Accidents will happen
A week into the new year, Dylys stumbled on our stairs and twisted her
ankle. She put up with it for a week, hobbling around, and then went to
hospital for a couple of appointments, where she was told that she had not
broken anything, but she was given a boot with instruction to take things
carefully, otherwise it would take longer to heal.
Fortunately, the ankle injury did not keep her from joining the choir
to sing in the Roger Jones “Jailbreak” production in February and March.
Getting older
Dylys took early retirement in 2015. It has all sounded more official
this year, as she started collecting State Pension in March, then she picked up
a bus pass, and finally we were both taken by surprise when she received a
letter in the autumn advising that she was getting a winter fuel allowance.
Travel
Graham has been in his current job with Waters Corporation in Wilmslow
for three years. One of the benefits of the job is that it is a really nice
cycle ride from Macclesfield, mostly along country lanes. As an unashamed fair
weather cyclist, Graham managed 98 rides this year, around 50% more than he did
last year.
Meanwhile, Dylys managed plenty of travel of a different kind. Mum
Patrick had to spend a few weeks in hospital over the summer, and Dylys was
travelling on an almost daily basis, by car or by train, to visit Mum in the
Royal Stoke Hospital. Her bus pass came in handy for getting between the train
station and the hospital. We were pleased to see Mum get back home again after her
stay.
Holidays
We did well this year. The weather was a little mixed when we went to
North Wales in May, but there was enough fine weather to enjoy walks and
scenery around Barmouth and Harlech which really exceeded our expectations. It
was the weather that made our second holiday at the end of September – after a
few years absence, we returned to the north end of the Lake District, and we
had ideal conditions for exploring Derwent, Buttermere and the Newlands Valley.
Drive and Patios
We have thought about replacing our drive and patios for a number of
years, and finally took the plunge this year. The new block paving is very
smart. When the workmen dug up the old paving, they discovered a serious damp
problem at the back of the garage, which added significantly to the cost of the
project. We dispensed with the old shed and green house, intending to replace
the shed quickly; but it proved complicated as the area beside the garage where
we thought the shed would go is no longer flat. We have now erected a bike
store – that is big enough to accommodate Graham’s bike and a few other bits.
Church
We are always busy at church. We are responsible for opening up the
building on a Sunday morning, 45 minutes before the start of the service – and
yet we are rarely the first to arrive – we find people waiting to be let in.
Graham is an Elder, he sometimes leads the service on a Sunday evening, and he
looks after a lot of the technical stuff. Dylys prepares communion, does a bit
of cleaning, and is a regular at the monthly service at the “Harry Lawson
Court” sheltered housing centre. We run the Conversational English class at
church on Thursday evenings together.
