THE END OF ANOTHER YEAR

Another year over and a new one just about to begin. Time for New Year’s Resolutions methinks. I always set resolutions, for me, they are just a continuation of the goal setting I do throughout the year. Of course, I don’t always achieve everything, but I always hit at least half of them, and make a stab at the rest.

One of my absolute highlights was when I was walking to work yesterday, and I saw a Robin, about a foot away from me. I stood and looked at him, he seemed totally unafraid. I so wanted to get my camera out and take a photograph (I should have got my camera out) but I was afraid of scaring him away.

I also like to reflect on things that have happened during the year, to me and the rest of the world. Some of my 2015 resolutions and achievements were:

• To finish my writing course – I did, in March, six months earlier than expected. I’ve done two other short writing courses since.

• To try to improve my photography – I’ve made a conscious effort to do this throughout the year. The next three are mine, so see what you think.

• Be published more – I’ve done that too. I’m still not making enough to live on, but it’s moving in the right direction. That one will be on the list for next year. There is a particular magazine that I’ve wanted to be published in for a couple of years now, but I’ve never actually written the piece. I’m aiming for that next year.

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What about the rest of the world? What happened in 2014? Here are few things, not all good.
January – 14 people were killed after the collapse of a three-story building construction site in Goa, India. Water vapour was discovered on the dwarf planet, Ceres, the largest object in the asteroid belt. A Taliban suicide car bomb assassinated senior police officer Chaudhry Aslam and killed three others in Pakistan.

February – the winter Olympics took place in Sochi, with over 2,800 athletes taking part. Same sex marriage was legalised in Scotland. Scientists at the Australian National University discovered the oldest known star -13.6 billion years old.

March – Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 disappeared over the South China Sea with 239 people on board. There is still no news as to what happened. Crimea voted to leave Ukraine, and the Republic of Crimea was declared. The United States closed the Syrian embassy in Washington and expelled all Syrian diplomats from the USA.

April – Peter Gabriel, Daryl Hall & John Oates, Kiss, Nirvana, Linda Ronstadt and Cat Stevens were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. (Yay!) David Moyes was sacked as manager of Manchester United. (Poor old David, I like him.) Twelve Nepalese climbers were killed by an avalanche on Mount Everest whilst preparing the route for the summer climbing season. A umber of other people were injured.

May – Conchita Wurst (the one with the beard) won the Eurovision Song Contest with Rise like a Phoenix. The Santa Maria, Christopher Columbus’ flagship (we all remember that from school, don’t we?) was discovered off the coast of Haiti. Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City were each fined €60 million for breaching Fair Play Regulations. For Man City, this was something to do with a sponsorship deal with Etihad, PSG’s was to do with a deal with Qatar Tourism Authority.

June – Maria Sharapova won the French Open women’s tennis singles and Rafael Nadal won his ninth French Open title. Sir Ian McKellen was awarded an honorary degree by Cambridge University, becoming a Doctor of Letters (that’s higher than a PhD in this country). Water Lilies, by Claude Monet, was sold at auction for £32m.

July – The Church of England voted to allow women to become bishops. TransAsia Airways Flight 222 crashed into buildings in Taiwan killing 44 people. Taghrooda, a British Thoroughbred, won the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth stakes at Ascot.

August – The UK commemorated the 100th anniversary of its declaration of war against Germany in the First World War. By 12 August, the death toll from the Ebola virus in West Africa exceeded 1000. William Pooley, a British nurse working in Sierra Leone, flew back to the UK for emergency treatment after contracting the Ebola virus. Fortunately, he survived, and has returned to Sierra Leone.

September – Scotland voted against becoming an independent nation. Serena Williams beat Caroline Wozniacki in the US Open for the third year running. The archaeological remains of a Viking fortress from the 900s CE, the Vallø Borgring, were discovered in Denmark.

October – New Zealand, Malaysia, Angola, Spain and Venezuela were all elected to the United Nations Security Council. Richard Flanagan’s novel The Narrow Road to the Deep North won the 2014 Man Booker Prize. Oscar Pistorius was sentenced to five years in prison for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

November – One World Trade Centre, the fourth tallest skyscraper in the world (at the time of writing) officially opened in New York. This was 13 years after the 11 September attack. Celebrations were held in Germany to mark the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. After voting in favour of allowing them to become bishops in July, the Church of England adopted the legislation necessary to enable them to be appointed.

December – The UN warned that the world is on course for the warmest year ever. I don’t think they’ll get much disagreement round here. At least 141 people, including 132 children, were killed when the Taliban attacked a school in Peshawar, Pakistan. The wonderful Joe Cocker passed away at the age of 70.