The last year has been pretty good, I think - at least, casting my mind back has not made me wince as it might have in previous years. We started with a very fine New Year's Eve party at the Cricketers - the last, as it turned out, with Smurf in charge.
Then there was snow, I had a couple of exams, then a weekend break on Dartmoor and then a return to the throes of term time study. Lola II moved house and celebrated her birthday and started going out with Mr M (not necessarily in that order); what a year she has had!. Looking at my diary for January to March, there seems to be little there other than travelling to university and Monday night badminton, before respite comes in April with the Easter break, but ongoing coursework no doubt.
Five exams turned up in May, after which Mr A and I managed a lovely holiday in Bruges. Then it was 12 weeks of clinical placement, which was probably the most intense period of self-examination, skills development and technical progress I have ever experienced. It had its ups and downs, but went very well on the whole - the manager of the department wrote some very encouraging feedback on the review form.
Our bathroom was transformed, but we end the year as we ended 2009 - with a great hole in a ceiling (kitchen rather than living room this time). It's water that does all the damage in this country, but at least we don't have cockroaches, bedbugs, ants or termites. The exterior of the house was also fully restored, and I'm still loving the look of it every time I come home.
Various other entertainments took place over the summer - the beer and film festival, the food and drink festival, a camping trip or two, and then it was back to school for the final year. Mr A took his first exam since leaving uni the first time round, and did rather well (but he's as bad as me, not satisfied unless he's done his best). Unlike previous years, the trusty car had presented no problems at all until someone decided to nudge into it gently, propelling me into a vortex of insurance claim and hire car heaven.
October and November were quite social months: we went to Devon, Bristol, Towcester and London to see various friends and relatives, and then I went to Coventry to see some people with coeliac disease. In December, we even invited people into the hallowed cloisters of Lola Towers for dinner. Monday night badminton continued, and term ended, and I have continued to toil on, getting coursework finished, and hoping to move on to revision before it's too late. And I have also read and written about nearly 30 books during the year.
As might be expected, I have also caught whatever it is that Mr A has. It is not yet serious - a bit of a cough, and three hours in bed on Monday afternoon, but I think we can expect worse over the coming weeks. Typical, just in time for the revision and exam period. But I went for a walk, and it has rained, and the temperature has been above freezing for three whole days with more to come, so much of the snow has now gone. Good news for our New Year holiday in the Peak District, and for travelling 50 miles to the exam in January, and for airport and flight availability for our snowboard holiday (although that's a month away and anything could happen by then). Meanwhile, Mr A continues to cough.
So that's it for 2010, it's been fun. I'm hoping that 2011 will be just as good if not better!
No comments:
Post a Comment