Holy Freakin' Shit
I haven't even bothered to look at when my last posting was added. I know it's been a while. Maybe around Bug's first and thus far only sleep-over (for the obvious reasons if you read it - and if you haven't you're a complete shit and should be reading your newspaper instead - pussy).
So I'm going to make something of a personal commitment to begin posting again. I never really intended for this to become anything. I opened the account just so I could view some friends postings, but they have moved on to another site for whatever reason(s). And I've never been overly thrilled that I've used this more as an on-line diary than for something bigger and better. Truth be known, I wouldn't know how to make it bigger and/or better to save my fucking life. I tried with the story about the toolbox and I have a few other stories in the same style that I would like to add. But, as an homage to my having used this more as a diary, a brief history of the past few months:
1) I turned 41 today. We're fuckin' broke so it was birthday cards from the wife, daughter and animals and dinner out thanks to the in-laws monetary contribution to this auspicious occasion.
2) From Xmas gift cards to Best Buy (thanks Jorge - you touch me like you know me ;-) I purchased a webcam. I know: porn. Not yet, but I'm thinking about it. I can send attachments of video clips, which is cool, but the real purpose is for video chat through some IM app. I'm using MSN Messenger and it's working just fine thus far. Okay, maybe MSN Messenger isn't the coolest product out there, but it works, it's free and that's currently enough for me. I take geek-dom only so far.
3) You may recall the loss of my dear Voltaire at New Year's Eve, 31 December 2004. Well, we've lost another of the older cats: Tabitha. On Monday, 9 January 2006 I was required to take Mercedes (Tabitha's mother) to the vet as she wasn't doing well. The vet informed us she was suffering from hyperthyroid and it was very likely causing Mercedes to be sick (not eating, dehydrated, etc.). Mercedes went on the meds and I left the next day for Florida to handle some legal matters that have come up regarding the sale of our Florida home in Dec. 2004. Mercedes required some more hospitalization while I was gone, but she came home much better and continues to be so. Upon my return to Ohio on Sunday, 15 Jan., it was obvious that something was also equally wrong with Tabitha and I was unwilling (based upon how she looked and was behaving) to wait until Monday morning for our vet to open, so it was off to the emergency vet. They gave us the bad news: Tabitha was in renal failure. With treatment she might make a few more weeks, etc. I was devestated. Tabitha spent the night and I retrieved her first thing Monday morning and whisked her off to our regular vet. Dr. Starr (wonderful woman) reviewed the reports and gave me the news straight up: IF they could get Tabby's levels back to something more akin to normal we might enjoy a few more weeks to months with her (but it would require some work, special food, etc.). If they couldn't get her levels back down, then it was pretty much over and the end would be painful and unpleasant. Tabitha stayed with Dr. Starr for three days and the results were not what we had hoped for: Tabby was dying regardless. With some fluids to be administered Friday and Saturday I was free to bring Tabitha home for the weekend and opted to make the appointment to put her down for Monday, 23 Jan. 2006. It was the right choice as she was clearly uncomfortable by Sunday as she didn't seem able to sleep, which wasn't normal. In the end it was difficult, but after that final visit to the vet with her (where I held her close and repeatedly whispered "Daddy loves you" as Dr. Starr did her thing) I felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders. The constant worrying from earlier in the week followed by the non-stop knowledge of what was to come that Monday had come to be a major mental weight. While losing her was painful I knew she wasn't bothered any longer by her pain and nor was I pained by hers. It felt good, which sounds so very fucking strange to say. I miss my baby though. I was calling to the cats to come downstairs for dinner and I inadvertently called her name. Instead of a tear I simply smiled knowing that she is still very much part of my life.
4) I remain unemployed, sort-of. I have been offered and accepted a job with the Feds. While it is full-time (40-hours/week), it's term-limited which means it ends in December of this year when the office closes for good. Not big bucks, but it's bucks that we didn't have before. I am also in the running for a job with a local municipal government and I am very hopeful for that position as it would be a very short commute (8-minutes), the benefits would be good, and the pay scale is better than anything else for which I've applied and stood any chance of getting. I am also waiting to hear back from a firm with which I interviewed in mid-December who was looking to make a decision in mid-January. However they appear to still be interviewing. I thought it seemed impossible, but when I showed up for the first exam for the municipal job there were 127 applicants. I can only imagine that there are many applicants for this other job as well and I'll just have to wait and see.
5) Legal stuff from Florida continues. It's a pain. It's stupid. But it moves forward at least.
6) My parents seem to be in limbo regarding the pending move to NC from FL. I don't know if it's one, the other, or both that are becoming uncertain of doing this, but I wish they would simply do it. FL is no place to live and even less of a place to retire.
7) We have taken in four semi-feral cats from a local mall that is condemned. (brought them home in early December via a rented trap from the local Humane Society shelter) Three have been fixed and received their shots, etc. Two of those three are now living upstairs and becoming ever-so acclimated to life in a regular household. The third will join them this week and the fourth needs to go to the vet this week for his surgery and shots. However, the two still in the basement have not come along at all about being petted and being friendly like their two upstairs brothers. Those two, Big Boi and Ivan, are very much at ease with everything, while the basement two, Little One and Pumpkin, remain difficult. I'm hoping that once they have full range of the house they will settle down and become more friendly. We will be looking to find homes for them all, but I'm hoping to keep Ivan in place of the now gone Tabitha. Not that he could ever replace Tabitha, but it at least would maintain parity at six permanent cats.
8) Speaking of permanent additions - we have six as we took in a new one at Xmas: Midnight. He is a very shy and quiet male (came fixed and declawed) we sprung from the local PetsMart. He's a little too quiet and shy, but he can be whatever he wants. He's very cute and seems to like the wife quite a bit even though it was I that pestered the wife for months to let me have him. I've nicknamed him Traitor Cat since he's throw-in his allegiance with her instead of me!
That's really everything one might want or need to know about events of the past few months. I know; terribly exciting, eh?
So I'm going to make something of a personal commitment to begin posting again. I never really intended for this to become anything. I opened the account just so I could view some friends postings, but they have moved on to another site for whatever reason(s). And I've never been overly thrilled that I've used this more as an on-line diary than for something bigger and better. Truth be known, I wouldn't know how to make it bigger and/or better to save my fucking life. I tried with the story about the toolbox and I have a few other stories in the same style that I would like to add. But, as an homage to my having used this more as a diary, a brief history of the past few months:
1) I turned 41 today. We're fuckin' broke so it was birthday cards from the wife, daughter and animals and dinner out thanks to the in-laws monetary contribution to this auspicious occasion.
2) From Xmas gift cards to Best Buy (thanks Jorge - you touch me like you know me ;-) I purchased a webcam. I know: porn. Not yet, but I'm thinking about it. I can send attachments of video clips, which is cool, but the real purpose is for video chat through some IM app. I'm using MSN Messenger and it's working just fine thus far. Okay, maybe MSN Messenger isn't the coolest product out there, but it works, it's free and that's currently enough for me. I take geek-dom only so far.
3) You may recall the loss of my dear Voltaire at New Year's Eve, 31 December 2004. Well, we've lost another of the older cats: Tabitha. On Monday, 9 January 2006 I was required to take Mercedes (Tabitha's mother) to the vet as she wasn't doing well. The vet informed us she was suffering from hyperthyroid and it was very likely causing Mercedes to be sick (not eating, dehydrated, etc.). Mercedes went on the meds and I left the next day for Florida to handle some legal matters that have come up regarding the sale of our Florida home in Dec. 2004. Mercedes required some more hospitalization while I was gone, but she came home much better and continues to be so. Upon my return to Ohio on Sunday, 15 Jan., it was obvious that something was also equally wrong with Tabitha and I was unwilling (based upon how she looked and was behaving) to wait until Monday morning for our vet to open, so it was off to the emergency vet. They gave us the bad news: Tabitha was in renal failure. With treatment she might make a few more weeks, etc. I was devestated. Tabitha spent the night and I retrieved her first thing Monday morning and whisked her off to our regular vet. Dr. Starr (wonderful woman) reviewed the reports and gave me the news straight up: IF they could get Tabby's levels back to something more akin to normal we might enjoy a few more weeks to months with her (but it would require some work, special food, etc.). If they couldn't get her levels back down, then it was pretty much over and the end would be painful and unpleasant. Tabitha stayed with Dr. Starr for three days and the results were not what we had hoped for: Tabby was dying regardless. With some fluids to be administered Friday and Saturday I was free to bring Tabitha home for the weekend and opted to make the appointment to put her down for Monday, 23 Jan. 2006. It was the right choice as she was clearly uncomfortable by Sunday as she didn't seem able to sleep, which wasn't normal. In the end it was difficult, but after that final visit to the vet with her (where I held her close and repeatedly whispered "Daddy loves you" as Dr. Starr did her thing) I felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders. The constant worrying from earlier in the week followed by the non-stop knowledge of what was to come that Monday had come to be a major mental weight. While losing her was painful I knew she wasn't bothered any longer by her pain and nor was I pained by hers. It felt good, which sounds so very fucking strange to say. I miss my baby though. I was calling to the cats to come downstairs for dinner and I inadvertently called her name. Instead of a tear I simply smiled knowing that she is still very much part of my life.
4) I remain unemployed, sort-of. I have been offered and accepted a job with the Feds. While it is full-time (40-hours/week), it's term-limited which means it ends in December of this year when the office closes for good. Not big bucks, but it's bucks that we didn't have before. I am also in the running for a job with a local municipal government and I am very hopeful for that position as it would be a very short commute (8-minutes), the benefits would be good, and the pay scale is better than anything else for which I've applied and stood any chance of getting. I am also waiting to hear back from a firm with which I interviewed in mid-December who was looking to make a decision in mid-January. However they appear to still be interviewing. I thought it seemed impossible, but when I showed up for the first exam for the municipal job there were 127 applicants. I can only imagine that there are many applicants for this other job as well and I'll just have to wait and see.
5) Legal stuff from Florida continues. It's a pain. It's stupid. But it moves forward at least.
6) My parents seem to be in limbo regarding the pending move to NC from FL. I don't know if it's one, the other, or both that are becoming uncertain of doing this, but I wish they would simply do it. FL is no place to live and even less of a place to retire.
7) We have taken in four semi-feral cats from a local mall that is condemned. (brought them home in early December via a rented trap from the local Humane Society shelter) Three have been fixed and received their shots, etc. Two of those three are now living upstairs and becoming ever-so acclimated to life in a regular household. The third will join them this week and the fourth needs to go to the vet this week for his surgery and shots. However, the two still in the basement have not come along at all about being petted and being friendly like their two upstairs brothers. Those two, Big Boi and Ivan, are very much at ease with everything, while the basement two, Little One and Pumpkin, remain difficult. I'm hoping that once they have full range of the house they will settle down and become more friendly. We will be looking to find homes for them all, but I'm hoping to keep Ivan in place of the now gone Tabitha. Not that he could ever replace Tabitha, but it at least would maintain parity at six permanent cats.
8) Speaking of permanent additions - we have six as we took in a new one at Xmas: Midnight. He is a very shy and quiet male (came fixed and declawed) we sprung from the local PetsMart. He's a little too quiet and shy, but he can be whatever he wants. He's very cute and seems to like the wife quite a bit even though it was I that pestered the wife for months to let me have him. I've nicknamed him Traitor Cat since he's throw-in his allegiance with her instead of me!
That's really everything one might want or need to know about events of the past few months. I know; terribly exciting, eh?