Goodbye 2008.

What a year!

Financial meltdown, wars, famine, terrorism, housing market collapse, record petrol prices, insane hikes in gas, electricity and food prices. On a high note - Barrack Hussein Obama being elected president of the USA! Back to the low-notes - the wettest summer ever recorded, health scares, expanding dole queues, factory closures, reduced production, redundancies, interest rate cuts, taxpayer bailouts of bust banks, VAT cut by a MASSIVE 2.5% to stop the rot in the high street (he (Darling) was obviously having a laugh)

And we said goodbye (or will be any time soon) to Woolworths, Adams, MFI, Zavvi, Whittard of Chelsea, USC and The Officers Club - all huge retail chains who were allowed by the greedy banks to borrow more than the companies were actually worth = and (after HM Treasury) who gets first bite at the Administration cherry, who is repaid ahead of staff, suppliers and all other creditors? - that's right, the greedy banks. (Makes my blood boil somewhat!)

On a personal note I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease, put on steroids which destroyed my immune system and led to infection after infection, these were treated with antibiotics which undid all the good the steroids had done. I end the year as I began it - steroid free and still with dodgy guts.

So, that was 2008 - much turbulence on the Sea of Life. Bring on 2009, I'm setting sail for another challenging journey!!