I could lie and say I've been out of town, but I haven't. It's just that other things have popped up. Judy Hill Online has not been my No. 1 priority for awhile. I've become something called Community Liasion for the Animal Coalition of Tampa - one of my favorite nonprofit groups, which is trying to reduce the number of companion animals euthanized in Hillsborough County by offering low-cost spaying and neutering.

It's not a fulltime gig. But it's a gig that took some time to set up.

I wrote about ACT often when I was a columnist at The Tampa Tribune. It was begun by Linda Hamilton, who is, well, obsessive about stray and abandoned animals. She isn't alone, but she was pretty much alone in starting, first, No More Homeless Pets in Hillsborough, and then the Animal Coalition.

She had help from husband, Frank, and a few other hearty souls including Jack Talman of Talman Tank, who donated money to help open a low-cost spay and neuther clinic on Lemon Street in Tampa.

The ACT clinic last year sterilized about 5,000 animals - a pittance when you consider that about 30,000 animals were euthanized in 2006 at Hillsborough County Animal Services. But it's a start. That's 5,000 animals that will not produce more unwanted animals and contribute to the pet overpopulation problem.

OK. So that's one of the things I'm doing to supplement my retirement income. Of course, I will always spend more than I earn so what I earn is a moot point.

How I spend my time is more controllable. I'm still blogging on sticks of fire and am working on some other stuff, as well.

I'll keep you posted.