Xmas has been and gone and I barely sent out a card, so it's time for a online summary of the year (especially as I've only got the pictures updated on this site until mid-April). We began 2011 in some very wintry weather by driving up to Orkney so Tracy could interview for a 6 month contract on Hoy, the southwest island of the archipelago. She took the job which combines GP work with being on call all the time, serving a community of about 400 people. After a couple of months in a holiday cottage she and Barny moved into the official Doctor's House near Longhope. Meanwhile Tim continued to work in Nairn and travel up to Hoy for weekends and holidays.
First big trip of the year took Tim to Pittsburgh for a conference a few days before Tracy arrived and we both drove to see her family and friends in the Binghamton NY area. We continued to Boston where we met more friends and Tim ran the marathon in perfect conditions in 2:58:10, a little behind the winner who ran the fastest marathon of all time.
Then we headed south for our friend Carie's wedding and to see family in the Washington DC area before returning to the UK for the best weather of the year at the end of April. We had a very enjoyable weekend in Aberdeen while some wedding was taking place in England. The rest of the summer was fairly settled weatherwise in Orkney (it can be a very windy place at times) but never warm, while Inverness' weather was very uninspiring. A group of our friends enjoyed a long weekend on Hoy in July when we finally found it useful having such a big house.
The first hot summer weather we encountered was on a trip to Southwest Germany in August, beginning in the Roman outpost of Trier, staying with friends in the Rheinhessen wine growing area and then travelling in a loop through Belgium and Luxemburg. When we moved back to the UK part of the reason was to do more European travelling but so far we've been very unsuccessful at even getting to England.
Heidelberg
With Tracy back working hard on Hoy (having decided to stay for a further year) Tim was able to enjoy a weekend with old friends at the hut near Killin (central Scotland) where we used to hill walk and party back in the 1980's. Some of the friends have maintained the place over the years but we finally decided that with electricity cut off and water supply a problem it was time to give up the hut and with it a significant portion of our youthful memories. A very wet Sunday morning with water pouring through the roof made the decision easier!
September's highlight was the wedding of Tim's old school and college friend Doug (on another very wet day). The beginning of the month also saw the start of Inverness parkrun which Tim had been helping plan over the previous few months. All in all Tim had quite a successful running year with especially good times in 3 half marathons. Other than running the famous Boston Marathon the highlight was undoubtedly coming second in the 25th running of the annual half marathon on Hoy, giving the doctor's husband a measure of "celebrity".
Once again Tracy was stuck on Hoy while Tim enjoyed a weekend of excellent weather in November with friends in Oban on the west coast of Scotland, but she was safely out of the way when Tim had to move our "mainland house" from Inverness to Nairn. Despite the great location of our old place Tim finally got tired of commuting across Inverness and found a flat near his work in Nairn. We ended the year hosting Tim's parents over a stormy Xmas in Hoy, followed by a few good weather days to round out 2011 after they had left.
All in all it was a good year for us and our families, though we'll be looking forward to actually both finding jobs we like in the same geographical location in 2012. All the best for the forthcoming year,
Tracy, Tim and Barny
On the south coast of Hoy
Old Man of Hoy, the island's most famous feature
Ring of Brogar on mainland Orkney
