Of Mothers and Marx
This has been a hell of a week. My mother got sick on Sunday. Well, sicker. It's not like anyone on chemo is precisely well. She started vomiting and getting dehydrated and by Wednesday morning she was on an IV. Honestly, it's not that different from her standard episodes of illness. Except the chemo is likely triggering it a lot more frequently. There is nothing I can do in this situation. Which, in a way, makes it both better and worse.
...And then there's Marx.
Monday morning he was crying in pain. We heard it from the bedroom, but the sound was so different from usual that we assumed it was the baby next door. When we finally got up, we found him dragging himself down the hallway towards our bedroom, the back half of his body not moving at all. He'd thrown up a dozen times on his way from the living room. And he kept crying.
Took him in to the ER at our vet's office. His urinary tract had been blocked, probably starting the evening before. I don't know if you know much about feline illnesses, but in male cats this kind of problem is deadly. It was also the first thing I suspected. It had happened to him once before, about four years ago. But this time it was worse.
We thought he'd be home in a day, maybe two. The vet inserted a catheter, got him pain meds, put him on an IV for fluids. But it didn't go well. One day stretched to two, stretched to three, stretched to five, stretched to seven. They had to recath him several times. Had to do a sonogram on him. And they may have to do a surgery on him that would fix this particular problem, although it would open him up for others. More easily treated, though.
At five days, the cost makes me unable to pay my monthly bills. At seven, it wipes out everything. I will have no money left. The surgery... would be 1 - 2k. Had I not made such a large payment on my debt a few months ago, I would have the money to care for him. It would be tight, but I would have the money on hand.
I have to standby and watch people I love dealing with cancer and all of its ramifications. I can't do anything about that. This, I could do something about. This, if I'd had a little less debt or if I had saved a little more money, I could do something about. It would knock my debt repayment back by a year or two, but I could do it.
J says we'll manage. He says he won't let me starve. He may be able to loan me enough. That we'll figure it out.
...And then there's Marx.
Monday morning he was crying in pain. We heard it from the bedroom, but the sound was so different from usual that we assumed it was the baby next door. When we finally got up, we found him dragging himself down the hallway towards our bedroom, the back half of his body not moving at all. He'd thrown up a dozen times on his way from the living room. And he kept crying.
Took him in to the ER at our vet's office. His urinary tract had been blocked, probably starting the evening before. I don't know if you know much about feline illnesses, but in male cats this kind of problem is deadly. It was also the first thing I suspected. It had happened to him once before, about four years ago. But this time it was worse.
We thought he'd be home in a day, maybe two. The vet inserted a catheter, got him pain meds, put him on an IV for fluids. But it didn't go well. One day stretched to two, stretched to three, stretched to five, stretched to seven. They had to recath him several times. Had to do a sonogram on him. And they may have to do a surgery on him that would fix this particular problem, although it would open him up for others. More easily treated, though.
At five days, the cost makes me unable to pay my monthly bills. At seven, it wipes out everything. I will have no money left. The surgery... would be 1 - 2k. Had I not made such a large payment on my debt a few months ago, I would have the money to care for him. It would be tight, but I would have the money on hand.
I have to standby and watch people I love dealing with cancer and all of its ramifications. I can't do anything about that. This, I could do something about. This, if I'd had a little less debt or if I had saved a little more money, I could do something about. It would knock my debt repayment back by a year or two, but I could do it.
J says we'll manage. He says he won't let me starve. He may be able to loan me enough. That we'll figure it out.