Goodbye To 2018

Of all the photographs taken of me in 2018 I have selected this one.
It was taken as I approached retirement in April, an event I looked forward to with relish and anticipation.
The reality is somewhat different, Clare still works, Samantha is away doing well at Uni and Joshua is living his dream wherever the Army sends him.
Lonely is too strong a term to describe my days but I now spend more time on my own than I used to, if I don’t give the dog a biscuit even she ignores me. I had loads of DIY plans that I wanted to get stuck into but never quite ‘whipped up’ the enthusiasm
On the plus side I easily met my Goodreads target of fifty-two books, I achieved a chunk of my ‘Bucket List’, took up some voluntary work and generally unwound.
I shall look back on 2018 with a good deal of fondness;
Clare move on and up, now a specialist nurse with more ‘sociable’ hours we shall see more of each other!
Samantha finally understood that ‘she’s got it’, she’s an accomplished artist, funny, witty and giving with so much to offer this world.
Joshua, still has his ‘game face’ but has moved from the Army Foundation College, through Combat Engineering Training and onto his trade training, he has remained a fine young man.

I don’t do resolutions, you should aim to live your life the best way you can every year. I need to lose weight, exercise more and take on less, all easily achievable with a bit of will. I will start the DIY list, working room to room and also the projects Clare and I have in mind. 

So to my fellow ‘Blippers’, family and friends who follow my ‘Blip’ and those who follow it on social media I wish you well for 2019.