2018: How was it for you?

We have arrived at the final day of what has been, for the most part, a dreadful year.

Brexit is still happening, and getting madder and more desperate with each passing day. And of the country doesn't rip itself apart before the 29th March, then it will after. The very fabric of our nation and national union is under threat. A Brexit forced on the two countries who voted heavily to stay could result in Scottish independence and a unified Ireland.

I don't recall that on the side of a bus.

And of all the UK's political leaders, it is the SNP's Nicola Sturgeon who seems the most statepersonlike. Who saw that coming? Given the choice of Brexit forced upon the nation or independence and being in the EU, I think Scotland would chose the latter.

And over in the US, Trump is still in power, but with each passing day, the Special Prosecutor gets ever closer. The US slides further into chaos, although his power is diminished after the midterms, so he has shit down Government as his "great idea" of the border wall is frozen. A look into his tweet history states, however, that a shutdown of Government shows a weak president: so which is it, Donald?

There literally is a tweet of his for every occasion.

Who knows where either shitshown will end? Hopefully with A50 being revoked here and impeachment for Trump. But who knows....

Meanwhile, we have had a lot to deal with. Death has come calling to what and who we love. Three people along the road have died, including dear Bob opposite, his lung condition getting the best of him over the summer. Bob was the sweetest, nicest person you could imagine, nothing was too much trouble. But years of the best treatment and tests the NHS could pay for could find what was wrong. Different medicines and treatments were tried, none worked and many made his condition, temporarily, worse.

And for us, the year began with us thinking two of our three cats had cancer. Although Mulder was on his way to being better, Molly had to have an operation, and although nothing cancerous was found, a growth was removed and she recovered.

But later in the year she began to go blind, in one eye first, then in the other. Her final week was saw such a sudden decline, that when I took her to the vet that Friday, and he saud it was time, it was a relief. But she had been in my life since October 2005, seen me go from being a partially unemployed num to international playboy and quality export, and happily married to Jools, and us living in a ground floor flat in Dover at first, before moving here to St Maggies. She went from being an indoor cat, to one who would go outside, hunt, and be Queen of all she surveyed.

She was happy as a house cat, but happier once she could go outside.

I cried buckets as I held her in my ames as her life faded. I have a clump of her fur, and her ashes. One day we will put her into the garden she loved and where she ruled. There will never be another Molly.

I nearly lost a friend and colleague as he had a heart attack that went undiagnosed for two weeks, and when it was, a last minute dash from Esbjerg to a main hospital saved his life. We are now of the age when we lose friends. It is scary, and scarier that it could be us one day.

I still travel with work, just not as much. I go to Aarhus about once a month, and should go to Hamburg once every two months, though work pressure will mean that won't happen now maybe until the end of the project.

Oh yes, the project: it has gone from this time last year as being something that only existed on paper to one now where many of the components have been made, just a lot of assembling remains to be done, then the offshore phase begins. This will probably take me to Easter 2020, so plenty more to do, more air miles to collect, and hotels to sit in, eating dinner on me todd.

We didn't visit the cinema this year again, despite there being a new multiscreen cinema in Dover, just down the hill. Maybe we will go next year, but don't hold your breath.

We went to a few gigs: Microdisney at the Barbican in June, then The Blockheads and Blancmange at the Booking Hall in Dover. All were good in their own way, though each one required late nights, which in our advancing age we are not happy about, but glad we do these things

I visited a whole load of churches, in Kent and out, through the year. The highlight around which the 2018 orchid season pivoted was the finding, on a trip arranged by your's truly, of the Burnt (Tip) Orchid after a 5 year gap since the past sighting. I have written about that in another post this week, but the thrill of that is something mere words can do justice to. Other highlights in Kent were the "Green" Fly, a possible BLH x Violter hybrid, the four white Ladies, the var chlorantha White Helleborine and the new colony of Late Spiders and new meadow for Green Wing I found out about too.

Outside Kent I saw a Fen Orchid, several in fact, for the first time. One for orchidists really, as they are small and green, and easy to miss. Also saw some fine Early Marsh at the site, including rare var.s of that too Bee var flavescens and chloriantha. And in early June I got to see the Greater Tongue Orchids, which I have only been able to talk about yesterday due to an embargo.

In October we went to New York, Boston, the Catskills and Adirondacks to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary. You can read the account of that on here too.

IN music, another great Year, and these are the best tracked I can remember:

The Lovely Eggs; Wiggy Giggy

Bodega:

Julia Jacklin:

Parquet Courts:

After many years writing how dreadful, predictable and crap England were a series of tournaments, imagine our surprise to find that not only were England not shit this year, but they were good to watch, had promise, won a penalty shoot out and got to the semi finals for the first time since 1990. and made what was the most enjoyable World Cup for years even better than it already was. We just have to hope that the squad can build on this, and having made the semi finals of the new fangled competition next summer, with a match against Holland to come, and then maybe the final.

Norwich were not dreadful last year, but flattered to deceive, and in the end ended up a level below what was required. For the new season there was no hint of anything but more of the same, but at the end of September, the team slipped into some wonderful new gear and began to play well, win games, not concede goals, and be generally exciting and enjoyable. The unbeaten run came to and end yesterday, but still, finishing the year second in the table with more points at this stage of the season than ever before, we go into the new year in high hopes. I event went to my first game at Carrow Road for seven years, and witnessed one of the famous comeback wins. It was wonderful to wander round the city before, then meet up with friends before and after the game for drinks and food, though my head was wooly the next morning.

And as for our national team: well, after spending the whole of this blog, a decade, writing on how disappointing at each end of season tournament England were, how they failed time after time to live up to their own low standards, 2018 was something different. With a new young squad, selected on form rather than reputation, they qualified from the group with a game to spare and made it through to the semi finals, winning a penalty shoot out for the first time on the way. They did run out of puff against Belgium in both matches, and Croatia were seriously underestimated and played us off the park. Harry Kane, one time Norwich striker is England captain and won the golden boot. Strange times.

But the upturn continued in the new season, with England making it to the semi final of the new end of season thing in Portugal this year.

I hope that my reporting of the final victory over my allergies is correct. It has taken a while. The magic box with the rad light was as useless as suspected, but did give hope for a while. But the use of the decongestant spray has now worked for nearly two weeks, has resulted in several attacks being stopped as soon as they start, and many night's good and restful sleep.