Pic of the week 31/12/23
And so its farewell to 2023.
But before I look back on the year, I need to look back on the week that has just gone. We have enjoyed a wonderful Christmas week together as a family – no great dramas, no great arguments just plenty of time together enjoying each others company. I took Sam back to Cardiff yesterday, and Sophie travels back tomorrow morning.
So what of 2023? For me, it was a year of two halves – I started the year with a bad foot and weight that I couldn’t shift. To say I was depressed in early ’23 would be too strong, but my foot really did hurt, which meant I couldn’t exercise like I wanted and it did bring me down. When I replaced my running with swimming, and also got back into spinning, and started running again in late April, early May, my mood picked up. Also, my “health scare” of high cholesterol in early June gave me the kick I needed to look at what I was eating, adapt my diet , stop snacking and I have enjoyed losing a stone or more. My foot improving, and weight loss beginning, mid-way through the year did see a definite change in my physical well-being and, by corollary, my mental well being too.
On the travel front, I have enjoyed all my trips (Rhodes in April, Soller in July, Cavtat in July, Barcelona/Blanes/Girona in October and Cordoba/Malaga in December. I think Cavtat – for the water – and Cordoba – for the chilled vibe – were my two travel highlights of the year.
My Spanish has come on well (again, more so in the second half of the year) and I have enjoyed continuing to learn (and, occasionally, use) the language and learn more about the country.
Work has continued to be fine – full of ups and downs, and, for now at least, the ups continue to eclipse the downs. The biggest negative is the all encompassing nature of my job – 6 days a week in term time is a slog, you never fully rest & recover, and have little (or no) time to do anything other than work. I do increasingly look with envy on those that do four or four and a half day weeks (but, of course, I get the longer holidays.) The biggest positive is mercenary – I get paid well and it allows me to take all the foreign trips that I do.
For the UK plc this has not been a good year – I am becoming increasingly angry with our political masters whose sole goal, it would seem, is to enrich themselves at our expense. An election must come in the next twelve months – I hope it is sooner rather than later (but fear we will be waiting until autumn ’24) but am hopeful that the current corrupt conservative government will be booted out (and emphatically so)
Anyway, adios 2023 – you’ve not been a bad year and, perhaps most importantly, you finished better than you started. Now it is time to leap into 2024 – may you be as warm and as welcoming as the beautiful Cavtat sea.
