Each year since I started blogging, I have done a review of the previous year, and a look forward to the new year. I know it is already February, but I was away for most of January, and the next few weeks were spent on catch up! I believe in setting a few goals – it is always good to have a few targets…..
This year, it is a bit different, it is also the start of a new decade. Not only what will the next year bring, but what will the coming decade bring?? I recently reviewed what the 2010’s brought, so I wonder where we will all be in 10 years time.
Net Worth
I will continue the tradition of ‘how has the money gone’? At the end of 2017, we showed an increase of about 7%, 2018 was a decrease of 3.5% (the stock market was dire), 2019 shows an incredibly healthy outcome of 12% – the Brexit bounce, the Boris bounce, call it what you will. However, it is probably better to look at it in the wider context that 2018 was a dire year, so since Dec 2016 just after I started this blog until Dec 2019, overall we are up about 15%. Perfectly respectable for a pair of old retirees, well past their best earning years! Long may the stock market be healthy. To be fair to us, we continue to save a decent proportion of our monthly income, probably around 40-50% on average. I don’t watch it too carefully, because we do have quite a travel habit, and it’s hard to properly account for that! After 8 years of retirement, it is comforting to know that we are a long way from starting to reduce our savings. My aim is to see our net worth grow about 7% this coming year, and double over the next decade. It is not an unreasonable goal. I certainly don’t want to have broken into our savings, unless for a specific reason, such as a second home somewhere.
(Note these figures were cut at the end of December – were they to be cut at the end of February after the massive drop in the markets because of the Coronavirus, it might be a different picture, but as I am not selling at the minute, it doesn’t worry me too much.)
Travel
I do have a lurking yen to get on a plane and travel 1st class, i.e. not only turn left but keep on going! We compromised by travelling business class to New Zealand, by Southern China. Result! It was certainly extravagant, but given we are on the move continuously for 36 hours, it was worth every penny in the reduced hassle, not to mention the lie-flat beds! Of the two 12 hour flights on the way out, I think we slept for most of the time and for the first time ever, had absolutely no jet lag. (not so good on the way back, but you can’t have everything!)
We also managed to fit in a trip to Istanbul, 2 months in Athens, a trip to London in March, and November. No trip to Ireland this year though.
This coming year, we have no ‘big trip’ planned at the minute. We know we have a wedding in June in London and a wedding in Southampton in September. Again given teh coronavirus, this is probably a good thing. I don’t want to spend 2 weeks in isolation somewhere…
Needless to say, the proud gran that I am, wants to fit in a longer trip to NZ to get to watch our wee grandson, Tommy growing up!
Health
We really need to concentrate on our health. I have just had a medical check. I weigh exactly what I did 2 years ago, despite all my efforts. Try Harder has to be the verdict. I also have a ‘Frozen Shoulder’ which I am waiting treatment for, so having managed to stay away from, for the last 8 years of retirement, I am about to break my record!
Metal Work
This remains a pretty big part of my life, and indeed growing. I always have some ideas playing around in my head, about what I am going to do next. Over the past few weeks, I have made some copper bowls, which I now have to enamel. I have polished a lovely stone that I picked up on Birdlands Flat near Little River in South Island, New Zealand, and over the coming weeks, I intend to start trying some wall art in sheet copper. Here is my first attempt
Languages
I continue to go to Spanish lessons every week, and I still have another goal of improving my French. Ideally I would like to be fluent in both. It is proving a bit of a challenge, but it is certainly good for the brain. Hopefully this year we will fit in a few trips to enable me to practice both. Meanwhile after nearly 3 years, my Spanish class and I have moved from Beginner, to Intermediate – yeah! However in yesterdays class we listened to a simple tape – we all said – can we slow it down please! I can read it pretty well, but picking out even simple words can be quite hard when someone is speaking at full speed.
Here’s to 2020 being a Great Year!
and indeed the start of a great decade.
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