Hello and welcome back! We’re two weeks into 2024 and I don’t know how to feel. My last post was published November 6, 2022… so, what happened in 2023?
Well, 2023 was a mixture of sadness and happiness. In terms of sadness, some of my favorite musicians passed away. To name a few: David Crosby, Harry Belafonte, Gordon Lightfoot, Sixto Rodriguez (the OG mysterious musician), Steve Harwell, Greg “Fingers” Taylor, and of course, Jimmy Buffett. In terms of happiness, the Lostwave community hit a new record for most identified songs in a year (143 songs!), surpassing 2021’s record of 124. Metrics gathered from this list. December 2023 alone closed cases on some of the community’s most sought after songs, specifically: “Filthy Frank’s Kenya Dance” was identified as “Katonda Alinawe” by David SonJC (watch episode for mystery), and “Fond My Mind” as “Feels Like A Wish” by Station K (watch episode for mystery). Since the beginning of recorded music, countless talented musicians have gone unrecognized. Thanks to Lostwave, some of these musicians and their songs can be enjoyed and remembered forever.
In November 2023, I ran a site update. This resulted in my notifications reverting back to an old email address, so no messages had been sent successfully from the contact and submit mysterious music forms. If you tried to submit a message to me between November 2023 and now, I didn’t get it and I apologize for keeping you waiting. Please consider resending your message, if it’s not too much trouble.
Now it’s 2024. I have a lot to look forward to, but it hasn’t been off to a good start. My cat (Snowpuff) had to be rushed to the emergency vet on Christmas Night after collapsing. Given Snowpuff’s age (18½ years old), known thyroid and heart disease, and the uncertainty of whether she had cancer, the vet let us know that it wouldn’t be unfair to euthanize Snowpuff right then and there. After careful consideration, my wife and I decided against it, knowing that Snowpuff wasn’t in pain. Instead, we decided this would be Snowpuff’s final visit to the vet, and that she’d spend her remaining days eating whatever she wanted and visiting her many friends.
On Tuesday (01/09/2024), Snowpuff had another episode, which resulted in her having difficulty breathing and moving, and refusing to eat. It was time. My wife and I had already made the decision that Snowpuff would gain her wings in the comfort of her own home, so I got on the phone with Lap of Love and a vet came out right away. Despite Snowpuff’s discomfort from trouble breathing and moving, the vet did an excellent job ensuring that Snowpuff’s final moments were peaceful and filled with love.
Today is easier than yesterday, and yesterday was easier than the day before, so we’re doing well. I can’t help but think that it might be difficult again once the weather starts to warm up. Snowpuff developed a pastime late in life of joining Charisma and me on walks around the neighborhood and hanging out at the outdoor bars at the top of the hill. A fluffy cat in a stroller brought a lot of smiles to passersby and fellow patrons.
Farewell, my fellow couch potato. Legends never die.
