I am posting today's entry in the blog a bit early as I have just returned from the hospital and I plan to hit the rack to get rested up prior to heading on in to work. Yesterday afternoon I got my appointment for another lithotripsy procedure. Maybe this time I'll get an early Christmas present and they'll finish off the damn thing. Sure hope so. Although I am grateful that it is free and the response from the doctors is so quick, it is getting a little tired. All my working life I spent running around in the woods with a knife between my teeth training like a crazy man so that I could keep up and indeed lead the 18-25 year olds and here it is only two years after retirement and I have these damn kidney stones. I had always thought that if you took care of the old carcass, then it would take care of you. Today, at least, the anaesthetist, after asking all the questions about allergies, heart murmurs etc that they always do prior to giving you the anaesthetic told me that other than the kidney stones, from his side of medicine, I was of unusually good health. I guess that's something to be grateful for at least.

The big storm seems to have passed us by (Praise Be!) and all we got was some rain but not nearly as much as some paces got last week. Peri was even able to brave the light this morning to exit the building and make his rounds.

We received a Christmas Card this morning from our good friends from Ombre Rose. It was great to receive and to hear from them but it has emphasised that we have sent out no cards ourselves - zero, ziltch, nada. We are ashamed! The excuse that we offer is that we have both been ill. Barb usually likes to take the time to make up our own cards and she does a great job of it too, but not this year.

So let me take this opportunity to wish everyone reading this, both those friends that we have met and those that we will meet in the future, a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Hopefully the early new year will find us back in Deltaville and afloat again; hopefully those of you who are planning your trip will find yourself closer to your goal; and hopefully those of you on the trip will find that it is everything that you had dreamed that it would be.

Short post. Off to bed.

ZZZZzzzzzzzzz.......