Christmas Letter 2015

We’ve had an interesting and busy year at 1520 Adams Road, so if you are receiving this letter, it must mean that it is the Christmas / New Year season, and we are thinking about you.  Not that we don’t think about you the rest of the year, because we do.  It is just that we pick this time of the year to reach out and connect on a broader level.  This is the time of year for reflections, when we appreciate the life we live, and miss those of you who are so far away from us, and we also miss those who have gone before us who were a part of our lives.  Now is the time to think of the year that`s passed and look forward to the life ahead in the new year.

But first off, is there, we ask, a more hated Christmas tradition than letters like this?  Based on feedback we have received from some of the folks we send our letters to, the answer is probably not.  So why do we send a letter?  Well, first of all, we are (still) not involved in social media tools such as Facebook.  This means that we do not post our personal stuff every single day, nor even multiple times a day, to you, or to untold numbers of people, including those we don’t even know.  If we did, we could supplement the posts with pictures, including every meal we had, or cup of coffee we ordered, and then you would be instantly and virtually updated on our life in real-time and be in awe!  Sorry to disappoint!  Yours truly does maintain a blog of sorts with various highlights of our life, but most of you don’t visit it, so this letter still attempts to share a bit and connect. 

We had planned to do full-on Christmas cards to mail out this year, but alas, I tidied up really well in December and moved the address book, and then I could not find where I put it.  Is this a sign of aging?  Whatever it means, it really means another little letter – sorry,  but we won’t over share, because we know you don’t want to know, and we’ll try to stifle the bad news because we are sure you have your own bad news as well, and for sure we’ll restrain ourselves on the good news (which is limited this year, anyhow). 

So for 2015, I am happy to say that I was not sick, and that I revelled in my success at losing weight. For all the years losing weight made my list of New Year’s resolutions, I never lost much, nor did I keep off what I did manage to lose. Without pressuring myself too much to rid the 35 pounds hanging over my head, I actually lost them by June, in part by diet and in part by exercise.  I managed to work up to jogging 5 miles a day on my days off work through spring and summer.  Woo hoo!   Alas, like years gone by, I have since gained back about 18 of those pounds and have not exercised since it started to get dark at the end of September.  Bummer.  But hey, it’s ok – there is always 2016 to remedy this, as I know I really can do it.   Oh, and also, we did not enjoy any memorable wines to tell you about, no financial set-backs, and took no holiday vacations.  

Chris had a few health issues. He suffered a seizure at early dawn one morning in June that resulted in ambulance attendance and transport, and a water taxi trip to get to hospital.  We still don’t know what caused it, so he is scheduled for more EEG tests in March.  In October, he had a fall from a kitchen counter when he was hanging curtain rods, and he broke his arm pretty bad.  It is on the mend and he has a follow up appointment in January.

We had the boat in the water for 3 months this summer and made good use of it during the hot days.  We bought a huge motorhome in August.  We have not used it yet, but we have lots of options and ideas of how we will use it in the new year. It also means more accommodation spots for you, our future guests, as it sleeps 6.  

Chris built a nice new arbour for me, as well as 2 new lattice gardens. Bowen, like most of the Vancouver area, suffered from a drought this spring and summer so our vegetable garden was not a hit this year, nor were our flowers gardens.   Blackberries, plums, beet root and swiss chard were the only stars.  Being on a well restricts your ability to water, so you get to learn what thrives in drought conditions and what doesn’t.

The critters are still with us – Jake is 11 now; slowing down and fairly deaf.  Gypsy and Smoke are  10 and constant and demanding of their treats, but no health issues with any of them.  We lost a large white and orange Koi this year – it was stabbed by a heron and left to suffer as it was too large for a heron to lift or eat.

Chris officially retired in October and sold his work van, and I am targeting 22 more months till I retire.  

We had a lovely Christmas with Chris’s family coming for 2 nights, and we are looking forward to a simple  New Year’s Eve.  While we want a life with meaning and purpose, part of what gives life meaning is the ability to enjoy life’s gifts.  If this is the time of year to honor the past, it is also a time to appreciate the present. That, too, is a gift. 

This coming year we are looking forward to visits from Chris’s cousin Eve from England, and her daughter Katie and Katie’s boys.  Hopefully some more of you will feel drawn to this little island get-away of ours in the pacific north-west,  and will come for a visit.  In the meantime, please keep in touch by email or phone (keeping in mind that we are not on facebook).

Wishing you a happy, healthy and peaceful 2016!

Josie and Chris