Happy New Year!!!

January 3, 2008





Happy New Year!!

Girl's Night

2007 was a great year for us, we are fortunate to have health, happiness and friends and family to share the holiday season with and to welcome the New Year.

Kathy

Nadene & Trevor

The week between Christmas and New Year is the busiest time of the year in Key West, as thousands of winter weary denizens of Northern climes make the trek south for what has been ranked as one of the top 10 New Years Eve celebrations in the country. With Kathy’s Aunt Kathy, Uncle Al and cousin Al here, we got to enjoy some nice family time that was enhanced with the arrival of Kathy’s father, Jim, who made his annual trek to Key West to spend the winter here just in time to see the New Year.

Al, Kathy & Alex

Kathy & Henry

We also made it out briefly to see my friend Todd’s favorite band which was playing the New Year’s Eve gig on the pier at the Ocean Key House. Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes are friends of Todd from his hometown, New Orleans. They were damn good, playing a sort of jam band, zydeco infused brand of funk that is at once unique and familiar. Hopefully we can catch them again the next time they hit town.

Johnny Sketch

As crazy and fun as it is downtown during New Years, we actually try to avoid the craziness and enjoy invitations from friends instead. We actually had a number of options and had hoped to be able to squeeze them all in, if only for short visits. Instead we ended up going to a wonderful dinner party at the home of our friends Jim & Fiona and having such a good time that we never made it anywhere else. When the clock struck midnight, we were in great spirits and rang in the New Year with fireworks, champagne and hugs and kisses from friends. It was a wonderful night with perfect weather and amazing friends. As usual, it got a little crazy when Jim started throwing bubble mix into the hot tub, but that’s another story.







All in all we ushered 2007 out with the same spirit of fun and good nature that we spent most of the year trying to achieve. The prospects for 2008 seem cautiously optimistic. At the very least we’ll give it our best shot. Things don’t really slow down this month, as the dual sessions of the Key West Literary Seminar get underway and a writer friend from Chicago stays with us as she attends the seminar. Happy New Year everyone!!




Johnny Sketch Website

Dachshund Walk

December 31, 2007





Dachshund Walk







The third annual Dachshund Walk was held on New Year’s Eve day at noon. Our friends Ruth & Dan Reiter organize the event which started 3 years ago with a gathering of around 30 wiener dogs and their owners taking a short stroll. The event has grown significantly with about 120 dogs last year and close to 100 this year.









The crowd watching was by far the largest yet as crowds lined the path along Duval to watch the dachshunds parade past. The event exemplifies all the best parts of Key West, spontaneity, uniqueness, fun and funny. It has very little organization other than simple instructions of when and where to meet with a short simple walking route to follow and that’s it. There is the humorous attempt at getting a group photo on the front steps of the courthouse. Trying to get over 100 dogs and their owners to pose is great fun to watch, and somehow they manage to pull it off each year.







It’s still hard to believe that Key West is home to so many dachshunds and also to the amazing variations found in the breed. Of course there are a few ringers as well, wannabes who try to blend in without being noticed, all are welcome but the day belongs to the lovable wiener dogs and their eclectic owners.

Congrats and Thanks to Ruth and Dan and all who helped make this event possible. See you all again next year!