Seasons Greetings!

Ken and I started the millennium in a cabin in the woods in West Virginia with a few friends, our dogs, and no phone or television. If the world had come to an end, we wouldn’t have known about it.

December 1999 brought some sadness as the Hudaks said goodbye to 16 ½ year old Cruiser, the Cairn Terrier that sparked my interest in the breed. In January, I became a member of the Potomac Cairn Terrier Club so that Ken and I could become a foster home for Cairns in search of new homes. In March, we took in our first foster dog: a 3-½ year old male appropriately named “Scrappy.” Six weeks later we heaved a sigh of relief when Scrappy left for his new home in Maryland. Having a 2nd dog is not much more work than one, but after two, the amount of work increases exponentially with each additional dog. Walking two dogs is easy once one gets the hang of it, but walking three feisty, squirrel-chasing, leash-tangling Cairn Terriers is a major challenge. At the beginning of October, our fence was finally installed which has made fostering much easier on us.

On the job front, I left Oberthur Card Systems after 9 ½ years and joined American Management Systems (www.ams.com) at the end of May. I now work for a great company and that’s the first time in almost 10 years that I’ve been able to say that! The one good thing that I can say about my old company is that I met Ken there (and a few good friends). Ken continues to work for Back to Basics Toys, which is owned by Amazon (www.amazon.com). Things are always changing and he’s learning a lot. Amazon seems to really value his expertise, and he is getting ready to hire more staff.

Web design is a hobby of mine, so for those who haven’t seen it, our family web site is www.geocities.com/hudakmoe/. It features pictures of us, our dogs, our parents, siblings, nieces/nephew, and friends. In June, I started the Potomac Cairn Terrier Club’s web site (www.PotomacCTC.org) and I also continue to maintain a web site for the National Catholic Ministry to the Bereaved (www.griefwork.org) of which my mom is an active member.

We spent this year’s vacation in Crosby, North Dakota, hometown of Ken’s dad. I met lots of wonderful Moe relatives and saw the best 4th of July fireworks I’ve ever seen in a tiny town called Wild Rose. Ufta!

On the health front, it’s been a good year. Ken and I joined a brand new YMCA and Ken has quit smoking. I joined a fitness program called “Corporate Boot Camp” where we meet for an hour after work three days a week and do torturous things like sit-ups, pushups, running, jumping rope, etc. Our next big home project will be to install a hot tub so we can soak our sore muscles.

Well, that about sums up year 2000. We hope this finds you and yours safe, happy, and, as Ken likes to say, “lovin’ life!”

Best Wishes ~
~ Ken, Veronica, Shell, & Malcolm