Christmas and New Year greetings from Battery Lane where the never-ending COVID crisis compels us to work on our social media presence as few people see our faces these days. I tossed our names into one of the many music and corporate name generators available online and now wish to be known as Tenacious T. Sheila Tequila sends her best wishes of course and we look forward to being joined for the holiday break by Toots Belicose (Annabel) along with the Sarcastic P and her partner Uncanny Vanny.

 

In some late-breaking news, the first of Sarcastic P’s twenty or so applications to law schools have borne fruit so it seems Pippa will start an exciting new chapter of her education somewhere next September. In the meantime, she is working as a paralegal for an immigration lawyer, getting to use her Espanol and being paid! A novel experience after graduating from college just before a pandemic.

 

Toots Belicose is nearing the end of her first semester as a junior at Oberlin College in Ohio. She thinks booster shots work. Her three suitemates, with just two jabs, recently caught Omicron (confirmed by sequencing), and she just kept testing negative. I doubt there will be anything normal about Annabel’s entire college experience, the summer semester, the online classes even when on campus, etc.

But she is putting a good face on it and hopes to join a summer archeology program in Italy. She should graduate in 2023 with a double major in anthropology and creative writing. She also likes crafting and sewing.

Sheila Tequila, known to fans as Shequila, and Tenacious T, had a wonderful vacation in October despite the times. It felt incredibly liberating. We started in California, meeting up with friends in San Francisco, Napa and then Monterrey from Sheila’s college days. It was a belated 60^th birthday celebration for the group. Lots of laughs, good food, beach walks and good wine.

Definitely the right road

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From there, Shequila and TenT drove to New Mexico via Palm Springs and Scottsdale, to meet up with SarcP and UnCanVan for five nights in Sante Fe. We need two hands to count our many visits to New Mexico but we love the food and the confluence of the Pueblo Indian culture with the Spanish heritage and the romance of the American West. Not wanting the party to stop, we spent the last 24 hours of our trip dashing down to El Paso to see a friend who recently moved there. It was fascinating to see the border wall and learn how the economies of both El Paso and Juarez have suffered from the restricted passage of people.

Sheq, theoretically retired, remains remarkably busy with her volunteering at DC Futures (dcfutures.org) and her work with her father’s real estate business. She also baked hundreds of holiday cookies again this year for her friend’s profits-to-charity baking business. And that is just the half of it. (Kitchen bragging. Sheila: “I must have baked a thousand cookies.” Tim shrugs: “I made 11 Christmas puddings.”)

Thirty years ago!

Two of the nicest people we know got married this year

 

TT, the final contraction of my public persona before becoming “the artist formerly known as”, has finished the draft of the Mervyn Bishop biography and managed, with help, to get it read by a respected commercial agent. “Well written” and “evocative” are the words I will cling to, but it does not seem to be a commercial proposition. I now need to explore the university publishers and art gallery imprints. I will also be going out to Oz Feb 12-March 9 to shake some publishing trees, go to Mum’s birthday bash (COVID permitting) and hopefully see as many of you as I can. I’m concerned about arriving and having to quarantine, so the latter half of that period seems more certain.

Anyway, chin up, we are a very adaptable species and there is still stuff we haven’t watched on Netflix!

 

Best regards,

Tim (On behalf of the rest of the gang)

CHRISTMAS 2019

 

Botanic Gardens

Two graduations, a retirement and a reunion would be the quickest way to sum up the year. While the world might want to make you stick your fingers in your ears and go la-la-la-la-la, the milestones of family life and relationships with friends are very comforting and grounding.

Pippa graduated in May from Macalester College in Minnesota. The weather, always a bit iffy at that time of year, included sleet and a few snowflakes, requiring the ceremony to be held indoors. The speaker was Yale law professor James Forman, Jr., a leading critic of mass incarceration and its disproportionate impact on people of color. Drawing on advice his mother gave him as a child, his message to graduates was to get off their butts; to quit complaining about things and expecting others to act. I’m sure a similar message was relayed at thousands of graduations across the country, but he was impressive. A nice touch was the Australian flag in the opening parade showing the breadth of the world the college draws from. Pippa had to produce her Australian passport to prove she was legit.

Annabel

Heather and Pippa at Graduation

A month later it was Annabel’s turn, graduating high school.  It was an even bigger production than a college graduation, except for the fact that we didn’t have to fly to the event. There was a school dinner, an awards assembly (Annabel won for English), a church service, numerous private parties and then the actual graduation held at the National Cathedral. The beautiful gothic setting was marred only by some rather obnoxious jockeying for better seats by alpha moms who are used to privilege smoothing the way before them in all things. Blessed are the meek.

Both of the girls’ living grandparents were at the main events. Dr. Teimourian and Daphne Dobbyn are in their 80s and still going strong for the most part. Daphne did an Alaskan cruise between the graduations. She contracted pneumonia during the voyage, but the massive floating city had two doctors, two nurses, an X-ray machine and lots of drugs.

In late June, at Annabel’s request, we spent a most interesting 10-days in Norway. After three nights in Oslo we embarked on a pre-booked but self-guided trip into the fjord country using trains, buses and the occasional boat. It included an overnight on the Kong Harold, one of the Hurtigruten Line’s many coastal cruiser/cargo ships. We are probably not good cruise material. The 36 hours felt like a week, and perhaps that’s the attraction for some travelers.

We installed Annabel in her dorm at Oberlin College, in Ohio, in late August. The week-long orientation was too long and gave her time to doubt her abilities. But once classes began she settled in, quickly finding friends and getting decent grades. She loves her creative writing class. We used to describe her style as women’s revenge porn, but perhaps mystical feminist gothic is more on the mark.

For a good part of 2018/19, Sheila wondered if she should have taken a buyout offered a few years earlier. Not to worry, she proposed a restructuring of her portion of Fannie Mae’s inhouse law operation that eliminated her position and provided a lump sum payment to grease the exit. Genius. At 25 years and one day of service she walked away from the mortgage finance giant at the end of September, with some regret at leaving the team she had built, but confidant in their ability to carry on, and excited by what Sheila 2.0 might look like.

Making a clean break from Sheila’s Fannie Mae life, just the two of us headed to Australia. Sheila had not visited in six years. The weather, a touch cooler than expected, was still glorious and much better than the fires that would erupt just after our departure. Sydney was family, friends and reacquainting ourselves with the Botanic Gardens and other favorite parts of the city. We also timed our visit for Tim’s 40th reunion of his class at Sydney University’s Agriculture Faculty. It was a fun evening. We offer these excerpts from Tim’s opening remarks as MC of the event:

“Is there any other secret society where you can lower your voice and casually ask the person next to you: “What are you? A plant….or an animal?” 

”When you hear some expert on the radio rabbiting on about the future of A.I., is your first thought artificial intelligence or artificial insemination?”

On Mt. Wellington, Hobart

Well, you get the idea. We made our escape to Tasmania two days later. Its cooler climate allows a range of intensive agricultural pursuits that have in turn spurred a gourmet food movement. Salmon farming, hops, cider making, sheep cheese. Warning: See it now. Featured in the New York Times travel section on our return, Tasmania’s end is surely nigh.

Sheila returned to Washington, while Tim stayed on for another week doing book research. This included a road trip to places like Bourke, Brewarrina and Lightning Ridge. In many parts, useful rain  had not fallen for two or more
years. There is something biblical or karmic about Australia, the world’s largest coal exporter, going up in flames at the leading edge of climate change.

Now back in Washington, Tim is trying to ramp up the pace of his writing. Sheila spent the last three weeks helping a friend manage her Christmas cookie baking business. She plans to look in the new year at whether she will return to the law in some capacity. Part-time work of some kind is the aim.

Our lovely old shepherd/Irish wolfhound mutt Max died early in the year, nearly making it to 15 years. Our Jack Russell, Monty, was as upset as we were, hiding under the dining room table for weeks. The cure was Tillie, another shepherd/something rescue. She’s a sweetie and plays well with others.

We’ve enjoyed hosting international and domestic visitors this year and are glad the downstairs suite is getting some use. We’ve also been able to take the bus to New York to catch up with old friends.

Pippa stayed in Minneapolis after graduation. She has a part-time gig teaching an after-school environment program but we think the dog walking is paying more of the bills. She’s still trying to figure out where her interests in sustainable agriculture, good food and education will take her. She and Vanny may move to Seattle in mid-2020.

But for now, both of our girls are home, and it feels like old times. Our big meal is late Christmas Day. Roast beef for the carnivores and a mushroom Wellington for the vegan contingent. Christmas pudding and a cranberry mousse are the dessert options.

Merry Christmas and best wishes for 2020.

Tim and Sheila

CHRISTMAS 2018

Let’s start with the latest and the greatest news: Annabel has been accepted by Oberlin College just outside Cleveland, Ohio. It was her number one choice and we are all thrilled for her. It is a quirky place for somewhat quirky students and she should fit in well there. Just over a fifth of the students are music majors (Annabel will likely be English/History). There is a grand piano in the lounge of every dorm building and students get to borrow valuable art works from the Oberlin Museum to hang in their rooms. Annabel was attracted by Oberlin’s history of accepting male and female students and all races within just a few years of its founding in 1833.

Meanwhile, Pippa will graduate early next summer from Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, with a degree heavy in biology, geography, and environmental studies and (gasp) even some soil science. She will be just the second year of students able to graduate with an agricultural concentration, something the school is expanding into due to demand. Pippa is having an interesting final year, including working with some local Native American tribes on preserving and showcasing traditional food sources. What you buy as wild rice is a grain native to the upper Midwest, for example. Pippa plans to stay in the area after graduation and who could blame her. People are “Minnesota Nice,” there are plenty of jobs and a ton of other enthusiastic young people. Did I hear you say something about the winter? Pippa seems to like it and global warming has you covered, seriously.

Soon enough it will just be us oldies and the dogs left behind in Washington.  Perhaps a carefree life of travel and building birdhouses awaits us? Mmmm. As I saw on a tea towel recently: “I plan to retire and live off my savings. What I will do the next week I have no clue!” So for the moment Sheila is still in harness at Fannie Mae and I will step up my “makes sense to me” property management and freelance writing combo.

Nevertheless there is some travel in our future. Never postpone joy and connecting with people you love. The sudden death of Miriam Pearson in London this year made us rue all the more a failed plan to meet, in her native Dublin, in the summer of 2017.

Mike's Wine Bar, Friday Harbor

We got in a quick family vacation this past summer (I hope not our last) to the San Juan Islands off Seattle. Great food, comfortable temps and a fascinating natural environment. It was also a chance for us to briefly stay with friends in Portland, Oregon (thanks again Kathy and Tom) and Sheila reconnected with a college friend she hadn’t seen since graduation, who now lives on Orcas Island.

Pippa and Annabel on the San Juan ferry

There were also several gatherings in Washington of Sheila’s old Georgetown University gang this year, although not everyone all at once, unfortunately. The final event was actually initiated by two spouses (Tim and Gus Recinos) who never set foot at the school until they met their significant others. It is always a fun evening with lively conversation when the Hoyas gather.

King parrots drop in for a coffee

Tim (that’s me) made a trip to Australia in early December to catch up with family and do some research for a book project in Dubbo. Mum rode shotgun and is doing well. Thanks to the organizing skills of my sister Anna I got to catch up with Sydney-based friends despite a tight schedule. I also got down to Melbourne to see my brother Luke and his family. Luke and I did two day trips, one into the forests around Marysville and another to the Point Cook aircraft museum. At the latter we saw Luke's old dorm room during his RAAF flight school days and a flying display by a Harvard trainer.

Trustees enjoy day release program

There was also a meeting of the Agricultural Economics Society one lovely mild Sydney evening. Much wine was consumed and some even thrown at the wall in proof that none of us has changed much since we graduated from Sydney University. A bigger reunion of our year in the Agriculture Faculty is in the works for next October, celebrating 40 years since our last lecture, or some such excuse for a party. Animals and Plants will be welcome.

The ultrasound treatment for the tremor in my left hand some 11 months ago was highly successful. Not clear yet what I can do for the fluttering right as the FDA has not OK’d ultrasound for both sides yet. A couple of other therapies are undergoing trials.

And now a brief item in the occasional series: Talking Australian.

Dezzie. or sometimes dezzo. Usage: “Who’s the dezzie tonight?” As in, "Who is the designated driver tonight?" in light of Australia’s strict drink/drive laws.

A novel that should come to life

Finally, let me say that I find distressing the politics of division and chaos being practiced in the three English-speaking countries with which I’m most familiar.  Doctors in Australia giving memory tests ask patients: “Who is the current Prime Minister?”  The correct answer now is: “Buggered if I know.” Britain meanwhile edges toward economic suicide, aided by politicians who won’t admit that all forms of Brexit are worse than remaining. And finally, here in the United States, we have a narcissistic madman posing as president. I’ll take robot VP Pence, who calls his wife “Mother,” as president until 2020. At least Pence is less likely to blow up the world or cozy up to dictators because he might be able to do a hotel deal with them.

On that cheery note, best wishes for 2019.

Tim and Sheila

CHRISTMAS 2017

Greetings from Italy, where we arrived last week, just days after Pippa finished her semester abroad. We had six days in and around Florence with Pippa as our able guide. We spent a day at Montespertoli, where her program on sustainable agriculture was based. Had lunch and a wine tasting at the Castello Sonnino,where she lived in one of the outbuildings, and met the countess (Europe still drips with titled people, even if it just means you have a pile of old stones with ruinous upkeep that has you driving an old Fiat).

We are now in Rome, our excitement tempered a bit by discovering Pippa is very anxious to get home. She loved Italy, the food, the study program, the friends she met, but as she confessed yesterday: She just wants to eat peanut butter on bread with salt in it, drink drip coffee instead of espresso and see our dogs. We are on the downhill slope, due to return on New Year's Eve but with plenty of things to see and do before then.

Annabel, on the other hand, is lapping up Italy's art and history. In her fourth year of Latin, she is doing a credible job of translating inscriptions and is a handy reference for eras and significant events.

Meanwhile, we are all enjoying the food, both eaten out and cooked ourselves in the nicely equipped kitchens of the two apartments we have stayed in. Pippa and Sheila are making a pasta in mushroom sauce  and an artichoke salad for Christmas Eve dinner, reproducing a dish we were taught to cook during an in-home class in Florence by a woman who also writes about food and wine. We will be doing a pork loin wrapped in fresh herbs tomorrow with roasted vegetables. The finale will be be the Christmas pudding Tim smuggled in to Italy (actually they seem to have zero customs control if you've transited through another European airport).

All told we are just happy to be together again. Pippa will likely spend the summer working in Minnesota so these weeks are treasured before she goes back to college in mid-January.

Annabel has just one more year of high school before she is likely out of the house and off to university, so we will be empty nesters soon enough. Annabel is looking for somewhere with a good writing program and wants to take history and philosophy courses. We shall see. College visits are in our future for the first half of next year.

There have been many milestones this year. Sheila's mother died in May, aged 82, after nearly 10 years in a nursing home as a result of two strokes that left her confined to a wheel chair. Her memorial service was a chance to be reminded of the elegant, well-read and well-traveled woman that she was for most of her life. Sheila wrote and read a brilliant eulogy that we will link to on return to the United States. Sheila's dad was much affected by Nancy's death but is keeping up with tennis and his regular lunches with old mates.

In other news, Tim turned 60 in August. Funny how the years sneak up on you. Bothered increasingly by his hand tremors, he will undergo a non-invasive procedure in January where focused ultrasound will destroy a tiny piece of brain tissue to calm the left hand. It is a fairly new technique but is proving effective, with normal activities resuming 24 hours later.

Sheila has declined a buy-out offer at Fannie Mae, electing to stay on and continue leading her team of lawyers focused on single-family housing finance. One of her team actually wept with relief at her decision. She is well liked and enjoys the mental stimulation and social interaction that works provides. Tim also observes that women seem so much better equipped to cope with the bureaucratic B.S. that constantly flows in large organizations. Tim continues to turn out occasional pieces for Best's Review and does his property management thing.

One of the nice things about Europe is that you are among millions of people who are going on with their lives with only occasional mentions of "The Donald," as he is referred to in the Italian media. But he is surely waiting for us on our return. Pippa says Trump is admired by a good swathe of Italians. He is that flashy braggadocio, a womanizer that many men here aspire to. Sheila observes we are also in a country that flirted with fascism. Well, here's to democracy supported by a free press. Our family will be working to ensure as many eligible Americans as possible turn out to vote in the 2018 mid-term elections. Election Day, the only day when "all men are created equal" comes even close to reality. Let the chips fall as they may.


Buon Natale and wishing you the best possible 2018.

CHRISTMAS 2016

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness… “ Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities.

Let’s start with the best of times, shall we? That’s much more fun.

The year saw a better than average number of visitors from Australia, which is always a nice thing.

Tim’s mother came out in April on a literary tour of the southern states, which started in Charleston, South Carolina, and ended in New Orleans. Her tour group was featured by regional newspapers and local television, as Australians are apparently still a rarity in Alabama and other parts of the rural south. 

After her tour, Tim met her in Minnesota for a quick visit to Macalester College, where Pippa is now in her second year. There is a quirky sculpture park, a short drive from St. Paul, as you can see.

Early in the summer, we had a terrific dinner at our house with Tim’s cousin Trevor and his wife Neth. They have made many visits to the United States but this was the first time both of them had made it to our home. It was a mighty fun evening, with family stories flowing as freely as the wine. Trevor and Neth have retired to the Hattah Lakes area of northwestern Victoria. They love the bush and have many amusing anecdotes, including one about a feral goat known as Boris the Rapist.

The next set of Aussie visitors we had to meet part way, so to speak. We joined up with Tim’s old Canberra neighbor Michael Kennedy, and his wife Debbie, to tour Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. Wow.

Both places are exquisite pieces of the wild. We stayed 20 minutes outside the northwest entrance to Yellowstone National Park on a ranch reached by a twisty road up a canyon. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves. We took a half-day ride offered by the ranch.  The views, once we got to the ridgeline, were spectacular. (See the masthead picture)



But we still weren’t done. Tim’s longest friend, from back in kindergarten days, Guy Morgan, visited in August. They did a road trip up to Canada, stopping at the glass museum in Corning, N.Y., Watkins Glen and at Niagara Falls.

Watkins Glen

 Tim turned around in Toronto after having dinner with one of our former au pairs, Larissa, who is doing a pharmacy course at one of the colleges while her Brazilian engineer husband Felipe has found work in construction. Guy went on to Montreal before coming back to Washington D.C. to join us for part of our week at the beach in nearby Delaware.

Sounds like a busy year already, right? But there’s more. To complicate matters, we acquired a new dog in late August, a companion for 12-year-old Max. The womenfolk of the house had been agitating for a second dog for a while, but finally saw their opening when Tim began playing with a young Jack Russell at a barbecue thrown by friends who also have an older dog. A week later we were visiting a kennel in Virginia and met two male puppies, one of which would ultimately come to us as… Monty.
 And, wouldn’t you know it, he is Tim’s dog by inclination, although he is affectionate with everyone.  This breed loves to please but they are high energy. To quote the vet: “Ah yes, what you have here is a Jack Russell’s Russell. You know how to tell when they’ve died, right? They stop moving like this.” Tim and Monty are undergoing obedience training every Wednesday evening.

And now, our annual report card on the two-legged members of the family:

Annabel – Came back strong to the soccer field after last year’s broken leg, playing for both her school and her weekend team. Doing well at school, apart from a bit of a struggle with chemistry. Loves Latin and is amused to discover it is still spoken at the Vatican, making Rome even more of a must-visit destination. Next year will be year 11, so college entrance tests and college visits loom.

Annabel and Pippa with the dogs at Sugarloaf Mountain

Pippa – Her studies in biology and geography seem to be drifting closer and closer to, gasp… agriculture, particularly sustainable food production in a warming world. Pippa had a summer internship at the Sierra Club and blogged for them about Yellowstone. She is currently engaged in a battle with Macalester College over her semester abroad. Pippa has found a sustainable agriculture program in Tuscany but the school is anxious because they’ve never had anyone take it before. What a weak argument. Anyway, she has the support of several of her key professors, but her application is likely to be put to a review by a mysterious three-person board that meets on such things. Sheila has so far kept out of the fight, but we can see a letter to the college president already forming in her head.

Sheila – Works too hard keeping Fannie Mae and 5207 Battery Lane afloat. We are nevertheless having 17 people for Christmas dinner, and this after hosting 40 neighbors and parents of the girls’ friends for tree-trimming drinks a week earlier. Entertaining energizes Sheila but perhaps her third cold in two months betrays some of the wear and tear on the body.

Tim – Continues to juggle freelance writing and property management. He makes less than half his Reuters pay but is free to manage most of the home stuff, Annabel’s sports schedule and the dogs. He is a happy man but could probably do with an additional writing gig. 
    Tim paid a quick visit to Australia in November to visit some possible Sydney digs for his mum.
   He also enjoyed catching up with his siblings and many friends, including a gathering of some of the Sydney University aggers seen here.

 

Finally, without belaboring the point, we come to the worst of times.

It is the unanimous opinion of our household that the United States faced its own Brexit moment in November and failed the test. At some level we understand the frustration of just enough people in a handful of states to make a radical choice, but we do not think much good will come of it. We hope for the best, but are prepared for the worst. Be vigilant friends. We leave you with a famous quote by someone often touted as the founder of modern conservatism:

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” – Edmund Burke.

And finally, enjoy Allan Sherman’s "You Went The Wrong Way Old King Louie" for an amusing reminder that people sometimes get tired of rulers in gilded palaces.


With best wishes for 2017,

Tim, Sheila, Pippa and Annabel.

CHRISTMAS 2015

I must confess this is harder to write than years past. We have news, but it just seems a lot less consequential than some of things going on in the world. (Note to Tim, people don't come here for world affairs, so get on with the family items)

Alright then, let's start with the good stuff. Pippa just finished her first semester at Macalester College in Minnesota and loves the school and her courses. She also lucked out with a compatible room mate in her dorm at Doty Hall. She's plowing ahead with chemistry and biology but seems to be leaning toward applying science to saving the planet rather than people.
Her freshman writing course in the geography department took her on an excursion to the Iron Range, Duluth and Hibbing, where, among other things, she got to see Bob Dylan's old high school and family home.

Pippa is yet to experience the cold that Minnesota is famous for, thanks to the El Nino surge of warm air over the eastern half of the United States. Christmas may be warm enough for shorts in Washington!

Annabel off to the dance

Annabel broke her leg May 31 in a soccer game. She is now back to running and looks forward to the spring season after sitting out the fall season on the bench. She took it all very well considering the many doctor visits and physiotherapy sessions.
She is doing well at high school and is really enjoying her English class where she's been able to express herself in several writing assignments. You can check out her story site here: http://annabelsportfolio.weebly.com/

Sheila had been acting as the head of single-family legal at Fannie Mae for over a year. While she did not get the permanent position, she is now heading a team around the intersection of consumer finance law with innovations in the mortgage market and alternative credit. Her hours are slightly saner and it's easier to make her laugh lately.

I'm still knocking around in minor real estate dealings and also dipping a toe back into writing, with a couple of long pieces for an insurance industry magazine. One was on the impact of low interest rates on insurers' business models, the other on the new auto safety technologies that will disrupt the car insurance market. If you are having trouble getting to sleep you can find the pieces here: http://www.timdobbynwrites.com/#!blog/c3s

We had a wonderful spring break trip to Oregon and Northern California this year. The Oregon coast never gets much publicity but it is every bit as spectacular as the famous coastline of Big Sur. The wide beaches with huge sea stacks remind me of surrealist landscapes. We started by staying with friends for a few days in Portland and then took a few days to drive down to San Francisco where, again, we were fortunate to stay with friends.


The death of dad in April was a big loss. I apologize for not alerting more people personally, but it was such a busy time making arrangements for the funeral that a lot of things were left undone. I'm grateful for those who spotted the notices in the Herald and attended his send off. The obituary is still on the SMH site here: http://www.smh.com.au/comment/obituaries/journalist-shone-in-newspapers-golden-era-20150416-1mm5zv.html

Dad with Annabel about 10 years ago

Mum came over about six weeks later for Pippa's high school graduation, which was very therapeutic. She'll be over again in the United States in April and then travels to Iran in October if enough people sign up for the tour.

Pippa with classmate Charles Dawson

                      

I hope this finds you and your kin in good health and looking forward to 2016.

 Best Wishes from Tim, Sheila, Pippa and Annabel

CHRISTMAS 2014

With a mixture of fear and excitement, she clicked on the “change of status” advisory on her computer screen. The deadline set by the organization was still days away, but on an anxious whim she had gone online. They had her money. They had her life story. They had all the power, while she waited in her cold attic room.

The moment she clicked, the page transformed into balloons soaring while confetti rained down and the sound of bagpipes playing “Scotland the Brave” roared over the computer’s speakers.  Yes, Pippa had been accepted to Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn. The college hunt was over and the busy Christmas season was saved from further applications, entrance essays and what-ifs.

Minneapolis skyline

For those of you outside the United States, or otherwise unfamiliar with the college-application process, it is exceedingly complicated and calculating. High marks on entrance tests are useful, but ethnicity, income, sports ability and geographic diversity also come into play.  I’d recommend Crazy U, by Andrew Ferguson, to get a glimpse into it, but as funny as the book is, there is no need to torture yourself unless you are about to help your offspring or a close relative go through the process.

So now we are all able to relax and enjoy my brother Luke’s visit with his family. First time in 19 years for Luke and first time ever on the mainland of the United
States for Marina and their children Lucy and Hugh.  They are packing a lot in. The Spy Museum yesterday, a quick hit at the Smithsonian’s American Art Museum, then Mexican tapas and a professional basketball game, Wizards vs. the Suns. Luckily all of this was in a four-block radius in downtown D.C.

Sheila’s office is likely moving downtown in a year or two. She views the American Art Museum as a bit of compensation for the move and a quiet place to retreat to; a fabulous gem that is sometimes overshadowed by all the other downtown museums. I personally like the public works paintings that capture a populace trying to muscle their way out of the Great Depression by building bridges and casting engines, etc.

Meanwhile, my post-Reuters life consists of various odd jobs and home renovation worked in around household roles as chef, chauffeur, and gardener. A couple of pix on the blog version of this letter show my various tiling efforts this year.

 

We have started work on fixing up another investment property but I think that’s the last.

It has been a very full year really. My sister Anna and her husband Richard visited in late spring. While in New Mexico with them (love that state), we learned our refrigerator had leaked water and done a lot of damage to the kitchen floor and basement room below. A neighbor’s tree then struck the house in a wild storm just a few weeks later.  But it all got repaired with only the loss of some stored photos from the pre-digital era the only things worth mourning. And on the bright side, Sheila was able to redecorate some areas of the house she had been itching to without too much bickering with Christian Dior (ahem, Tim).

The beetle was miraculously unscathed

We also hosted a dinner to raise funds for a cause near and dear to our hearts, “Help the Homeless.”  We had a Farm-to-Table dinner that Sheila co-hosted with another Sheila (a work colleague) whose husband raises “organic” pork.  Raucous laughter permeated the evening along with a delicious dinner based on ingredients from local farmers, cheese makers and beer brewers (Tim).

Then in August I dashed out to Australia for 10 days on learning my Dad was very ill, but he’s staged a remarkable recovery with some mild chemo and the odd blood transfusion to compensate for his wonky bone marrow.

Somewhere in all this we squeezed in college visits with Pippa and finished fixing a dilapidated home about 25 minutes away that we bought in May. Pippa, now 18, also went to India for month over the summer and produced this rather moving digital story , which I suspect also moved Macalester College.

Annabel, now 14, has sort of flown under the radar this year, with all of the other activity swirling around. She moved to a new school where she recently got on the academic achievement list. But it has been a difficult adjustment, having to make new friends at an age where girls can be very cruel to one another. She played on the middle-school soccer team and was bribed with an embroidered warm-up jacket to play next year at the high-school level. The game gets rougher as they get older and Annabel had several injuries this season. She had games or training six days a week this autumn. It’s a big load, so we’ll see.

The masthead photo was taken on Thanksgiving Day. An early snowfall the night before cooperated to produce a bit of decorative snow for our walk around the top of Sugarloaf Mountain in Maryland.
 

Wishing you all a wonderful 2015.

 Tim, Sheila and the girls