We hope that you are well and look forward to seeing you as we move into what we hope are better times.

As sadly, it’s been another year of Covid we have rather less to report than usual as everyone has had activity curtailed by conditions. The speed of development of the vaccine has been truly astonishing compared with other events in clinical progress and the mobilisation of public health: human innovation and human fallacy have sometimes been on display in equal measure.

Teresa and David returned to the UK in December and did very little as they were quite put out by the lack of mask wearing, social distancing etc. in London compared with Dublin (we left before their peak).David’s contract to prepare a tender document for a new system for the Valuation Office in Dublin was winding down with only the occasional day of on-line work, so he was able to ease into retirement.

In London we stayed at home, went for walks along the Thames and in the Surrey Hills, and generally kept a low profile obeying the rules. We were both vaccinated at our local centre with impressive efficiency by army medics and as conditions eased, we actually managed to get away to Cornwall in May. The cottage was just what was needed – it was in a hamlet between Bodmin moor and the coast and we could walk to the local shops for supplies along the winding lanes. We found lots to see and do – gardens were open and spring was in full swing, on the coastal path and beaches (yes, we did have sunny days). We celebrated David’s birthday at Rick Stein’s restaurant in Padstow. However, at that stage it was outside dining only… so we had a table on the roof terrace as the sunset. Luckily, they provided blankets as needed and we could see the trawlers tied up on the quay opposite as night fell, so the seafood was of course excellent. We also went to the Camel Valley Vineyard and experienced an English wine tasting al fresco. Unsurprisingly we found it very cold climate albeit award –winning bubbly and still white wine, however it changed a lot in the glass as we sat and admired their panorama . Luckily, we managed to visit Cornwall before G7 and the crowds in weather, which enabled us to appreciate the wonderful countryside.

In June, we were able to visit friends’ holiday cottage in South Wales and do some excellent walks in the Brecon Beacons and in brilliant sunshine, which was a bonus. We then moved on to Bath to catch up with the owners and enjoy a couple more very sunny days seeing the city sights and local countryside with them, something we hadn’t managed to do for a while.

Following that, as the market opened up, the Dublin flat was sold to a couple of medics and so we had to move out in August. Not only had Teresa accumulated much more than she thought, but also we had to go back and decide what was worth shipping to France and what to London- shipping being almost prohibitively expensive. We donated to nearby charities, but even that was difficult, and everything goes much more slowly at this pandemic time. We were also delighted to be able to visit friends individually to take our leave: dining with them on sunny days (!) in their gardens (as was allowed). As I am to be a visiting professor, I hope that it’s a bit more like ‘au revoir’. We also managed a few of our favourite Dublin mountain walks and shall miss them and the daily view of those hills and Dublin Bay, which we had got surprisingly used to. Teresa has now retired from the full time Directorship, but has retained her PhD and Masters students and an external Committee role. It felt like a good time to go as the unit is established and she has met her KPIs! An unexpected side effect of WFH has been that we have managed to publish more than before, win a national award and the pandemic afforded Teresa the opportunity to join a global team and publish a suite of reviews concerning the worldwide educational response to Covid (pivoting to on-line). We travelled to London with a packed car and she was very moved indeed by the Irish passport officer who first interrogated her as to why she was leaving and then thanked her for her service to the Irish state.

Somehow, the extra goods and chattel have had to be fitted in to Poplar Grove, but it all needs sorting through and re-furbishment, so we started on this. However once we were allowed to travel it became obvious that we needed to go to see the house in France, which we had not returned to since February 2020. We drove down in the car via Eurotunnel, limiting exposure. Once we had arrived it was evident that the French were actively pursuing public health with masks, the’ Tous Anti Covid Sanipass’ on your phone (both needed to go shopping, restaurants, etc. and routinely asked for and shown). We were impressed with the adherence to rules but we were also able to be outside a lot of the time- it has only really got cold in mid-November. We initially had to fight our way in past the waist high garden, and David spent a week strimming and burnt out the strimmer so had to be upgraded to a more powerful one, such was the need! We had workmen for the house from the roof downwards and Teresa’s French vocabulary has been suitably enriched. David’s home eco-project has produced a heat pump, which seems to work well and he can monitor and regulate from an App on his phone. We also managed to crowd fund a vineyard in Languedoc, which we visited twice, staying with the friends who dreamt the rescue project up, eventually having a wonderful post vendage supper in the vineyard’s olive grove. We hosted friends to al fresco dining once our prolific greenery was under control and engaged with the full autumn ‘Ventoux Saveurs’ experience- local events showcasing local people and produce. This culminated in a jazz evening in a nearby vineyard, the French owners having latterly decamped from London. David took his bike from Dublin to France and has begun exploring some of the local roads; which are quiet but hilly compared to London and offer many great views.

We still had lots to do on France, but as we had only packed summer clothing (!) and had lots to do in London we returned in mid-November… to more unpacking and sorting out. We have missed a lot this year- luckily Luke could go to a family wedding in Mexico, but we are catching up with him in December for Christmas in Key Largo Florida, hence these early greetings. We are delighted that we will also be able to meet up with cousins Ann and John, and Mary and Paul in Naples Florida. Therefore, Christmas this year will be very special.

Luke started the year on Australia’s beaches but swiftly returned to America’s lockdown and his new job at Cooley LLP in San Francisco, where the mergers & acquisitions market has showed no signs of slowing.  Professionally Luke’s year began with advising some household names on acquisitions (including quarantine fan favourite Zoom) before ending by being chosen to lead his first deal team in selling a long time FinTech client of the firm to U.S. Bank (the second oldest charted bank in America).  Alongside this “paid” work, Luke has enjoyed working on Pro-Bono projects including work for the Melanoma Research Foundation the largest independent organisation focused on tackling the deadliest form of skin cancer.

 He has however found plenty of time to enjoy himself outside of work, welcoming the return of travel (after a second date with the Pfizer vaccine) by visiting friends in Virginia and LA; as well as attending a fantastic celebration on the western coast of Mexico in Sayulita for his cousin Jess’s marriage where he spontaneously decided to jump out of a plane (only telling the parents after he had safely touched down on the beach).  Within California Luke also engaged in the usual seasonal skiing adventures in Lake Tahoe, climbed the nearly 10,000ft peak of Clouds Rest overlooking Yosemite Valley, and made trips to Napa to keep the faith with the family’s long-standing tradition of wine tasting.  Additionally, he welcomed back the safe return of live music concerts by going to festivals in Las Vegas and San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park as well as chasing down British band Wolf Alice at an intimate show in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  He has also started to get back into his antics of getting involved with “extra-curricular” activities by taking leadership positions in the American Bar Association’s Business Law Section and Young Lawyer Division, organising amongst other thing a panel on Environmental Social and Governance matters for the former’s annual conference; he has also just been appointed to the Board of Directors of the Bar Association of San Francisco’s Barristers Club for a three year term (the parents are feeling a strong sense of déjà vu at this all).  Lastly, after a few years of dog sitting everyone else’s canine pals Luke is going to be starting the new year with a new companion, currently just a few weeks old and living in Texas he’ll be picking her up on his way back from meeting the(dog) disapproving parents (and extended family) in Florida after Christmas.

Matthew started the first few months of the year working through the EY audit busy season like everyone else from his makeshift home office/old bedroom. With very few other distractions (due to the lack of televised sport), his clients were very grateful for the increased efficiency through this period. To get him through this tough time he decided to prove his beard growing abilities by fashioning his upper lip with a moustache, please see the attached images to form your own opinion of his success. Matthew was also able to pass his next set of accounting exams, looking forward to the final set in May 2022 and full qualification in September.

As soon as the rules allowed, Matt made his way back to the sports field, recommencing his touch training and tournaments in April. What followed was a flurry of weekends travelling around the country to participate in the various regional and National tournaments his team, EY London Vipers, had entered. This culminated in him being selected for the South East Mixed Open team, the Taipans (another kind of snake) at the England Nationals competition held in Nottingham in August. After a great tournament, the team narrowly lost in the final to the sister south east team, The Sharks, finally resolving the long held discussion about who would win in a fight between a snake and a shark.

In between these weekends, Matt gained his level 1 touch referee badge and reffed at the top club tournament in England. Having done the required course he is looking to get the full promotion to level 2 next summer. The end of the touch rugby session marked the start of the rugby Union season, try to keep up. Matt began the weekly Saturday ritual of travelling around London (and even as far as Buxton) to keep 30 angry men in line for 80 minutes. With some good reports from the ref coaches, he is looking to progress to higher levels in the near future and maybe even reffing abroad in 2022.

All our good wishes for happiness and health in the coming year and let’s hope we can all meet up in person again in 2023!

— Teresa, David, Luke, & Matthew —