Thursday, July 18, 2002 Well, Meetoo still hasn't shown up. This worries me, that she's just gone. And went missing during the day. It may very well be that she had kittens and just hasn't wanted to leave them yet. I don't know. I do know I miss her and I think Meezer does, too. And Meezer, well, he's been sticking around for the past few weeks, right here. He's even started sleeping in the cathouse on the bank during the day. He was here for breakfast this morning, along with OC. But I haven't seen him since, which is a little strange. I wonder where he went. I hope it wasn't to a place where he's not wanted and he's not safe. I think he may have gone back across the street with OC. *sigh* And SpotTee didn't show up last night and he wasn't here this morning, either. I think "lo jacks" for feral cats would be a good thing. They could be implanted at the time of neutering (if you're lucky enough to trap them). Angus hadn't been by for two or three nights and he was here last night. And there was a tortie out there eating. One of her ears seemed messed up. She either is a former housepet or she was very hungry because she didn't run off when I spoke to her through the screen window. But she did walk out when I opened the door to talk with her through the screen door.

And the birds are no longer bothering me. Little Pete took care of that Sunday. He caught one. I heard the birds chirping, then silence. Then the chirping started again, but it was different. I went out to see what was going on and Pete had a bird and it was too late to save it. I tried to get it away from him, but he ran under the pool pump. I was able to get it later, but it was pretty nasty. Junior had it. But the birds moved to the front yard, where it's safe for them. This flying around in this yard made no sense.

I started setting up the new computer on Monday, stayed up pretty late. I didn't get enough of the cables I needed and ended up going to Office Supply, got cables, came home and found out they were the wrong ones. I called them back before going back to the store and they didn't have what I needed. I ended up going online to the store where I found the switchbox, found a much nicer switch box that came with the appropriate cables. So, I'll be returning the ones I bought originally when the new stuff gets here. One of the problems I'm having, and it's a very frustrating problem, is my registered graphics programs. On some of them, I can't find my original downloads. It's been years since I bought them, some of them were purchased in '98. Well, I called one of the places where I got them (digital river) and was told that they're insurance (which I hadn't gotten) was only good for a year. And that they didn't have stuff that old anyway. I would have to repurchase the software. What!? Spend hundreds of dollars on something I already had, that works fine on my old system? That's bunk. That's not going to happen. So, I emailed support at Alien Skin (where I got the software) and explained what happened. Hopefully, they'll be able to help me. And the majority of my ULead graphics programs are upgrades from previous versions. And I'll be darned if I can find the original version downloads anywhere. So, the newer ones won't set up. This is really frustrating. ULead usually has a $4.95 redownload fee, but they said they'd waive it for me this time, if I sent them the email confirming my purchases. He said though, to not lose the new download information. I told him I wouldn't, that my new computer has a CD-ROM drive where I can write my own CDs. I'll be saving the information to those. He said that was a good idea. I can't believe how much time I've wasted trying to get this stuff working properly. I was in here so long Monday, my neck was stiff. I was trying to figure out why and yesterday, it dawned on me. It's from sitting in one position, staring at the screen. Then, I try to figure out the digital cameras and of course I can't find the needed cable for the camcorder. I ordered another one, only to realize that the one I ordered will let me download the still images to the computer, but not the video. So, at 11 at night, I'm back here, back online, looking at the JVC site for the connection cable I need. Trying to see the back of the computer to count the pins. I ordered the new cable and sent an email asking to please cancel the order I'd placed a few hours previously. They can't do it. I was told to put "refused" on the package when it gets here. Well, since both packages will get here on the same day, how will I know which one? I was given the invoice number, which should be on the front. What a pain in the butt. Good thing I've got a big butt, so that I can take all of this pain. *chuckle*

Meezer is back.

Brian brought the Bronco home last night. It's adorable! It's so cute! I I'll just love driving it around. It needs new tires, some brake work (the emergency brake doesn't work well) and the A/C needs to be fixed. Brian will be installing the radio/CD player this week, one of the ones we bought at CostCo years ago and never used. And I just ordered specialty plates for it. It's really neat how you do that now. The first couple I tried weren't available (4 R PETS, 4 R CATS). We finally found a couple that were acceptable, then decided on one of those. It should be ready in eight to twelve weeks. Kewl! I really wanted to have "cats" in the message, just to tweak the neighbors (Hey, look you aholes! We bought a vehicle just to do stuff with our cats! Feed on that for a while, you old hens!) but we went with "pets", because, after all, we didn't want to leave Junior out. And we will be getting more dogs in the future.

An online friend of mine, who has a cat related site, started getting all sorts of hate and death messages in her guestbook. She found how people were getting to her site. Another website had her listed as their "awful link of the day". People who obviously don't understand cats, or the people who like cats. That's fine to not like cats, but I have to admit, it sure doesn't say much of the mentality of the readers of the page that had the link. To actually go over to the site and leave hate messages is beyond my sense of understanding. What a bunch of losers. My friend had to take her site down. This is so very sad. Hopefully, it will die down soon.

Last night, for some reason, I thought, 'hey, why not give Lola a pipe cleaner?', so I did. She's having a blast with it. It's been years since she's played with one, since before her cancer. I remember she used to take them into the kitchen and shove them under the refrigerator. I'd clean under it and find a lot of pipe cleaners. She talks when she plays with them and Brian used to think there was something wrong with her. Well, last night, she started talking again. And she's still playing and talking this morning. I love this. Sixteen years old, on drugs for cancer, and she's playing like she did when she was young. I wonder if her appetite will pick up. That would be nice.

Well, I have quite a bit of paperwork to do and my housework has fallen behind since I've been trying to get the new system set up the way I want it. I have much to do. I should probably get started.

Sunday, July 21, 2002 Well, still no sign of Meetoo. No SpotTee, either. *sigh* There was still some food left over this morning, not as much as yesterday morning. I scraped the bowls and moved it all into one and put out the Fancy Feast for Meezer and OC. I also put out a little chicken. I came back inside and dozed off on the sofa. When I went out later, almost all of the food was gone! Not something I would think that would be just Meezer and OC. Maybe SpotTee is back. I know he's done this before and it was usually over a weekend. Maybe he's in someone's garage.

Lola has another bladder infection. We just noticed it this morning. She peed out a little piece of something that looked like cooked rice, but pink. Then she had some clear urine. For the next hour, she squatted numerous places, trying to urinate, only little bits coming out at time. The last I saw, the urine wasn't clear, but bloody. I called the vet, left a message with the answering service that if he were to go into the office today, would it be possible for me to come pick up some Baytril? I gave her an amoxicillan but had completely forgot she throws those up. Which she did shortly after having it pushed down her throat.

We went shopping in the Bronco yesterday. My first time. I like it. The control panel is exactly like the Ranger's. And it has the same engine and stuff that the Ranger has (it sounds like the Ranger when it pulls into the driveway). Our first stop was Boney's, a health food place. Brian gets some of his supplements there. Then we went to the pet store. We were almost out of Felidae and Canidae canned foods. On the way in, there was a woman handing out coupons for Sensible Choice, $3.00 off. We didn't really need any, but we bought two bags (I only needed two more UPC symbols to mail away for a free bag). And we got the canned food. Well, the woman behind the counter brought out some more coupons. Buy three, get three free. So, we got two cases of Canidae for Junior, one which was free, and two cases of Felidae, one of which was free. At .99 a can, we saved over $48.00 when you include the sales tax. On our way to the truck, the lady handing out coupons gave us two more. They expire in December, so I'm pretty sure they'll get used. Cool.

At CostCo, we got some stuff that we needed replaced (and some stuff that we didn't, as usual). I told hubby I'd spring for dinner, how about a piece of pizza and a soda, followed up by an ice cream bar at the CostCo food place. But we didn't because of the cold stuff in the cart. Instead, we went to Outback Steakhouse. I have to say, we weren't really impressed. The salad and vegetables were good. Brian got a baked potato and I let him try the steamed vegetables I got. He like my vegetables better. But I think for beef, we'll stick with Black Angus. For drinks, we'll stick with Applebee's. For big buck meals, I think we'll stick with Claim Jumper.

Something I did find out with the new computer, about the old one. I was disappointed that I was unable to play my DOS games with the old computer because of the cameras. I thought the cameras didn't work while I was in DOS. Today, being connected to the internet with the new computer, I watched the cameras while I had a game going on the old computer. The cameras worked just fine. So, now, I've got something new to play with. Cool. As if I didn't have enough to do already. *grin*

I've been noticing the past few mornings that it's darker when I'm used to it being light. Duh. The days are getting shorter. Amazing how that works, isn't it? Well, I guess I'll go fold laundry. Then dust. Then vacuum. I really should wash the floors, too. *sigh* A woman's work is never done....

Tuesday, July 23, 2002 Well, it's been an interesting couple of days, to say the least. Meetoo showed back up Sunday night. Still pregnant. But injured. It looked like she had a huge gash out of the inside of one of her back legs. Whatever it is, it most likely happened during the day the Friday she went missing, the 12th. I'm thinking either she got on the engine of a car or was attacked by a dog in someone's yard. Anyway, Brian and I started making plans for trapping her. Well, last night, Brian put out the food and oddly, no one was eating. SpotTee had shown back up, so it looked like we had a full gang again. I did see the cats outside of the gate, but no one would come in to eat. This was very strange. The possom showed up and I think he was the only one who ate anything. Brian went to bed around ten and I opened one of the windows by the front door, so that I could see if any more food had been eaten. When I did, I heard a faint mew. I went outside, thinking maybe Meetoo was in distress. No, she'd had a kitten in the cathouse on the garage side of the walkway. I didn't see her, but I figured I'd best go inside the house, so that she could take care of her baby. I watched out the window as she came into the entry way, still large (more kittens was my guess). She nibbled on some food and knowing how I am, I took two excedrin PM and went to bed. If I hadn't taken them, I'm sure I'd not have gotten any sleep at all. I dreamed about her having kittens, in my dream she had three.

When I got up this morning, OC and Meezer were out front, and so was Meetoo. Meetoo wasn't acting like a mom, she was rubbing up against Meezer and not hissing or anything. I put out the Fancy Feast for them and they ate. When most of them left, I went outside to check in the cathouse. Oh my God, there was a dead kitten outside of the house. It was a black one, umbilical cord and placenta still attached. It was covered with ants. I reached down for it and it moved! It was still alive! I ran inside, yelled at Brian to help me (I don't know what I expected). I grabbed a clean washcloth from the closet cupboard and ran outside to get the kitten. The ants were all over, walking on my arms from the kitten. (Have I ever told you how much I hate ants?) It was a little before six and I didn't know what to do. I knew I had to warm the kitten up, because he was so very, very cold. I found an old bottle for kitten feeding and warmed up some straight goat's milk (thank goodness we have that around now). I called Becky, the woman who sits for us when we go out of town. No answer. I called Charlene, the woman who helped out with Cleo's kittens last year. No answer. I left a message. I called Becky back and she answered. She had been out feeding her horses. She told me to give her about twenty minutes and she'd come over. She got here before seven and tied a string around the umbilical cord, then she cut the cord. I packaged up the placenta in a paper towel and plastic bag and threw them out. She told me the cord on him should dry up and fall off in a couple of days. She said he was very small, probably premature. She showed me how to feed him and told me the feeding schedule. While we were talking about the kitten care, Brian was out front, doing cleanup.

In the one story cathouse under the bedroom window, he found the parts of her two other kittens. The head was missing on one, the legs and feet on the other. I don't know if they were born dead or there was something seriously wrong with them. Or if she just wasn't ready to be a mother. He cleaned out the house, hosing it out very thoroughly and he put it by the garage and put the two story under the bedroom window. How very sad this all is.

So, keep your fingers crossed that I don't mess up with this little guy. I know his chances aren't great, but he showed such a strong will to live, by crawling out of that cathouse, looking for his mom. I want to do right by him, I want him to live. I already went down to the pet store and picked up some KMR and another bottle. He's in Brian's bathroom right now, in a box that has a towel on the bottom, a heating pad on the side, with a little of it on the bottom. There's a towel over the side of the box, a little tent for the kitten to be in. The kitten has gravitated to the heating pad side of the box, to keep his little body warm. I'm scared stiff that I'll overfeed him. I'm scared stiff that he's not getting enough to eat. I'm scared that I'll do the elimination thing wrong (kittens have to be stimulated to poo and pee). I'm afraid that the formula will get into his lungs. There's so much I'm afraid of right now. I've been talking to God an awful lot this morning. I know it's going to be hard, but I'm going to give it a go. Thank goodness I have a weak bladder, because I'll be up every two hours to feed him. Wish this little guy luck and pray that I have the fortitude to do this right. I've never had such a young kitten.

Needless to say, we didn't go for our walk this morning and Brian was late for work. We'll probably go for a walk this evening. I know I'll need it.

I got a new USB thing to connect computer to computer. I tried installing the software and I did something horribly wrong. My CD-ROM wouldn't work. I kept getting a "access denied" message. I kept getting the blue screen of death with a Fatal Exception message. I called the company who did my Gateway and, panicked, left a message. Then I used the other computer do do an internet search. I finally ended up at the Microsoft website and did a search of the error message I kept getting. It told me how to fix the problem. I followed the instructions and the system is up and running as it should. Whew. I also called the computer company and told them to "never mind".

I have to go to the DMV today and get the Bronco registered. Brian tried yesterday and he said the line was out the door. He figured he wasn't even going to try. He did get new tires and wheels on it, they look really good. He still needs one more, though, for the spare. On this model of Bronco, they're stored on the back door. It really looks naked without it. He also got the little "Bronco" buttons for the driver's and passenger's side. It came with the horses, but the words were gone. He went on about what a difference it made. It is looking nicer each time he does something with it. I'm not looking forward to going, but I made an appointment online yesterday, so it shouldn't be to bad of a wait. It isn't that far from here, either.

Well, time to feed the little one.

Thursday, July 25, 2002 The kitten died this morning. I thought he would make it, but from what I read about orphan kits and from messages from people who've been breeding for decades, it was pretty obvious that the odds were stacked against him. Figure he was most likely born premature and we don't know what type of injury he may have sustained when she got hurt. I doubt she suckled him at all and he had been laying out there for hours. At least he died knowing warmth and love. He died shortly before six this morning and I told Brian he was gone. Brian got out of bed and put clothes on, went outside and dug a small hole below the lemon tree. He came in and I put the kitten, still warm, into his cupped hands. He took the kitten outside and tenderly placed the kitten in the hole. I could hear Brian sniffling as he covered up the hole. Today is a sad day. He seemed to be okay yesterday morning, but as the day went on, he got weaker and weaker. He was eating okay, and pooping and peeing, but last night, he was barely moving. I could see him breathing through the night, but he'd become very nonresponsive. I hope he wasn't in any pain.

One of the things that struck me yesterday when I was washing the bottles and nipples was how much Maggie loved to chew on the nipple rubber. It was a nice memory.

I've noticed fleas on me the past couple of days and I had no idea where they came from. Brian found out last night. They're in our backyard. We're infested. Brian looked for an insecticide in the shop, but couldn't find one. So, he decided we'd try to drown them out. He turned on the sprinklers late last night. They came on again this morning. And when the grass dries out, I'm to run them again. We'll probably run them again tonight. I'm really glad I did the Advantage on the cats last month. I did Mickey yesterday, because he's so highly allergic to their bites.

Last night, I watched Bart squatting on the lawn and it would appear that he's on the verge of constipation. This morning, I gave him some soft food with a Vetasyl in it. When the vet's office opened, I called to find out how often he should get them. The maintenance dosage is one twice a week, but he needs a little more than maintenance. He's to get one every day for five days. That should help clear him out. And I have to clip his nails today.

Lola is on Orbax, not Baytril. And she's doing much better. That little piece of whatever was probably a mucus plug, the same thing that Kirby used to get.

Well, I think that's about it. My eyes are really burning. I haven't gotten much sleep the past couple of nights and I've been crying since this morning, when I realized that the kitten wasn't going to make it.

Monday, July 29, 2002 Things are getting back to normal. I've been doing busy work, still trying to get the new computer set up. I spent probably close to thirty hours trying to get one computer to talk with the other, even went so far as to reinstall Windows 98 on the old computer. The "Network Neighborhood" just wasn't showing up. Then, during a search of the internet for why this was happening, I came across a site that specified that Windows 98 Second Edition was the first Windows to have the capability of talking with another computer. This isn't the version I have. So, I did another search, found the program for $95.00 plus shipping. This was the cheapest one I found! Ack! So, I cruised on over to EBay and found a Win98 SE upgrade for Win98 for $45.00 plus shipping. I bought it. It should be here this week and I'll soon have one computer talking with another. I also did a search for power strips for transforms. I've got three power strips here, each with six outlets and I'm only using ten of the outlets out of a total of eighteen, because of the transformers (cameras, USB hubs, etc). I found power strips, two feet long with eight outlets on each one, made especially for transformers. I ordered two, they should be here this week. It should considerably neaten up the place.

I had a scare on Friday morning, the day after Little Boy died. Meetoo wasn't here for breakfast. On our way back from our walk, a neighbor told us she'd seen a big coyote just laying in our driveway the night before. All day long, I just knew that Meetoo was gone. But, she wasn't! She showed up for dinner. She's only been here once in the morning for the past week, so I think she's staying elsewhere at night. I was so hoping she'd stay here with Meezer. Brian doesn't think it was a coyote. Just in case, I did the pee in a cup thing, poured it into a spray bottle and marked my territory. I'll mark it again today.

Since I discontinued the free email (since Bigmailbox started charging for it), I've been getting hundreds of spams a day. My email in the morning was running between a hundred and a hundred and twenty mails, plus many more throughout the day. Everything addressed to lisaviolet.com was coming to me. AAA@lisaviolet.com, ABA@lisaviolet.com, ACA@lisaviolet.com, I think you get the idea... Frustrated, I finally put up an email form on my send mail page. And I figured out how to set my options so that only email addresses of my choosing would be sent to me. All the rest will bounce back to the sender. This morning I had eight emails. Four were valid, four were not. I think they got through before the changes took effect. I know that I'll still be getting some email, but not nearly the volume I was getting. It was really nice this morning. Really nice.

We're out of food. No milk for our cereal. No eggs. No tortillas. No salad. Looks like shopping will be in order today.

The weather has been lovely. Last week was warm, but this weekend was absolutely beautiful. A wonderful summer weekend. Saturday, we went to breakfast, then popped over to a car stereo installation place. Ended up buying a stereo for the Bronco and had it installed. We walked around the area for a while, over to a PetSmart and then to Michael's crafts. At PetSmart, we bought a little treat dispenser for Junior, which he doesn't understand, replacement feathers for a cat toy and some catnip. At Michael's, we found a large package of red pipe cleaners, which we got for Lola. Then we walked back to the car stereo place. Well, the back speakers were bad, we were told, they didn't work. So, we bought a set that had been a display set for less that fifty percent of what they had originally sold for and Brian installed them Saturday afternoon. He had to go down to the shop because he couldn't get them in the holes, they were a little too big. He had all the tools he needed at the shop. It's nice to have music and a clock, but it just didn't sound right. I tried adjusting it and I got it to sound better, but not like is should. Yesterday, Brian took the Ranger down to the shop to do some more work on it and I got the carpet shampooer out and cleaned the Bronco, with the music on. And I found a reason why the music doesn't sound right. I called Brian and asked if he checked out the speakers before coming home. Nope. Well, the speaker on the driver's back seat side isn't working, one of the new speakers we bought. So, Brian has to check the wiring. I'd do it, but he says it's really hard to access, that he really had to push it in to get it installed.

A while back, someone posted a link somewhere to a program which automatically fills out forms and passwords. The name of it was Gator. Well, I did a search for it, found it, downloaded it and found that it comes with some pretty stinky advertising. So, I deleted it, continued the search and found another program that's free with no advertising for individuals. I like it. It automatically fills in passwords for sites that need them and automatically fills in other forms, like when you order something. You can find it at http://www.roboform.com.

Lola is feeling much better. She has another week of antibiotics. I just hate it when they don't feel good.

This morning, I woke up on the sofa, really hot. I was facing the back and couldn't move. There were three or four cats on the other side of me, stretched out, snuggled close to my back. They weren't happy when I turned over, but I had to do something.

I realized I've only laid in the sun three days so far this summer. That's horrible! I used to be out everyday, for hours. Now, I'm lucky if I'm out there for two hours. Dang. I like laying in the sun. I've always liked it. I just have to get out there. I hope to be out there later today. Guess I should go start doing my chores. I can't believe how much the laundry grows, all by itself.

lisaviolet is fifty something, married with no kids, takes care of lots of cats, likes taking photographs, loves Southern California weather and spends altogether too much time avoiding her responsibilities.

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