Patsy and John's Web-site

2014 has been a year which has seen plenty of positives and the odd negative for the Atkinson family. Perhaps the major event and one which came as a surprise to many was the wedding of Jan and Dave. After 14 years of being together they tied the knot on Easter Saturday at Langley Priory (now a private house) just a couple of miles from their own house in Breedon. John made the traditional father of the bride speech but as he was instructed not to include anything embarrassing, keeping to his allotted 5 minutes was not a problem. I think that the pictures give a good illustration of what proved to be a very successful and happy day. The honeymoon was spent in South Africa watching the wildlife, on both land and sea. Dave was brave enough to go down in a cage to watch sharks.

Patsy and John at the Reception, Unusually with Only Water to Drink

Jan and Dave at the Ceremony, a Collectors Item as Both are Smiling
at the Same Time

A Family Gathering - Margaret, Patsy, Seth, Dave, Jan, John, Clare,
Stephen (with several cameras, phones, etc in his pockets) and Seren

Jan and Dave with the Mandatory Photograph on the Bridge

John Delivering His Speech, at Least it is Making Him Laugh

Patsy and Jan Enjoying a Joke, Could it be John's Speech; Probably Not

Jim (Best Man), Tom and Will Provide the Music for the First Dance

John's cancer has remained pretty stable for most of the year and we have tried to take advantage by going on several trips. In March we had a week in Cyprus which is a very different island to the one we first visited in 1973. Back then there were many local crafts, in particular, leatherwork but these have pretty well died out. Having said that Patsy did manage to get a locally made (and not too expensive) leather handbag. We had our first experience of a Segway which was surprisingly easy to drive. The food was still good but a lot more expensive now that Cyprus is in the Eurozone.

John and Patsy Balancing on their Segways in Front of an Ancient Building (No Holiday Would Be Complete Without a Bit of Culture)

The Mosaics in Pathos (Yet More Culture)

In May we visited Australia, staying in Manly, Brisbane and on the Sunshine Coast before spending three nights with our ex St Andrews friends in Canberra. The visit went very well although we did feel that the Sunshine Coast did not live up to its name.

On Route to Doyles on the Beach Restaurant at Watson's Bay The Remarkable Coloured Sands of Rainbow Beach Adjacent to Fraser Island

No Sydney Visit Would Be Complete Without Having a Lunch by the Opera House

Sunrise Viewed from our Apartment in Manly 'Dawn Fraser' Braving the Fresh Water Lake on Fraser Island (John Also Had a Swim but was Lucky Enough Not to be Caught on Camera)

August saw the traditional short visit to St Andrews before we went on a 9 day trip to France which included our wedding anniversary. This was not our most romantic - travelling to Portsmouth followed by dinner on the ferry and sleeping on the floor. Our two major activities in France tend to be walking and eating. Beaches and coastal paths are our favourites for walking and we found the ones in Northern Brittany to be first class. The area is also famous for its sea food which formed the basis of most of our meals, both when dining out and eating at our Gite. As usual, we topped up our 'wine cellar' with 88 bottles being purchased.

Our grandchildren under Stephen and Clare's guidance are both progressing well. Seth, now 5, is very good on his number work and reading and he continues to be very active on the sporting front. He is being encouraged to try different activities and now goes to organised cricket and rugby as well as continuing with football and swimming. He has recently taken up gymnastics which has replaced Taekwando (he may return to this if someone can extend the week to 8 days). Seren will probably follow a similar route and at the age of 2 has already started football and swimming. Stephen and Clare are still teaching at the same school and both have successfully taken to sprint triathlons this year.

Clare in Transition in the Bamburgh Triathlon School Sports with Unusual Running Headgear Durham City RUFC Recruit

Steve 'Sprinting' to the Finish in the Hartlepool Triathlon

After Swim Not Quite Sure if this is the Right Technique Ready for the World Cup

Patsy's activities are pretty well the same as last year, voluntary work, keeping fit, gardening and harassing John (in the nicest possible way). As mentioned above, John's cancer has been mostly stable but during September, he started to relapse. He has effectively run out of the best NICE approved medication but has been put on a drug called Pomalidamide which is being provided via the Cancer Drug Fund. At the time of writing, he has not undergone any tests to check whether or not it has been effective. However, an MRI scan has revealed a Myeloma cell cluster around his spine and he will be having radiotherapy to remove this after Christmas.

For those who like steam engines, all remaining Sir Nigel Gresley designed A4 Streak engines came to the North East (Shildon) in February from various parts of the world. It took John back to his days playing cricket at Wakefield Grammar as the ground had a main line to London at one end which occasionally was graced by an A4 (Union of South Africa)

Frightlingly, John at the Controls

Link to 2013 'Letter'

Link to 2012 'Letter'