Jan 11 2009
Christmas 2008
We have had a fabulous year in 2008. It’s our first year in Criccieth, our first year without the responsibility of having children living with us. We’re a bit fed up with being poor due to the non-sale of our house in Wrinehill as we’ve had to modify our more extravagant plans for the moment but other than that everything is tickity boo.
Bill has got stuck in improving the property to suit our needs and tastes whilst Sue has beavered away doing the sales for our holiday business. Improvements to our property include smashing up the concrete garden and making a veg garden, putting a large shed up to house, bikes, tools, windsurfing and fishing stuff etc, repainting the front wall, re-making the yard area with a slate slab flooring and moving the communicating door between the two properties so we have both front and rear entrances. Sue is now into her 2nd year of Welsh lessons but doesn’t seem to have made much progress; Bill valiantly persevered till the end of the 1st year but has now got too many other things to keep him occupied.
Bill has managed to remove himself from his day to day tasks of the business which has survived another year. In spite of the economic downturn prospects for 2009 are much more positive due to some new initiatives, employing a search engine optimisation firm to improve our search engine ranking and advertising ourselves on a memory stick that is being given out to 750, 000 teachers.
We return to Pine Trees periodically and continue slowly to bring our stuff over here. Jo is still living there and usually cooks us a meal for our arrival. Bill has done a bit of gardening but a neighbour has cut the grass for us all year and a friend has kept on top of the worst of the weeds. It would be nice to draw a line under that part of our lives and have all the possessions we wish to keep with us here and not to have to pay the mortgage, gas, electricity and phone bills but we’ve just been unlucky with our timing.
We’ve managed to find some people to play tennis with and have become involved in trying to resurrect Criccieth Tennis Club, which had 2 hard and 5 grass courts in times gone by. We’re managing a weekly game, weather permitting. We also joined Porthmadog Yacht Club, with Bill becoming an active member of the rowing section. Gratified at still being able to remember the technique honed at University over 40 years ago, and being valued because our supervets team is now the strongest in the local league, I’ve competed in several local regattas and also in the Great London River Race. The Yacht Club is informal and friendly and has a packed social calendar. There’s also a lot of music in the area of a high standard so we’re enjoying our social life.
We’ve had several visitors as well and Bill’s managed some inspiring walks in the Welsh mountains with friends from Staffs/Cheshire. We’re too financially challenged to start serious travelling but we did go down the Thames and up the Medway on Mike Adkin’s Dutch barge and Bill went on a cycling holiday with brother Chris in the Hereford area. We’ve also had a couple of trips to Vilanova y la Geltru, Spain to see Doug, Jo and the grandchildren.
Nicola is still living in Wrexham with Shaun doing admin work; Jo has been promoted and has decided to stay in the Betley area for the moment; Alisa still lives with Pauline and continues with her child care studies and Carla has changed course from Maths to Financial Services at MMU. James and Rachel currently have a place in France and we’re going to see them just after the New Year.
Nicola, Alisa, Shaun and Richard came over for the weekend before Christmas Day. We all went in the Picnic (christened the train) to Caernarfon for the afternoon and had a good time exploring the Castle and the interesting military museum in the castle. Meanwhile our goose was cooking. After the meal we played Therapy which was very entertaining. On Sunday we drove over to the Gallery at LLanbedrog.
On Christmas Day we went to a neighbour, Dave, and had a lovely spread with fireworks to follow. There were 11 of us. On boxing day we watched a few brave souls going for a dip in the sea. It was bitterly cold.
On 27th we entertained the other 2 Renshaw daughters, their families and Tom and Betty. We had 27 to stay and to feed. I was a little overawed with the responsibility of cooking for so many and had a carefully drawn up timetable to make sure I didn’t forget anything. Bubbly with smoked salmon, prawn cocktail or melon to start followed by turkey, chestnut and sage and onion stuffings, sausage, sprouts, peas, cranbury sauce and gravy followed by National Trust Christmas pudding and rum butter or white sauce or ice cream. After the meal we played games and then stayed up discussing how best to help Tom and Betty now Betty has lost her short term memory. In the morning we drove over to Morfa Nefyn and went for a circular walk, through the golf course and back along the beach, calling in at Ty Coch for a drink. Some of the party left us then but the remainder came back for cottage pie and peas. The Millers stayed a second night and we went for a walk along the beach.
We were invited back to Dave’s for another feast – this time cooked by one of his guests, a Yorkshireman who had brought the pork with him. Unfortunately he started telling racist jokes and I just wanted to escape. Maybe I should have said something?