Fresh, Hot Wastes of Time

I thought Jodi, from Because I Say So!, had really taken the cake with her serialized post about a friend the other day. She topped herself today with her post of an unexpected funeral. Her writing has really gotten wonderful lately and her blog is a pleasure to read. A good way to get a Manhattan fix without actually having to brave the crowds. And even though she took down her comment feature, I read her anyway, despite my anti anti-comments rant a couple of weeks ago. It’s just that good.

Yeah, I know one of the stages of grief is anger. No matter how much I know it’s normal to get mad about losing two cats within 6 months, I’m still really freaking pissed off. I’m mad, who can I sue?

On the other hand, I’m afraid to let Maddie go too long without another cat to keep her company. There’s a lady in Houston who has 3 bluepoint Siamese boys. I’ve had a male bluepoint since Caesar, who we got in 1978, and Gus, who I got in 1990. I’ve been thinking about the kitten thing since Gus died in January and had planned on getting one if one of the girls died. However I know it’s going to mean a few weeks of cat fights and probably pee on the bed and getting-to-know-yous with the kitten. I called several different breeders tonight, and one of them nearly talked my ear off without letting me get a word in edgewise. “Your last cat was also a bluepoint male? Well you know you’re not going to be able to replace him, blah blah blah”. No duh lady, I’ve been around cats since I was born. They’re all different. Yeah, I wanted a carbon copy of my dead cat because I just can’t move on in life and I’m dumb enough to think I’ll get one.

Told hub that I really appreciated him burying my cats for me, but I sure am tired of watching him do it. Do you know I’ve never had a cat die of old age? Feline leukemia, FIV, heart attack, hit by car, kidney failure, stolen, ran away. ‘Course most of those options are erased now that I refuse to allow them outdoors. Still. Maybe I shouldn’t have cats. Who knows.

Lilly decided it was time to cross the bridge to be with her friends. This morning as the vet was getting stuff together to draw blood, Lilly curled up and fell asleep. She stayed that way. I’m off to pick her up and find a nice place in the yard where she can rest. Thank you all for your warm wishes. I’m ok, just down.

Not looking good. The blood test this morning showed that her values haven’t gone down since Friday. If she doesn’t pull through by tomorrow, I think we’re going to have to put her down.

Meanwhile poor Maddie is really freaked out and every time I go upstairs she’s on me like white on rice, howling, drooling, purring, being generally pitiful. I put the radio on for her to keep her company, since she refuses to leave the bedroom.

This sucks.

I have to say that my vet’s office, North Austin Animal Hospital, totally and completely rocks. If you live in Austin and have a pet, it’s worth any length drive to take them here. Dr. Smith, who owns the practice, is the one who’s looking after Lilly. He was also the one who was on duty when Gus died, and called immediately to break the news to me gently. He will be in the office tomorrow to check on Lilly and said he’s going to call me in the morning to let me know how she is. Keep in mind we’re talking about a Sunday morning. Dr. Samon is also wonderful, kind, and realistic. He was the one who helped us out when Zeke got sick. And Dr. C(er, something), the new vet, took 10 minutes out of her schedule today to talk to me about what to do for Maddie, who has been freaking out since Lilly left the house. All the staff there really love animals and it shows in all their interactions. I can’t recommend them highly enough.

They’re located at 5608 Burnet Rd., just south of Koenig. Phone number is 459-7676. I’m not affiliated or anything, just a very satisfied client.

I’ve been getting migraines since I was a teenager. Normally I can just zap them with Midrin. Lately, though, I’ve been getting them once a week or more, and the Midrin isn’t helping. I have no idea what’s causing them – lack of sleep? dieting? I’m sure grinding my teeth plays a large part but I do it while I’m awake, and one of those night-time appliances isn’t feasible to use while awake. When I went to my dentist for the first time, he did a double-take at the volume of my jaw popping when I opened my mouth. He said it’s a bad case of TMJ. I guess there’s surgery available for it, but after the horrible surgery experiences I’ve had I don’t want to chance it. This is also why I wouldn’t dream of doing Lasik, although hub’s really intrigued by it.

I’ve read that Botox prevents migraines. The doc told me to try amitryptaline (or something like that) which basically turns me into a raging bitchzombie. Imitrex doesn’t work. Any other migraine people have suggestions? Last week I got migraines for 3 nights straight – the last one so awful that I was gagging and moaning all night, and my right eye was watering uncontrollably. Not a pretty sight.

Argh, I can feel myself clenching my jaw but can’t seem to stop doing it! Maybe I should try bio-feedback.

Tivo has decided that we would like to see a movie called Empire of the Ants, a 1977 flick starring Joan Collins. TiVo describes it as “A Florida real-estate woman takes buyers to an island where ants have been swilling radioactive waste”. Sounds like a shoo-in for Rhonda Whatsherface’s UP All Night. Whatever happened to that, anyway?

The down side is that I forgot to tell TiVo not to record over The Manchurian Candidate, and I never taped it.

Silly TiVo.

If you haven’t heard the soundtrack for Silence of the Lambs – the musical, well, you’re just not living life. Of particular interest is track 6 – “Put the Fucking Lotion in the Basket”. Upon listening to it I think I let a little drop of pee out. What a catchy tune!