I was very hesitant about writing this post. I wasn’t sure if I could however it would be wrong if I don’t.

Regular readers would know how often I post about our animals and how much we love them. They are not simply our pets, they are part of our family. We have four cats: Shadow, Spartan, Bratt and Josephine. Even though we love all our cats Josephine always had a very special place in our hearts. She was always there to greet us when we got home and always had so much love to give. She would talk back when you spoke to her and her favourite was to help with the washing of dishes.

It’s is so sad that we lost her on Saturday. She was hit by a car in the morning but we only found her in the afternoon. About a week ago we were talking and said that if anything ever had to happen to her we would never be able to replace her. She was by no means just an ordinary cat. She was like a human. It was like she understood when we spoke to her. She loved water and if I ran bath water she would be there in a heartbeat. When I washed dishes she would sit with me and catch the bubbles. I have this amazing video clip of her playing in the water. She was, and always will be, extraordinary!

When we went to bed at night she would always be there. She would worm her way onto my lap and come what may she would sleep there. I could pretty much move her any which way….she always came back. Shadow seems to be the hardest hit out of the cats so far. She is looking for attention and love and is spending alot of time sleeping in the room. Much more than she used to. She is also much more vocal where before she was always the quiet one. Spartan seems to feel it but I don’t know if he understand is. Bratt is spending alot more time indoors as well. We’re hoping to adopt a new cat/kitten soon.

Josy, you will always be missed, always be loved and never forgotten. I hope you know how much we loved you. Sleep well angel.

I’ve just had a very interesting conversation. I climbed onto my normal soap box about smoking and drinking. I have very particular views regarding this.

I am referring specifically to the warning messages on cigarette boxes and the laws around smoking in public places. I by no means say that smoking is a good thing or that the way things are at the moment are a bad thing. I just simply feel that drinking/alcohol should be much higher on the list of concerns than cigarette.

You don’t hear about a multiple car pile up on the highway because someone was smoking and driving. You don’t hear about someone dying in a car accident because of a smoking driver. You don’t hear of family murders where the person had a smoking problem and had a few too many cigarettes that day. You don’t hear a young child whisper that Daddy smokes too much and then hits Mommy.

Again, I totally agree with the current laws around smoking but surely the same laws should be applied to alcohol. Put warning labels on all the bottles. We’re not allowed to call it the Rothmanns July or the Gunston 500 but yet we have the Castle Test Series. Can someone explain the difference to me?

I strongly feel that the laws and restrictions should be the same as far as alcohol and tobacco are concerned. In my view alcohol is far more damaging than tobacco. Yes, both are extremely harmful to your body but I mean on a social level. Car accidents, murders, bar fights, domestic abuse, animal abuse – alcohol abuse can lead to this.

I did a simple google search and found these two links. Take a read if you’re interested and decide for yourself. Something that was very interesting for me was the different types of death linked to alcohol that was not “self inflicted” – which to me is what smoking is to a large degree.

http://alcoholism.about.com/cs/homework/a/blfacts.htm

http://quitsmoking.about.com/cs/antismoking/a/statistics.htm

So, just to make things clear. I support the tobacco laws 100%. I know smoking is bad for you and I think the way things stand now are good. BUT – for me – alcohol is much worse. I really believe that the same rules (or as close as) should apply.

Just my opinion….

I’m at work after our early morning gym session. Of course I am here before anyone else but it’s a time to have some peace and quiet. It gets really busy here during the day. Quite hectic!!

It is a beautiful morning. It’s been rainy the last few days but this morning it’s cool and fresh. No rain yet.

Here’s to hoping it is a wonderful day today! For everyone!!

Well, 2008 is well on its way. Good bye 2007, hello 2008. Bring it on!!

First off I want to congratulate Jackie and Russel on the birth of their second son, David, on 3 January. I hope David brings you as much joy and happiness as Josh has and remember, if you ever need a baby sitter……..

We’ve had awesome weather here for the festive season but unfortunately it’s gone back to wet and miserable. Although I must admit I prefer the cooler weather. If only it wouldn’t rain.

So we went to JHB and had quite a good time. We got spoilt again and of course I got spoilt by both Willie and his parents. It was ridiculously hot in JHB too. It felt like Durban weather – hot and humid. We were busy and on the go almost the whole time we were there so by the time we got back we were tired and happy to be around our own stuff again. Even though we slept well it sure was good being back in my own bed.

Willie and I joined the gym as well. We’re really enjoying it. I had to get clearance from the Dr but fortunately that went well and I had no hassles.

So as I mentioned earlier, I got very spoilt. This is my new baby. I got a MacBook. I must admit I was a bit worried in the beginning that I wasn’t going to be able to master it but it is amazingly easy to work on and with. Everything is simple and easy. It is amazingly fast and the screen is crystal clear. I am even able to play Sims on there with no lag or any other hassles that I had on my desktop. I simply loaded everything and it works. Super fast too. I love my MacBook. Simple as that.

We also got two new games for the Xbox. They’re a little hard for me still but very nice. Now if only the silly Xbox will stop complaining about me on its blog.

We went to visit my brother over the weekend. We were finally able to give Liam his present. I am glad he enjoyed it. He has grown so much its unbelievable. He is super cute very smart. He’s got so much of his father in him that it is like looking at a miniature version of my brother. He was rather upset when it was time for us to leave which made leaving even harder but we had a really good time visiting them. I’m sure we’ll see them again soon.

Well the year has started off very well and it feels like there are not enough hours in the day. There is so much I want to do and not enough time to do it all. It’s all really exciting. I’m looking forward to this year. Willie and I spent out third Christmas and new year together and I can’t wait for the next hundred to spend with him.

Roll on 2008…..I’m ready….