2011 - A Year In Review....Kinda.

I'm going for the sympathy 'votes' today but doubt I'll get any.

Here in (normally) hot and sunny Buttonwood Bay in Florida, USA, we're experiencing a bit of a cold snap thanks to those naughty northern states (and Canada) sending their chilly winds our way. It dropped to 45F overnight and right now at 11am, it's a bone numbing 55F.

Yes, yes I can imagine the outrage from those of you who would LOVE to have 55F as a high but come on, this is NOT what I signed up for when I bought my plane ticket. In the Terms & Conditions it clearly said that it would be hot in Florida and it was on that basis that last August I handed over my hard earned pension for the next 5 years and bought an inside seat on that Virgin Atlantic plane.

It's so cold in here that I just now picked up my smartphone and it was like picking up a choc ice. I wonder if that means I'll be getting lots of cold calls today ?

(A bit of light humour to warm me up there)

But ever the optimist, it's dry, the sky is blue, the clouds are fluffy and it's to be 80F by Saturday. Hurrah.

After that, it'll be time for 2012. No I'm not going to watch the movie. I mean the year will be 2012. Sometimes the change to a new year takes a while to sink in but I think the move from 2011 to 2012 will be easy. Being retired (no work) and using online banking (no checks) means far fewer occasions when I need to even write down the year.

Then there is the act of saying the year. 2011 has 5 syllables if said as Twenty Eleven. 2012 has only 3. Rolls of the tongue smoothly. 2012. Twenty Twelve. Easy !

Well that's the New Year sorted. What next ?

I'm not into doing annual reviews at this time as they remind me a little of work appraisals which I used to dread. As an employee I never liked being told how I'd done the previous year and as a boss, I disliked even more telling others how they'd done. With salary reviews based on the outcomes, it was just much too stressful for me. Plus it was never nice having to smack my boss !

But I guess 2011 has been another decent year for me.

Travel wise I've had 6 months in America, 2 weeks in France and Spain, a week in Northern Ireland and a fair bit of exploring the beauty all around me in England. I can't remember stepping foot in Wales or Scotland so maybe they deserve a visit in 2012.

Health wise, no scares, although I do remember having a runny nose last May. Man flu, rickets and athletes foot were all avoided and I got no mozzy bites from May-Oct. Senility continued apace but apart from missing somesortof appointment with whatshisface at whereveritwas, I don't recall any other issues.

Money wise.......well we'll gloss over that heading. A little comes in but more goes out. Hey ho. All that travelling has to be paid for ! Maybe 2012 will bring me a sugar mommy. As long as next door keeps my house frost free during the winter and they don't spot the extension cable to their house in the summer, my utility bills should continue to be minimal and I'll put in a good word for them in the bankruptcy court.

I had clothes to wear, food to eat, water to drink and a bed to sleep on. I was safe from civil unrest, wars, uprisings and football hooligans. I experienced no tsunamis, earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes or snow. I wasn't in a flash mob, never listened to Lady Gaga, and until a week ago, was blissfully unaware of Tim Minchin. I never watched X Factor, any show with the word Dancing, Celebrity or Ross in it but I did 'discover' the shear delight that was "Gavin & Stacy."

Yes I should be thankful.

So apart from tv on both sides of the pond being pretty naff, no good movies to be seen in theatres and my footy team looking like they don't want to get to the 'Top Table' any time soon, I guess 2011 was ok.

If years had report cards, 2011's would've said "could've been better but on the whole, for a 5 syllable year, not too shabby."

(Note : those are only MY memories and experiences as of course I understand that for many thousands, if not millions around the world, 2011 has sucked big time and I don't mean to belittle the many awful and tragic events, both natural and man made, that have devastated them.)

Best wishes to everyone for a 2012 you'll remember for all the right reasons.

Me ? I'll just be happy that, come next December, I'll be able to remember any of it at all !

Btw, I've added a 'chat with me' widget over on the right of this blog so if I'm showing as online, feel free to say hi. Doesn't have to be a War & Peace chat...just a hi from anyone from the 140 countries that have visited the blog would be cool. Just be warned, I can only understand English so if you're from Newcastle or Liverpool or most US southern states (and Puerto Rico), my reply might take a while as I'll need to use Google Translate.