Belated review of 2012

I guess the event that will dominate our thoughts about 2012 may well be the illness that is affecting Wife's brother.  This is at an advance stage already and though the treatment he is having has partially reversed its course, the long term view (perhaps two years out) is nothing but bad.  Of course I have a lot of experience of cancer from my family, but whatever lessons I may feel I learnt from these experiences have to be re-learnt by anyone who approaches it new.

The second most important thing is probably Daughter's decision to quit working in Management Consultancy, take a year off to travel and then return to University to do a PhD.  As I write this, she has been accepted at Cambridge, but is waiting on Oxford's decision.  And then she will need financing for the 3-4 years.

Next comes the purchase of our house in France -  a potentially transformative project pointing the way forward to our long term future perhaps.

Then there is the capture of my huge Thames barbel - I still can't believe I actually caught a barbel-chub brace weighing 21lbs that day.  I don't suppose I will ever get tired of looking at this picture.  I haven't been fishing since July when I hurt my leg (after which the rivers have been in flood for months)

Another highlight was the video channels that I set up on youtube - the fishing one has had about 2,000 views even though I caught virtually no fish.  My favourite is episode 10, "Rain", one of the most realistic fishing videos ever made in my view.  I was also "trolled" by someone who considers me one of the worst fisherman to ever put a video on youtube.

Musically, I have continued my move into the outer reaches of modern music, mainly off the back of what I read in The Wire, or download off emusic.com.  Lots of electronically enhanced cello music this year.  Best live gig was probably Acid Mothers Temple in Oxford, but then I didn't really see many shows.  The surprise was seeing Dead Can Dance again, though I wasn't as impressed by this show as I have been in the past.

I was definitely feeling my age in 2012.  The viral infection that badly affected my knee in the summer was a first indication of what old age might feel like.  Then the really bad flu that took 6 weeks to shift around Christmas. 

For 2013

I hope the refurbishment of the French property goes well and that we get a satisfactory number of bookings to make it all worthwhile (or at least cover the annual costs)

Hopefully the trading will have a good year

and the combination of the above will encourage Wife to cut down her work

That Daughter will get the place and the financing that she wants

And that Wife's brother will have an OK year?