2014 A Year In Focus

I was out chatting with a friend yesterday and we were contemplating our year in focus. 2014 kind of went past in a blur. I had to go through my social media to work out what had happened through most of the year. So here it is... my 2014.

I went to see La Boheme at the Royal Albert Hall in March. We were up in the nose bleed seats but when we got there we got upgraded to fantastic ones down on the floor. I hadn't seen an opera before, I'm so glad we went. It was the most fantastic performance I'd seen in ages, we cried, and I'm not embarrassed.

In June I whizzed off with a friend to Geneva. It was boiling, but beautiful. If I wasn't so old and decrepit then I probably would have enjoyed it more! We were trying to come up with a day trip somewhere and had been thinking Paris, but it was actually cheaper to go to Geneva. It was lovely strolling down the river, it was definitely something random to throw in to the year.

Also in June there was a family trip to Cornwall. Just meters away from our favourite restaurant in Newlyn, and our favourite ice cream shop. Lots of countryside and fresh air. A fun parade in Penzance with a fun fair and events. I also got to go to The Eden Project, which was beautiful, but one of those things I don't think I'd need to do again.

July was the beginning of wedding festivities with a hen do in Bournemouth. I was a fantastic weekend, the weather was wonderful and the beach is lovely. There was good food, good company and lots of dancing. I even dressed up as Adam Ant for our 80s theme... couldn't stick to the boring neon collection.

Another year another Epsom Live, this time we went to see Boyzone. And I have to say, despite being a Take That fan back in the day, it was a great show.

In August I did an afternoon tea for the beautiful bride to be. At that point I never wanted to see another sandwich as long as I lived. Baking of many types, a smashed front door and 23 [or so] empty bottles of fizz. People came at 1pm and I managed to get rid of the last person at 11pm. It was a long day, but a fantastic one, even with the destruction to the building.

At the end of August was the wedding. It was beautiful. A truly awesome event. It was the unfussiest wedding, and it was exactly what it should have been. She looked stunning... and of course, I cried. The bride always had a tendency to cry with happiness in the run up to the wedding, but on the day she was so happy that the tears were replaced with a constant smile. When I uploaded photos from the day Facebook asked me if I wanted to tag people and it showed me faces to tag. Every one of the bride and groom showed them smiling and they looked truly happy.

Another set of festivities started in September. Another friend getting married and it was time to go off to a hen do. We went up town and had a spot of cocktail making, Thai food and some karaoke. It's days like that that I wish I drank more! Not to have more fun but to try and erase some of the awkward memories! Dragging two incoherent drunks home and somehow getting them into cabs. Random people throwing up on the train. Ah the memories!

October was a major change for me. I moved to Bristol to take on a new job at my company. It was a big upheaval that wasn't entirely smooth. I love some things about Bristol. Wifi on buses, the best bakery ever and the best fish and chip shop. It could however benefit from some better Chinese food.

Second wedding of the year. Completely different to the first. It's always interesting to see how different people want to celebrate this fantastic day. But any wedding that has roast beef for the main course is epic in my book.

My first proper purchase for my flat arrived in October, purple sofas. I've picked my spot and positioned it perfectly for the TV... trouble is I may never leave the spot.

That really does sum up my year. Some wonderful things have happened, and I have got so many opportunities to look forward to in 2015.