New Year
A little retrospective on the last year. 2025 has on the whole been a very good year for me. Most of 2024 was a bit of a write off as I spent a lot of it either having operations on my foot or recovering from them, but early 2025 I was broadly recovered and we started looking for our new home.
That occupied us for nearly three months and basically involved J and I shooting round almost every part of Scotland looking for the right house, as R was working full time. I came up with a list of criteria a) period property which would be suitable for the inherited furniture b) in a town or large village with amenities c) railway station d) access to a decent airport c) separate flat or cottage for J d) quiet e) a nice garden for the cats. We had the whole of UK to chose from but our preferred area were Scotland, Cumbria or Norfolk. With such a big area, you would think it would be fairly easy to find the right house, but actually it was quite difficult. Norfolk we could never find anything cheap enough in a nice area. Cumbria was basically killed off by the lack of an airport. The north of Scotland had initially proved promising, and we had come close to buying a property in Forres, but right at the last minute, R came up trumps and found Castlebank House. This had been severely mis-marketed as it was listed on Rightmove as having four bedrooms which caused us to miss it as too small, and it was only R finding an alternative site which listed property by floor size that found it.
R and I went to see it at the end of Feb and we basically knew from the moment we walked up the drive that we would buy it. There then followed 3 crazy months of renovations with J and I living in the property and R commuting backwards and forwards to Argyll. During that period we had plumbers, electricians, builders, decorators, tilers, internet installers, joiners, carpet layers and roofers – not all at the same time but often multiple trades simultaneously. Plus of course there was me project managing and doing my own decorating. This was all incredibly hard work and stressful.
But then it was over, and we have had four months of relative peace. I have to say that moving here has been a good move – we all love the house and the town itself, and I at least have taken advantage of some of the opportunities offered in the area. I may well be doing less of these things next year as it looks as though I may have been head hunted for an opportunity not to be missed (more on this later).
Today, R and I drove over to my Mum’s in Helensburgh, leaving J looking after the cats. Here I am in Colquhoun Square.
My brother made a super buffet and we had a nice glass of champagne at the bells.
