Tom - R.I.P.

It saddens me... I suspect that my neighbor's cat Tom has gone to kitty heaven. He has been a fixture in the neighborhood for the past 10 years or so and was the mellowest cat that could be. This past summer Tom was diagnosed with cancer in his hindquarters; a leg amputation may have saved him. However, his owner said that this would mean keeping this outdoor cat inside, something that she decided would break his spirit.

He often spent his time lounging in my backyard away from his own which is shared with several dogs. When I would come home and open the garage door, Tom occasionally sauntered through as a shortcut to my yard, inviting me to follow to share in a bit of company. Some nights I still peer outside the patio doors and envision him curled up on the chaise, awash in the soft glow of icicle lights hanging under the canvas canopy of my garden gazebo. The last time I saw Tom was just before the long Thanksgiving weekend.

I haven't stopped by my neighbor's to inquire and will just give it awhile. In the meantime, I plan on getting this photo I took of Tom last year to have it enlarged and framed as a holiday gift. Tom, may you rest in peace.

Changes

Here it's been just shy of a year since my last website revamp, and I am at it again. Seems that I was unable to find time (or motivation) to maintain the site other than to update my blog musings (rantings, postings... whatever). Those irons in the fire you may have read about, in no particular detail? Still there, some ditched, some new. Sooo, by consolidating my various webpages into this single blog-centric website, I am hoping to have simplified my site maintenance and still have some semblance of control (and save some dinero when my web host transfer is complete).

Now to spend the last month of 2006 contemplating steps to simplify everything else about my life.