Sue & Tim Metcalf
235 Cayuga Rd. • Lake Orion, MI 48362 • (248)690-7192

 

December 2009

Another year has come and (nearly) gone. Let's take a look back at some of the major events of this year.

We spent the 2008 Christmas holiday with Chris and Sarah. They are renting a very nice condo in the Greenwood section of Seattle. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We'll be in Seattle for Christmas again this year.

In June Tim's father passed away after a brief battle with liver cancer and complications of a broken hip. Hundreds of friends and acquaintances attended his memorial service and confirmed that he liked everyone and everyone liked him. We will miss him.

We raced the Bayview Mackinac Race again this summer. Our crew was made up of Chris, four of his friends from Seattle, his girlfriend's father, a long time friend from Dearborn and Tim. Once again we had a great first leg and a letdown on the second leg, finishing deep in the fleet. Still, the crew enjoyed themselves and is already looking forward to the 2010 race. After the race Sue and Tim spent a week and a half bringing the boat home, making several stops on the Michigan side of Lake Huron.

Tim's sailing adventure this year was a 4,000nm crossing of the South Atlantic Ocean. In September and October he helped some friends take their new 50-foot catamaran from Cape Town, South Africa to Fortaleza, Brazil, with brief stops at St. Helena and Ascension Island. The trip took about six weeks, including about 30 days at sea. It's an adventure that will not soon be forgotten. See our Flickr page for photographs of the trip.

Sue's embroidery business continues to keep her busy. She started a second company called “The ClintRMint Company” that makes horse treats. The treats are made from a list of secret ingredients, and they're topped with a peppermint. Sue sells them through several local tack shops. Sales have been brisk, especially around the holidays. Horses love them!

Tim earned his US Coast Guard 50-Ton Masters license this year. Now that he has his license he hopes to be hired to deliver boats on the Great Lakes. He will also be teaching the USCG Captain's License course, working for the Captain who taught the course that he took.

Chris and Sarah are enjoying life in Seattle. The startup that Chris joined in 2008 changed its mission and its name. It's now called Socrata. Sarah is an athletic trainer; among other assignments she is the trainer for the Seattle Roller Derby team, the Rat City Rollergirls.

We're officially “crazy cat people” now. In the spring we adopted a black newborn kitten (Nigel) and a neighbor's gray tabby (Taz). With Taffy, our 13-year old orange long hair we now have three cats!

It has been a satisfying year for us, and we hope for you too. Best wishes for an enjoyable holiday season, and for a challenging and rewarding new year. If your travels find you in the Detroit area, please stop and see us.