Monday, February 27, 2012
Just an addendum to the Particle Physics Questions raised by Uncle Bart and Noel: the new official word is that No, neutrinos aren't passing through the Alps at faster than light speed. I think it may make my Ticom Geomatics friends a little squirmy to hear that it sprang for a loose cable in the GPS monitoring system the experimenters used for their timing. See this article for an update:http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/02/22/einstein-was-right-all-along-faster-than-light-neutrino-was-product-of-error/?xid=newsletter-weekly
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Woo! Nana's moving!
Awesome news- Nana is moving to Bothell!! In April! I am thrilled!
Let's all take a moment to brag on Mom for helping Nana manage her finances and negotiating a great entry price for her to move to Bothell. Nana's big move is tied to a lot of big and small decisions, so it was really helpful that she and mom had been keeping a nice worksheet of all her expenditures for the last year, so it was pretty apparent what would work for Nana. But the awesome part came as we were getting ready to finalize these things. All three of us were sitting down the the gal at the Chateau, and Mom says very evenly, "I'm responsible for keeping Nana in good financial shape, and I just need to know that she is getting this apartment at the best price she can." And the gal said, sure, I understand, would you rather pay $100 less for the apartment? "...Yes. That will work for us."
I'm not sure how, but I've got to try this tactic soon.
The apartment Nana picked is a spacious studio that looks towards the slough with a view dominated by greenspace. The Chateau Bothell Landing is a great community full of mostly active and interesting folks, which has a fun calender of activities and yummy menu. They are also quickly accessible to her church AND reading room, to the senior center, to the Library (where Nana already has a library card and hopes to work with the Friends of the Library). Although the Chateau would drive her to any of these places, she has walked back and forth between most of them plenty of times already. The community isn't far off the highway, which makes it feel not distant for many of the regional cousins and friends who are looking forward to seeing her more often. I'm pleased with her decision, since I think will open up a lot of great opportunities for Nana in her retirement (not the least of which is me getting to hang out with her).
Nana has a very busy month ahead of her, packing up her things in Spokane, and getting ready to head West. We've got teams of cousins on both sides of the mountains poised to help pack, load the truck, unload the truck, toast the arriving matriach and generally enjoy having Nana living in the West. In the meantime, Nana has plenty more small choices to make (what to pack, what to leave, what awesome activities to do first when she arrives....), and I am sure she would appreciate some encouraging phone calls over the next month as she tries to work through downsizing and getting ready to sell her house.
For those who might be around, we are planning a "Welcome Home" party in late April, which will include lots of family and smiles (although I'll be lobbying for cookies as well). Let me know if you'd be interested to attend, so I can loop you into the emails.
Let's all take a moment to brag on Mom for helping Nana manage her finances and negotiating a great entry price for her to move to Bothell. Nana's big move is tied to a lot of big and small decisions, so it was really helpful that she and mom had been keeping a nice worksheet of all her expenditures for the last year, so it was pretty apparent what would work for Nana. But the awesome part came as we were getting ready to finalize these things. All three of us were sitting down the the gal at the Chateau, and Mom says very evenly, "I'm responsible for keeping Nana in good financial shape, and I just need to know that she is getting this apartment at the best price she can." And the gal said, sure, I understand, would you rather pay $100 less for the apartment? "...Yes. That will work for us."
I'm not sure how, but I've got to try this tactic soon.
The apartment Nana picked is a spacious studio that looks towards the slough with a view dominated by greenspace. The Chateau Bothell Landing is a great community full of mostly active and interesting folks, which has a fun calender of activities and yummy menu. They are also quickly accessible to her church AND reading room, to the senior center, to the Library (where Nana already has a library card and hopes to work with the Friends of the Library). Although the Chateau would drive her to any of these places, she has walked back and forth between most of them plenty of times already. The community isn't far off the highway, which makes it feel not distant for many of the regional cousins and friends who are looking forward to seeing her more often. I'm pleased with her decision, since I think will open up a lot of great opportunities for Nana in her retirement (not the least of which is me getting to hang out with her).
Nana has a very busy month ahead of her, packing up her things in Spokane, and getting ready to head West. We've got teams of cousins on both sides of the mountains poised to help pack, load the truck, unload the truck, toast the arriving matriach and generally enjoy having Nana living in the West. In the meantime, Nana has plenty more small choices to make (what to pack, what to leave, what awesome activities to do first when she arrives....), and I am sure she would appreciate some encouraging phone calls over the next month as she tries to work through downsizing and getting ready to sell her house.
For those who might be around, we are planning a "Welcome Home" party in late April, which will include lots of family and smiles (although I'll be lobbying for cookies as well). Let me know if you'd be interested to attend, so I can loop you into the emails.
Friday, February 24, 2012
I also want to talk about Cats
So as I glossed over before, we had to put Tigger down last week. He was starting to show signs of getting worse again, and we wanted to end it on a high note for him, as opposed to waiting until he was too miserable to be a happy cat. It was very sad, but he just slipped away without much trauma, which is much, much better than what would have happened if we had just let him die of natural causes. So we know we did the right thing for all involved, but I still had to have a good cry on Jessies lap when we got home.
Nagano seems to miss his roommate. He’s much cuddlier than he has been in the past, wanting always to be around us and getting a lot of attention. Which is nice for us, but I think he misses having someone around during the day, so we’ve been thinking about getting another cat.
This, because we are responsible people, means the pound or, because it’s closer, a non-profit humane society that we went by yesterday. They actually have a pretty neat setup, where there a lot of cats in cages, as you would expect, but they also have cat rooms, where they keep the cats that get along with other cats well. And the rooms have scratching posts and litter boxes and all sorts of toys. And you can just wander in and start looking at cats.
I met a few of the contenders, all of whom were really nice. Except for the ones that were asleep, because they were too busy being sleepy to want to visit. There were several that I would have taken home in an instant, but we decided we didn’t want to decide right then, so we just went across the street to the Red Lobster for dinner with Tyler (he had some of my broccoli) and talked about cats. There was on there that I seriously was considering taking home with us, and it begs the question, what should we be waiting for? Maybe, at least, for a weekend when we can spend more time with the cat in his new home. Do I think they might have better cats next time we go back? What would a better cat even look like?
Anyway, I’m thinking about this really sweet little black cat we met there yesterday. If she’s not there when we go back it’s because someone else thought she was a sweetie, too.
Man…cats, right?
-N
Nagano seems to miss his roommate. He’s much cuddlier than he has been in the past, wanting always to be around us and getting a lot of attention. Which is nice for us, but I think he misses having someone around during the day, so we’ve been thinking about getting another cat.
This, because we are responsible people, means the pound or, because it’s closer, a non-profit humane society that we went by yesterday. They actually have a pretty neat setup, where there a lot of cats in cages, as you would expect, but they also have cat rooms, where they keep the cats that get along with other cats well. And the rooms have scratching posts and litter boxes and all sorts of toys. And you can just wander in and start looking at cats.
I met a few of the contenders, all of whom were really nice. Except for the ones that were asleep, because they were too busy being sleepy to want to visit. There were several that I would have taken home in an instant, but we decided we didn’t want to decide right then, so we just went across the street to the Red Lobster for dinner with Tyler (he had some of my broccoli) and talked about cats. There was on there that I seriously was considering taking home with us, and it begs the question, what should we be waiting for? Maybe, at least, for a weekend when we can spend more time with the cat in his new home. Do I think they might have better cats next time we go back? What would a better cat even look like?
Anyway, I’m thinking about this really sweet little black cat we met there yesterday. If she’s not there when we go back it’s because someone else thought she was a sweetie, too.
Man…cats, right?
-N
My stupid cat, Raoul
On Saturday night, we came home to the sobering news that our cat Raoul had run away. The door was open for hours, it's hard to imagine him not giving in to the temptation of investigating new territory. It was also very hard to imagine him navigating his way around well, or getting on with the thugy neighborhood cats. We were worried. I was too upset to look for pictures of him to make a Missing Cat poster, but I had put most of the text together in my head.
Missing Cat
Probably won't respond to his name, Raoul. Will come running for a can of beans- might kill you for smoked salmon.
Has pretty stripes that he likes to show off by rolling on his back and flicking his long tail as if he wanted to be pet, but this is just a cat trap- which he will spring in all pointiness on the first hand to enter the trap.
Not always nice to people, but too much of a sissy to be an outdoor cat.
Unlike other neighborhood thug cats, he has a long tail, still pointy ears, a neck, and is probably getting beat up by those tough, tail-less cats. His favorite hiding places include the shower, under the covers and the middle of the floor.
My version was too wordy, fortunately Matt put out a nice version, which we posted on mailboxes. He found a way to prop open our back door to 1 cat size (probably smaller than one fat racoon- probably). We left food outside, and put out cat toys, which kept disappearing. Our house was freezing from having the door open all the time, but Mom and Nana chugged tea and put up with our heartbreak.
I called a cat rescue shelter, that suggested I get a cat trap. Since we had daily gasping disappointments seeing those local thug cats, I just knew a cat trap was going to result in mayhem. I was mentally wondering how many feral cats I would be willing to spay before I gave up on the trap as I went to bed.
And then something crazy happened.
Well after midnight, we both woke up in confusion to tiny meows walking in to our bedroom. My reaction times aren't great when I am "alert" so try to imagine me assessing this situation from a deep slumber. "Cat? Feral? Mine? Here? Am I awake? My cat is here? " He just sauntered in like we'd been gone on a long vacation and he couldn't find us in the house.
Matt grabbed him in his arms while I flew downstairs to close the door behind him and spring the cat trap (because we SO don't need any feral cats now). He was filthy, a little skinny and hungry. And thirsty. But fine. He has a wicked case of the sneezes, and seems sleepier then the average cat, but he is much more willing to put up with me moving my legs underneath his nap.
Missing Cat
Probably won't respond to his name, Raoul. Will come running for a can of beans- might kill you for smoked salmon.
Has pretty stripes that he likes to show off by rolling on his back and flicking his long tail as if he wanted to be pet, but this is just a cat trap- which he will spring in all pointiness on the first hand to enter the trap.
Not always nice to people, but too much of a sissy to be an outdoor cat.
Unlike other neighborhood thug cats, he has a long tail, still pointy ears, a neck, and is probably getting beat up by those tough, tail-less cats. His favorite hiding places include the shower, under the covers and the middle of the floor.
My version was too wordy, fortunately Matt put out a nice version, which we posted on mailboxes. He found a way to prop open our back door to 1 cat size (probably smaller than one fat racoon- probably). We left food outside, and put out cat toys, which kept disappearing. Our house was freezing from having the door open all the time, but Mom and Nana chugged tea and put up with our heartbreak.
I called a cat rescue shelter, that suggested I get a cat trap. Since we had daily gasping disappointments seeing those local thug cats, I just knew a cat trap was going to result in mayhem. I was mentally wondering how many feral cats I would be willing to spay before I gave up on the trap as I went to bed.
And then something crazy happened.
Well after midnight, we both woke up in confusion to tiny meows walking in to our bedroom. My reaction times aren't great when I am "alert" so try to imagine me assessing this situation from a deep slumber. "Cat? Feral? Mine? Here? Am I awake? My cat is here? " He just sauntered in like we'd been gone on a long vacation and he couldn't find us in the house.
Matt grabbed him in his arms while I flew downstairs to close the door behind him and spring the cat trap (because we SO don't need any feral cats now). He was filthy, a little skinny and hungry. And thirsty. But fine. He has a wicked case of the sneezes, and seems sleepier then the average cat, but he is much more willing to put up with me moving my legs underneath his nap.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
The return of Micro-News
It's been a while since I've posted, and a lot has happened, and I don't have time to write it all down in great detail, so we have to boil it down to the headlines. It's time for Micro-News.
I'm at home today because it's president's day and the Day Care is closed. Tyler is taking a nap so I'm typing this. I still don't know what a 'Teacher Inservice' is, but now that's just because I'm too lazy to
google it.
Tyler has been doing a lot of new things. He's:
1) Getting off of high things backwards, as opposed to forwards which, notably, doens't work.
2) Starting to learn the names of things. If you say a name he knows, he'll usually go look for the thing or point. Very cute.
3) Has started saying 'Ball'. Except he doesn't know about 'L' yet so it comes off as Ba-oooh. Also cute.
4) Has a little walker. His balance is improving all the time, but he still has some work to do before he can walk properly. The walker is great exercise, though.
5) Eats all sorts of stuff. It's fun to give him new things to try, especially fruit because he likes it so much.
6) Is starting to learn how to feed himself with a spoon. A messy prospect, and it requires a lot of guidance, but it's good to practice. Also, once he gets a hold of that spoon, he does not want to let it go.
Around the house, I've been doing a few things here and there. I put up a big baby gate that has essentially turned the office into a Nursery. Then we child-proofed the heck out of that room. Nice to have that space. Especially since...
We babysat the neighbor-baby for a few hours yesterday. Our neighbors needed the time to clean out their kitchen in prep for some remodeling, and also it's a good chance for us to see how he did with us. Quite well, as it turns out. As long as we distracted him with toys, he was in high spirits. I think he likes us. Which is good, because we have also volunteered to take care of him when neighbor-lady goes into labor. We have a few months, but it's good to know there's at least a chance of success.
Jess had a scrimmage for roller derby yesterday and Tyler and I came along to watch. He was a big hit with all the derby ladies, especially at the end when we got to go ringside and high-five all the skaters. Cutest little fist bump on the track.
Oh, and on sad news, we had to put Tigger down last week. He had come down with some pretty bad Kidney failure. We had done some treatment to help him feel better for a few weeks, which was a nice chance to say goodbye, but it's not a cure. When he started to get worse we made the hard decision and said goodbye. There were many tears.
I'll write more later if I think of more stuff. It's been a busy few weeks.
-N
I'm at home today because it's president's day and the Day Care is closed. Tyler is taking a nap so I'm typing this. I still don't know what a 'Teacher Inservice' is, but now that's just because I'm too lazy to
google it.
Tyler has been doing a lot of new things. He's:
1) Getting off of high things backwards, as opposed to forwards which, notably, doens't work.
2) Starting to learn the names of things. If you say a name he knows, he'll usually go look for the thing or point. Very cute.
3) Has started saying 'Ball'. Except he doesn't know about 'L' yet so it comes off as Ba-oooh. Also cute.
4) Has a little walker. His balance is improving all the time, but he still has some work to do before he can walk properly. The walker is great exercise, though.
5) Eats all sorts of stuff. It's fun to give him new things to try, especially fruit because he likes it so much.
6) Is starting to learn how to feed himself with a spoon. A messy prospect, and it requires a lot of guidance, but it's good to practice. Also, once he gets a hold of that spoon, he does not want to let it go.
Around the house, I've been doing a few things here and there. I put up a big baby gate that has essentially turned the office into a Nursery. Then we child-proofed the heck out of that room. Nice to have that space. Especially since...
We babysat the neighbor-baby for a few hours yesterday. Our neighbors needed the time to clean out their kitchen in prep for some remodeling, and also it's a good chance for us to see how he did with us. Quite well, as it turns out. As long as we distracted him with toys, he was in high spirits. I think he likes us. Which is good, because we have also volunteered to take care of him when neighbor-lady goes into labor. We have a few months, but it's good to know there's at least a chance of success.
Jess had a scrimmage for roller derby yesterday and Tyler and I came along to watch. He was a big hit with all the derby ladies, especially at the end when we got to go ringside and high-five all the skaters. Cutest little fist bump on the track.
Oh, and on sad news, we had to put Tigger down last week. He had come down with some pretty bad Kidney failure. We had done some treatment to help him feel better for a few weeks, which was a nice chance to say goodbye, but it's not a cure. When he started to get worse we made the hard decision and said goodbye. There were many tears.
I'll write more later if I think of more stuff. It's been a busy few weeks.
-N
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Grinding away on the rumor mill
Some of you may have heard bits and pieces of Nana's adventures as they unfold. The latest news is that Nana is quite happy with the place in Bothell, and is really looking forward to making her home there. We enjoyed a fantastic after-Nana-walked-to-Church brunch with an interesting quilter/ performing art center volunteer/ former League Member. I'm told Nana is meeting lots of stimulating and charismatic people, in addition to letting us steal her away. Today we went to the epic garden store in Woodinville, Molbaks, since Matt's Mom came down for a visit. They enjoyed catching up a bit, and will hopefully provide us even more excuses for all hanging out. Mom (my mom) arrives tomorrow to help us finalize our impressions in Bothell and think about how to move this to a permanent arrangement. I can't tell you how excited I am to have Nana as a regular feature in my life, and how excited I am that she has found a place that will be such an easy transition for her. This is really good news.
The (unrelated) bad news is that Raoul ran away. Our front door doesn't shut very well, and it came open while we were out. Nothing was disturbed, but the cat was gone. We've looked around the neighborhood, and fortunately haven't found him pasted to the asphalt. However, he isn't that good at coming when called, nor does he have much experience navigating, so it is hard to imagine us finding him, or him finding us. Keep your fingers crossed that he walks in the back door (which we have propped open to accommodate 1 cat).
The (unrelated) bad news is that Raoul ran away. Our front door doesn't shut very well, and it came open while we were out. Nothing was disturbed, but the cat was gone. We've looked around the neighborhood, and fortunately haven't found him pasted to the asphalt. However, he isn't that good at coming when called, nor does he have much experience navigating, so it is hard to imagine us finding him, or him finding us. Keep your fingers crossed that he walks in the back door (which we have propped open to accommodate 1 cat).
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Fun times - Nana visit
Nana is here, so that is awesome. We've been doing cool stuff all weekend- we got to visit with Anne Cox on Saturday, and enjoy a nice meal on the waterfront together on Friday night.
On Sunday, we went to church, and once again, the entire CS community is very excited to see Nana, and have the possibility of welcoming her into their community. After church, Nana wanted to see a bit more of Bothell, so we walked into downtown, and then to the Chateau Bothell (where she will do her second visit). The church is about 5 blocks from the Chateau, and would be a lovely walk anyday there isn't snow.
While we were having a lovely adventure, Matt was down south trying his first mountain bike race of the season. He came in 7th, which is pretty great, considering his starting position. I think he'll be motivated to continue with the series and hope for improvement.
After some naps and a Skype with Austin (OMG- Have you seen Tyler- he is SOO cute!), we all put on some pink colors and went to the Din Tai Fung- a fancy dumpling place, with Shaoshu. Shaoshu hates Valentine's day, so of course, I am making him celebrate it a couple times this year. He brought flowers for us ladies, and we got to play around with his new SLR, posing for pictures in front of the Chihuly glass that decorates the fancy mall where the restaurant was. Oh, and we stuffed ourselves with Chinese food- and can I point out that Nana was a champ with the chopsticks? It was a really fun evening.
Monday morning, I took Nana to her first visit- this one in Kirkland. Several friendly residents were chatting with us at lunch, so I am sure Nana got to meet some more people when I left. We'll see what she has to say by next week when she has done two trial stays
On Sunday, we went to church, and once again, the entire CS community is very excited to see Nana, and have the possibility of welcoming her into their community. After church, Nana wanted to see a bit more of Bothell, so we walked into downtown, and then to the Chateau Bothell (where she will do her second visit). The church is about 5 blocks from the Chateau, and would be a lovely walk anyday there isn't snow.
While we were having a lovely adventure, Matt was down south trying his first mountain bike race of the season. He came in 7th, which is pretty great, considering his starting position. I think he'll be motivated to continue with the series and hope for improvement.
After some naps and a Skype with Austin (OMG- Have you seen Tyler- he is SOO cute!), we all put on some pink colors and went to the Din Tai Fung- a fancy dumpling place, with Shaoshu. Shaoshu hates Valentine's day, so of course, I am making him celebrate it a couple times this year. He brought flowers for us ladies, and we got to play around with his new SLR, posing for pictures in front of the Chihuly glass that decorates the fancy mall where the restaurant was. Oh, and we stuffed ourselves with Chinese food- and can I point out that Nana was a champ with the chopsticks? It was a really fun evening.
Monday morning, I took Nana to her first visit- this one in Kirkland. Several friendly residents were chatting with us at lunch, so I am sure Nana got to meet some more people when I left. We'll see what she has to say by next week when she has done two trial stays
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Nana is here!
Quick note before we head out to church and Bothell Adventures. Nana is here, visiting ME, and some other places that might also have an impact on her future. I jest. Nana is here doing a couple short stays in two communities she is willing to consider making the move across the mountains to. In addition to getting her to and from these places, this means I am getting an added excuse to visit with old friends and family, explore some nearby neighborhoods and just spend some time with Nana. It's pretty great.
Friday, February 3, 2012
Me too...
While nothing that outrageously bad has happened to me this
week, it blows when your Dad goes to the hospital (even if it is just for his
belly button reconstruction), and it’s scary when your grandmother goes there
too. That’s a pretty crap back drop for
another monotonous week of job hunting. Did
you know if you spend too much time sitting it makes your legs hurt? This is new to me- I’ve never had a “desk job”
until I became a job hunter. I do not
approve.
I was offered a new writing contract, which will keep me intermittently
engaged (I’d guess 20hrs of work) until March.
Nice to have work- I’m still looking for more.
It keeping with our Pittsburgh tradition, we are celebrating
Super Bowl Sunday like a holiday. Some
friends and family are coming over to eat food and watch with us. It’ll be nice to finally have a house warming
of sorts. And I am hoping it will kick
off a much better week of no one going to the hospital!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
It’s been a horrible, horrible week.
Last week was great. Really spot on. We went to Vegas last Thursday to hit the dual goals of attending an Ice Hockey tournament and meeting with Tyler’s new second cousin. Both went fantastically. Jessie’s team lost the games, but they played really well and Jess managed to take down a lot of offensive players. When you’re playing on defense, you tend to use metrics other than ‘goals scored’ for personal victories. Tyler even came to watch one of the games, more or less. He really seemed to like watching the hockey, and whenever he got bored I’d go out and walk around the Casino to distract him with bright lights. Oddly enough, you’re not allowed to stop at any of the gambling machines if you’re under 18, which includes if you’re under 1 and being carried by your dad. This means I was allowed to walk through the Casino, but not stop walking. Heh.
Also, Tyler’s little cousin is a big ol’ cutie-face. She isn’t as mobile as Tyler, but she’s nearly as interesting. She likes playing with toys and interacting with you, but she isn’t trying to run a baby marathon while she’s doing it. A nice change. She liked me a lot after she realized I would make raspberry sounds at her and nuzzle her neck with kisses. She was also really interested in Tyler, and spent a lot of time watching him get into messes, no doubt planning future devilish behavior of her own as soon as she could figure out the whole crawling thing.
Even Sunday morning was pretty good. Tyler did a good job sleeping through the night, except for the one time when all the smoke alarms in the house went off at 4:00 in the morning. We eventually got him back to sleep by playing gently with him on our bed. Very cute. Anyway, we took the extended family out for hamburgers and the cousin was very well behaved. The toys and the distraction of Tyler helped, and her family got to help themselves to delicious hamburgers and shakes.
Then things started to go downhill.
I got the call, then, that Dad was in the hospital getting treated for some severe stomach problems. I had to share the news but at least the prognosis was good. This does, however, mean that I’m now at risk for the same problems in the future. Less than fun.
The flight home was really rough for Tyler. He slept for a while, but then woke up at something like 10:00 his time and when he realized he wasn’t in his usual crib for sleeping he got really cranky. We kept him quiet…mostly…but we were definitely ‘that family’ on this flight. Harsh.
When we got back home, Tigger was looking haggard. So I took him to the Vet in the morning and they determined that he is in the early stages of kidney failure. There is no cure. There’s a treatment which can extend his ‘good life’, but eventually we’re looking at having to say goodbye to a family member of more than 13 years. It’s quite sad, but at least we have some warning and the treatment appears to be working pretty well. We’ll probably get a happy cat for at least a little while longer, and we can let him jump up on counters as much as he wants and eat all the bread and food he wants and generally get away with darn near anything because he’s such a great cat. But at some indeterminate point in the future, we’re going to have to put him down. Which is horrible.
Jess wasn’t immune either. She got in a little fender-scraper (even less damage than a fender-bender. I think I mostly fixed our car with a wet rag) a few days ago and then got a ticket yesterday on her way to derby. She was in a bad mood, quite understandably, but I was able to help out for a little bit.
And then I got the text that Las Vegas Grandma is in the hospital.
And there is a server down at work that means that I can’t work on anything until it gets fixed.
When this week is over, I’m crossing it out on the calendar with a SHARPIE.
-N
Also, Tyler’s little cousin is a big ol’ cutie-face. She isn’t as mobile as Tyler, but she’s nearly as interesting. She likes playing with toys and interacting with you, but she isn’t trying to run a baby marathon while she’s doing it. A nice change. She liked me a lot after she realized I would make raspberry sounds at her and nuzzle her neck with kisses. She was also really interested in Tyler, and spent a lot of time watching him get into messes, no doubt planning future devilish behavior of her own as soon as she could figure out the whole crawling thing.
Even Sunday morning was pretty good. Tyler did a good job sleeping through the night, except for the one time when all the smoke alarms in the house went off at 4:00 in the morning. We eventually got him back to sleep by playing gently with him on our bed. Very cute. Anyway, we took the extended family out for hamburgers and the cousin was very well behaved. The toys and the distraction of Tyler helped, and her family got to help themselves to delicious hamburgers and shakes.
Then things started to go downhill.
I got the call, then, that Dad was in the hospital getting treated for some severe stomach problems. I had to share the news but at least the prognosis was good. This does, however, mean that I’m now at risk for the same problems in the future. Less than fun.
The flight home was really rough for Tyler. He slept for a while, but then woke up at something like 10:00 his time and when he realized he wasn’t in his usual crib for sleeping he got really cranky. We kept him quiet…mostly…but we were definitely ‘that family’ on this flight. Harsh.
When we got back home, Tigger was looking haggard. So I took him to the Vet in the morning and they determined that he is in the early stages of kidney failure. There is no cure. There’s a treatment which can extend his ‘good life’, but eventually we’re looking at having to say goodbye to a family member of more than 13 years. It’s quite sad, but at least we have some warning and the treatment appears to be working pretty well. We’ll probably get a happy cat for at least a little while longer, and we can let him jump up on counters as much as he wants and eat all the bread and food he wants and generally get away with darn near anything because he’s such a great cat. But at some indeterminate point in the future, we’re going to have to put him down. Which is horrible.
Jess wasn’t immune either. She got in a little fender-scraper (even less damage than a fender-bender. I think I mostly fixed our car with a wet rag) a few days ago and then got a ticket yesterday on her way to derby. She was in a bad mood, quite understandably, but I was able to help out for a little bit.
And then I got the text that Las Vegas Grandma is in the hospital.
And there is a server down at work that means that I can’t work on anything until it gets fixed.
When this week is over, I’m crossing it out on the calendar with a SHARPIE.
-N
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