The Year In Review

This year, as are most nowadays, was a mixed bag of good and not-so-good.

I made another photography trip to Tanzania and got to share the trip with three friends I met on a previous trip. Despite the terrible drought, Tanzania did  not disappoint. We had lots of wonderful elephant sightings, and we even got to spend some time photographing my favorite big cat, the elusive leopard. This was a great trip that provided fun, lots of amazing wildlife and endless opportunities to improve my photography.

We saw so many elephants during this trip, including a lot of cute baby elephants. This bodes well for the survival of this threatened species.

I returned to Alaska on a photography trip, where we were blessed with clear weather on three successive days over Denali, the tallest mountain in North America at 20,310 feet. There was no wildlife to be seen during this trip aside from one moose along the side of a road. Well, the only wildlife found in abundance were mosquitoes -- lots and lots of mosquitoes.

I spent some time on another photography trip, to Iceland, a country I have wanted to visit for several years. Most of the time was spent photographing landscapes and many, many waterfalls. But getting to photograph some of the beautiful Icelandic horses was a real treat.

My travels were limited to only three trips this year, after the outrageous cost of airfare prompted me to cancel my Christmas-in-Rome trip. Maybe next year.

The bad thing that happened, the worst thing possible, was having to say goodbye to my beloved dog Benny. He was my heart dog, a wonderful, sweet, loving, golden retriever/corgi. He suffered from an ailment that our veterinarian could not diagnose, despite repeated x-rays and blood tests.

After Benny died, I started the search for an adoptable adult male golden. Unfortunately, adoptable goldens are almost impossible to find in my state. But a dear friend in North Carolina lived near a 16-month-old male golden in need of a better home. He was driven to me in early August. His name is Jett, and although he is no Benny, my other dog loves him. They play, chase and wrestle constantly. His leash manners need work, but we are working with a trainer on that. And he is a very sweet dog.

My daughter and grandson came to visit for Thanksgiving, and she even did all the cooking and clean-up. My dogs were not thrilled to have a very active toddler in the house.

All in all, 2023 wasn't a bad year. I remained healthy, I got to travel, and I am looking forward to a good 2024.