๐ซ๐ท We started off the year in snowy France just beating the last of the COVID lockdown to enter in December. We were quite lucky. We decided that Christmas at the Mill was getting a bit samey, so we would probably not go over at Christmas 2022; especially knowing Daddios situation.
๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ We took in a Cirque show, Luzia, at the Albert Hall in February.
๐ฎ๐นThe end of February was of course our awesome trip to Venice which proved more than we could ever hope for.
๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟWe returned from Venice having succumbed for the first time with COVID. Luckily out was a mild strain and we recovered quite quickly. It was a quiet March with some maintenance work on the boat which seems to happen now every March. We also took the boat out the water for blacking and stayed at Thaxted .
April was Grimbo’s funeral and we stayed in Folkestone for a couple of days. We also went to France again on 28th. The Mill is wonderful in April and May and I really reconnected with place now that many of the issues have sorted themselves. The main reason for going was to meet Mummio and Daddio and Simon and Liz in Cajarc which was quite successful. On the way back we stayed in a B&B on the outskirts of Paris. 28 May saw a life-time ambition of seeing John McLaughlin play a the Barbican. He was great but I was slightly disappointed with the style of Jazz.
June saw us in IOW for a practice Walk the Seagull. It was quite expensive to stay and I think Ritz may decide not to do it in 2023. It was a great break though, with a visit to Carrisbrooke Castle and a lovely shell-fish meal.
After Ryan’s stag do on the island we went back to the Mill. It was an extremely hot summer and the river bored up to a trickle. We went to an awesome concert in Felletin with Wazoo and Ouberet. we left in late August spending 3 days at the Somme which was a very moving experience. I was totally captivated and studied a lot.
September ๐ฌ๐ท Almost as soon as we were home, we were packing for 10 days in Lefkada. We stayed in the Mint tower in Vasiliki. It was a lovely 10 days relaxation.
Unfortunately, when we returned GATR issue started up. The company makes me so angry with their arrogance. The just leave me out of everything. I may as well not be a director.
HM The Queen died on 8th September.
I was please to but a drone after a lot of research. I love flying it and the images are excellent. It’s a DJI mini 3 pro. Simple awesome. I took the French and CAA license. Another purchase was my long awaited keyboard, a Novation which I can plug in to the iPad.
๐ซ๐ท November saw a 3-week trip to France especially to supervise the cabin build. This was an immense success and only 400 or so euros over budget at a total cost of 5600. We hardly had tome to look at the finished product before we had to go but we are looking forward to kitting it out next May and in the summer.
December was a sad month as Daddio died on Sunday 4th December. It was a release to be honest and after 2 years of research and caring for him, I think everyone was a little relieved. Hopefully Ritz can now get back to normal as she lived and breather advice and caring thoughts.
We finished 2022 with a Christmas as Appleton Water tower in Norfolk with Tracey and Vinnie. We had a great time with a Dickensian Christmas which was a lot of fun. We went straight to Kilsby to spend some time with Mummio and Liz. This wasn’t so good. No fall-outs but Mummio and Liz are NOT on the same page as us. They look down on us and are very condescending. William as a brat and is never told off. I feel for Ritz as she seems to be pushed out sometimes by Liz.
๐ฉบ Health-wise we have dome well. I have maintained my fitness and I was glad to have recovered from COVID so quickly. I am still drinking far too much especially over the last few months of the year. I intend to rectify that when we are in India. This trip may be the catalyst for an even healthier life-style especially where drink is involved.
I am immensely frustrated with GATR. an email was misinterpreted and I am basically not included or consulted. I have to decide whether to take a huge step back or fight on. I will decide after the next Board Meeting but I will continue to let it be known I am not happy. On a plus the new learning site looks extremely good and I am really proud of what I have achieved despite very little support.
Woodlife is really drawing to a close and I will most probably close down the site apart from hosting 4RLife. I will transfer interest in nature (which is slow to be rekindled) to my personal agenda.
I think Riverlife Therapy is slowing down even more. Ritz has kept her core clients and I am unsure of what she will do in 2023 but we are thinking of a camper van now which will take us even more away from Bishop’s Stortford. The town is turning into a mess with ever more buildings and roads being built.
We are not sure about Forest Life retreats. I think Ritz is still keen and we are certainly geared up for it now we have the cabin, the outhouse and the camping area.
Sealife has been a mission! 399 has had a number of maintenance issues and the new tenants are forever finding problems. The last was a new kitchen skylight. We have only had minimal rent payments over the last 6 months. At least the maintenance will, hopefully, stand us in good stead when we move in.
Project LongLife has also been disappointing in the way of investments. We have made very little but at least we haven’t lost too much. We thought about bringing LogLife forward a few years. We may yet do this but it depends how things recover (or not) in the next couple of years. Ritzz has a pension trust of 100k and I think we may decide to but a campervan/holiday home
All in all a good year with a sad loss of a wonderful man whose life was taken far too early. Ritz and I are happy and healthy and we will only go on from strength to strength.
