Yeah, I've been really good at keeping up with this journal. REALLY GOOD...not.

That being the case I am going to wipe the slate clean and start over in 2009.

In the meantime here's a quick rundown from July to December:

Attended two more model horse shows: One was FABULOUS and Model Brenda (aka "The Beast") did FANTASTIC! I couldn't have been more proud. Yeah, I cried like a bitch with skinned knee.

The second show was a NAN card safari, plain and simple. It was one of the worst run shows I've ever seen. But I had a great time with Capt Red and scored the biggest pile of NAN cards I've ever managed to in one day.

I lost my eldest cat, Grimmys to complications of advanced age he was eighteen.

I lost Koji (from "Busted" fame) to complications of diabetes and congenital kidney disease. She was nine.

I lost Snapper (aka Snowball, Gabby Abby, White Kitty) to what I suspect may have been an undiagnosed heart condition. She was a rescue so I do not know her exact age, she was approximately seven to ten years old.

I lost Baldwin, my beloved curmudgeonly Chinese Crested. He had a stroke and died of what was probably a massive stroke several hours later. He was also a rescue and probably in the neighbourhood of ten or so.

Baldwin was a miracle dog and surpassed all expectations from his horrible beginnings in a puppy mill. I got him as a severely damaged two or three year old. He had never had human contact until his rescue and he was in dire straights with a severe kidney infection. After a year and a half in rescue (he was about 2-3 at this point) I was able to adopt him and bring him into my crazy family.

Baldwin never looked back and always bounded ahead taking every challenge at his own pace. He cheated death and overcame surmounting obstacles in his short but fulfilled life.

Those are the highlights of the last several months, kinda like a crappy Christmas letter in a card from someone you thought had fallen off the face of the Earth. Fa la la la bah humbug.

Raise a glass and kiss 2008's ass good bye!

Peach out Apricots!