OMG! 2008 in review

Introducing Eddie...

I just realized it's the end of the year. I'm just not paying attention to time.

In the past, I'm usually busy cooking all day, following the Japanese tradition of having a feast on New Year's Day. This year, I haven't even thought about it. I think I better go down to the nearby Marukai and pick up some sushi and mochi. I'm really getting lazy!

ANYWAY, here are the highlights of 2008!

CROCHET
Probably the biggest change this year was that I started crocheting. I guess that doesn't sound that big, but it really spun off into new directions. I discovered amigurumi and learned to improvise my own patterns. I joined a great community of yarn crafters on Ravelry. I made a ton of mutts and alley cats and sold them to benefit animals in need at the Best Friends Animal Society. I even got my mom and her friends interested in amigurumi and she's really enjoying it. I opened up a store on etsy called "Mutts" where I'm selling my amigurumi and patterns.

GARDENING
My SPF hobby business had a few new acquisitions. I finally got a new car, a Honda Element so I can actually carry more cargo. This made a big difference in my quality of life. I started a new garden at my father-in-laws house and he takes an interest in the garden and we have more bonding time. I started a worm bin in January and it’s expanded nicely. I got a food dehydrator over the summer and started drying fruits and veggies. My husband built me a new light bar for my seedlings and I’m now growing the best ones yet.

ECONOMIC CRISIS
It’s been a really bad year for everyone economically, so I’m glad to have the garden to supply our veggies. Gas prices went up to $4.50 gallon over the summer, so I bought a bike and started riding as much as possible. In a few months, shockingly, gas prices fell to $1.75 in December, so the bike is gathering dust for now. We’ve been cutting expenses as much as possible. The computer doesn’t stay on all the time anymore and the air conditioner wasn’t turned on in the heat of the summer.

TENNIS
I said goodbye to my tennis team. I’ve invested a lot of time to tennis over the years and I’m finding it harder and harder to stay motivated towards it. I’ve got my mind on other things right now, so I’m giving league tennis a break, although I’ll still play now and then to keep in touch with friends.

EDDIE
And last, but not least, this weekend we adopted Eddie. He’s a very sweet, alert, 8 month old and we hope he’ll be a good companion for Dusty.