Xmas letter

Here is the Xmas letter I sent out to my friends and family with a photo of my cats snuggled in a chair.

Merry Christmas to all my family and friends. This year was high adventure in Jordan’s place. At the start of the new year, I was enrolled in a few online dating services trying to find love. Disappointed, I cancelled my subscriptions by mid-January. Even more aggravating was waiting for my friend Julie’s cat to give birth. I was promised my kitten would be born around Christmastime. After Valentine’s Day, on Feb. 22, my Precious was born ( a name from Lord of the Rings) with 6 brothers and sisters. He joined a pit bill named Chopper who thinks he is a cat and 2 kittens from a prior litter, Guts and Tosey, in addition to a family of 4 humans. It was much relief after hearing about how tired Dad was after his radiation treatments. Mom continues to wait for her kitchen addition to be finished.
Spring came with a human addition to our family. Joelle Claire blessed my cousin Tammy’s and newlywed husband Samer’s family of dogs. My baby kitten came home as a trembling tiny shrimp at 2.2 lbs. at our first vet visit. My friend Julie was positive my Precious was a girl, but when I took Precious to be spayed it was discovered she is a him and was neutered instead. Tiny shrimp no more, he is over 10 lbs and still growing. About this time, my second cat Frodo (also a name from Lord of the Rings) was born Apr. 29 with his 4 sisters at an animal shelter. In the meantime, I took Precious over to my sister’s house to play with her cats. One cat hid while the other cat bopped Precious on the head to play as cats do. Alas, when my sister got a new leather chair and Precious’s claw poked a hole in it, he was banished from my sister’s house. I went on the prowl for a playmate for my baby. I volunteered briefly at the Animal Rescue League and joked how tempting it is to stuff a kitten in one’s pocket and run out the door. I wanted to take home every kitten I saw and from this indecision selected another shelter to choose a playmate with a clearer head.

May came to see my niece Abby graduate from high school as salutatorian and receiving many scholarships and awards to study to be an English teacher. Mom reported Dad was cancer free and attending his 50th high school reunion. Is he that old? I announced another season at Living History Farms, this time in the Indian Farm section. Summer brought my nieces Abby’s and Alex’s dance recital. Abby did her senior solo to an Irish jig she created herself. The next day was niece Tory’s softball tournament where she pitched and switched hit. At this time, uncle Marvin came over to attend his 50th high school reunion and brought a picture show of his new house and gardens in Spokane, WA. He visited everyone he could during his stay and I had the privilege of escorting him to the Brooks Family Reunion (Mom’s side).
With Precious banished, I searched online for local animal shelters for new kittens who would be eager to play with another kitten. I found a no-kill shelter and visited 2 hours playing with the baby kittens. There was the litter where Frodo came from and 2 kittens who were found at a construction site. I chose Frodo because he was the biggest and would be available first. In Iowa, an animal shelter can not release any animal until it is spayed or neutered, which occurs when a kitten is 12 weeks old and weighing 3 lbs. I reserved Frodo and waited until I could take him home in August. I went to Milo on the 4th of July to see the parade and later came back to Des Moines to visit my friend Teresa’s barbeque. We walked around a park in Windsor Heights and saw fireworks exploding over Sec Taylor Stadium (sorry…over Principal Park). At the end of July, my sister took her family to Colorado. I came over to feed the cats and water her tomatoes. On the last day the tomatoes were watered twice when a neighbor feared they were being neglected. I collected Frodo right after she left and felt nervous leaving him alone with a pouncing Precious. At the shelter, Frodo shook when I picked him up in my arms, but clung to me when he met Precious. Eventually, Frodo settled into his new home and waved his paw to entice Precious to play. Now, they love to cuddle for naps and groom each other. In the Christmas picture, Frodo is on the left and Precious is on the right. Right before Sylvia’s family came back, my sister Diane and her girls spent the night in her house on the way to pick up Alex visiting my parents’ house in Milo. After church services with my parents, they all came back to Des Moines and we had dinner at a restaurant before meeting my cats.

Fall came too quick and I briefly volunteered at the Governor’s Mansion learning to give tours. My birthday was celebrated at a pizza place with my parents and my sister Sylvia’s family. The same month saw my cousin Brian get married and his bride Kathryn’s bridal shower at my aunt Virginia’s house. The wedding ceremony was sweet and simple inside a little country church on the Waukee side of West Des Moines. I hosted my first and last Tupperware party attended by one friend and the neighbor girls who came to play with my cats. At least my friend and I got all the prizes without playing the games. Hospital visits were in order when my Dad’s cancer returned in another place and Mom’s stomach test went wrong cutting 3 holes in her throat, which got infected. October brought my niece Tory’s confirmation and hearing all about niece Abby’s adventures at college. We discussed potential holiday plans. Sylvia will do the family Christmas this year. I thought of getting a third cat at the shelter where I got Frodo, but my apartment manager only allows 2 cats. I would have a zoo in my home if I had the money and space. No, I do not need Animal Lover’s Anonymous. My kitties experienced their first snow and detest wet paws. I worked Thanksgiving with so much business that the computers went down the next day. At least I had an excuse for not getting my work done. I received copies of my book that I wrote for niece Abby and paid a publisher a small fortune to print for me. Give me $12 and I will send you a copy complete with autograph.
I sent in an article for the opinion page of the Des Moines Register about my volunteer experiences and the editor wished to use it during the holiday season. I will be on the lookout for that this December. My niece Alex will be in The Nutcracker without sister Abby this year. I started my Christmas shopping at the Dollar Store and hope to get my book listed on the popular website amazon.com when my finances recover. Just when I’m broke and have no money from getting my book published, my car needs replacement parts. The kitties love playing with my Christmas village pieces, napping on the fuzzy tree skirt, and pawing at the hanging ornaments on the tree. So far, the tree has crashed once courtesy of Frodo. Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Love Always,
Jordan