and this time, amongst others, we saw Dean Friedman (remember him? – Lucky Stars?) in a lovely intimate venue and also the terrific Fascinating Aida. If you haven’t seen them perform ‘Cheap Flights’ on YouTube, you’re missing a treat.
Along with everyone else, we always watch Carols from Kings on Christmas Eve, and this year it will feel more real since we attended a Choral Evensong there when we were in Cambridge. It was on the edge of dark with just enough light to read the service sheet whilst we sat in the choir area and were enthralled by the beautiful music and atmosphere. Very special, and a memory I will long cherish.
In April, we once more took part in the Brindle Cuckoo Walks (a choice of organised annual walks round our village), although Gee didn’t really enjoy it this year since the day before, something had bitten or stung the sole of her foot. The infection was taking ages to clear, necessitating a visit to the doctor, who urged her to attend hospital for them to check mole in the same region. As a precaution, the mole was removed in late November.
I also did my usual Scottish cycling trip in June, which wasn’t as pleasant this year due to the weather – three days of rain. I still managed 324 miles, including over twenty thousand feet of climbing in four days. To prepare for the trip, I enjoyed a couple of training rides alone; one was a two-day trip to the Yorkshire Dales in March, and then a longer trip to and from York in May. Then, for one day in June, I joined a team from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight who were cycling from Lands End to John o’ Groats to raise money for the Jon Egging Trust. Jon was a Red Arrows pilot who sadly died in an air accident in 2011 and his widow was cycling with others from RAF Coningsby. A great day spent supporting a worthwhile cause.
We enjoyed the Jubilee celebrations by having friends from the village round for a meal – I suppose it was a bit like a street party, but indoors. These meals are regular events now, since the same group meet every 2/3 months to have a meal together at one of our houses. This is quite separate to the house gigs that one neighbour holds, where he invites musicians to play at his house. This year’s top artistes (for me), was Miss Quincy & the Showdown from Canada. I’m not really able to describe them in a few words, so I won’t try – just google them.
The garden still provides the most popular way for Gee and I to spend our weekends. I finally got round to removing the leylandii hedge this year, and I’m replacing it with a traditional mixed hedge (hawthorn, blackthorn, rose, field maple, holly etc.). This was planted in late November in awful weather after weeks of back-breaking preparation in heavy clay soil. My biggest challenge will be in keeping the deer off it. There are three regular visitors, and they are getting very cheeky, coming right onto the patio to eat our favourite rose bush. It is a dilemma, since I don’t want them eating the garden, but I do like seeing them in there.
I still haven’t managed to shake off being the key holder for the St Joseph’s Parish Hall. I came close a few weeks ago when we almost had someone who wanted to rent the adjacent house, but it seems to have fallen through. I live in hope, though.
In October, I attended my last ghost tour at Hoghton Tower. It’s not been particularly enjoyable there this summer, since there have been many changes to the way the guides must operate. I found myself spending more time in the ticket hut instead of taking tours, which is not why I initially became a volunteer. When the administrator (a close friend) received her redundancy notice, I felt that it was also time for me to move on. There are major changes ahead and I sense that I will not like the way the new regime will operate, and so I decided to take my leave. It was a sad decision after ten years, but it was a hobby, and this year I have not enjoyed it as much as I should have done.
Apart from refurbishing Emily’s bedroom (it no longer looks like an eight year olds) I’ve no house improvements to report this year, although Gee has been lobbying for a new kitchen. I get the impression that she is not asking about redecorating anything until after the big upheaval with the kitchen. It is nearly 14 years since the current kitchen was installed, and since all the units are still going strong, we see no reason to change anything. Once one item fails, however, I expect that all the others will fail in sympathy, so we may be on borrowed time.
I’m sure there is more to tell you, but once more I’m out of space, so I’ll sign off and wish you a very Happy Christmas and peaceful New Year.