july 19, 1999 LOL!! Brian listened to my little ditty yesterday, just shook his head. Said "now people are gonna think I've left you." Yeah, right. Georgie was unsure of what to do when he heard my dulcet tones coming from the speakers. So, he became affectionate, letting me hold him and pet him.

Yesterday, we went shopping. We wanted to buy a microwave, Brian said I could have a new tv for the office and we needed catfood and other stuff. We hit Home Depot first. Walking through the aisles, I pointed out an unfinished corner shelf and said "that's what I need" for the television. Brian said get one, I can't make it for that price. So, I did. We finished our shopping there, then went over to CostCo. We got cheese, catfood, gatorade and my new tv. Then we came home, unloaded, then went to Sears, where we bought a new microwave. They had a Whirlpool Gold model, the same as the one at Home Depot, for sixty dollars more. We didn't buy that model. The new one will replace the hood over my stovetop. It will be nice to have the counter freed up. Makes the kitchen look bigger. Not having been without some sort of microwave for years, I sure miss it now that I need to heat up Bobby's food. I'm looking forward to having the new one in place. It's shiny black. Laughing, I said that we're getting our new kitchen, one appliance at a time (we bought a new dishwasher a couple of years ago). Brian replied that by the time we replace all of the original appliances, it will be time to move.

Bobby is eating more. His appetite is slowly coming back. I think. He's eaten three times this morning. He just seems so weak. But he is walking farther to pee. And he's also getting water on his own, I'm not having to coax him to drink. He likes the water fresh I've noticed, so I change it a couple of times a day. After all the different foods I tried to get him interested in, while we were at CostCo yesterday, I picked up a carton of Fancy Feast. We have a winner. The cartons have 36 cans in them and there are three different flavors. He was actually biting at the food when I gave him some yesterday. He hasn't bitten food in weeks, he's been licking it. At the same time he seems so weak, he also seems more alert. It's really confusing for me. He had a good poop yesterday, soft, but well formed. Unfortunately, he puked at the same time, but he hadn't pooped since Friday when he was having such soft stool. So, I can imagine his tummy would be upset. Another thing I've noticed is that he's holding himself up when he pees. For the longest time, when he peed in the garage, he just had his penis on the cement. Maybe that's how he got the infection in the first place. It's something we'll never know.

Anyway, when we got home from shopping, I fed Bobby, then I used some of the Wattco stain that we have. It's supposed to be a golden oak, but it came out yellow. I found some Old English stain cover that I got for the bedroom furniture (the wood is really soft and scratches easily) and used that. It turned out pretty good. And I was surprised to see that the kit came with screws and anchors. It's in the corner over my monitor, visible from all over the room. And I don't have to turn around to see it and best of all, the cats can't pee on it where it is. Brian was concerned that the cats would try to jump up to where it is, but I don't think they'll try. It seems like it would be more effort than it was worth to them.

I also picked up an electric sweeper. I used it yesterday. It's great. Lightweight and I did the hallways in a snap. It should help. I don't always feel like dragging out the vacuum cleaner and hopefully, something easier to handle will make cleanup not such a chore. And maybe I'll do it more often.

july 20, 1999 Well, Brian installed the new microwave yesterday and what an ordeal that was. They no longer supply a parts list, but the parts are listed out in the owner's manual. And the bag that held the nuts and bolts wasn't there. Brian had the holes cut, the template backing up and he tested the screws that he did have. Didn't fit. He left, went to Home Depot, came home with different screws and they didn't fit either. He wasn't happy. I finally called Sears at 7:30 and explained the situation. They said come on down and we'll get you what you need. So, off we go. There were a couple of customers ahead of us and we had to wait. Finally, a sales rep was free and Brian explained the situation to her. She looked at him and asked "did the box say "do not sell" on it?" "No," he replied, "the box had never even been opened." It seems that not all of the Kenmore microwave boxes have all of the equipment needed for installation. Ours is the fourth one returned. She said that there isn't a part number for them to order extras provided with the microwave. It's been very difficult for them, because nobody responds to their questions. Anyway, she left and went to cannibalize another microwave box for the correct parts. It took awhile, but she made it back and we got the hardware we needed. It was fairly late when we got home, but we got the thing up and Brian hooked up the electrical this morning. He still has to get the exhaust pipe for the fan hooked up, but that won't take too long. And I would only need that for smelly stuff that I was cooking anyway. He cleaned up the mess last night and happened to notice the box. It *does* say "do not sell" on it. It says it twice. And twice, it's marked through. Good job, Sears.

UPS never showed up yesterday to pick up the monitor. I called them late yesterday afternoon. For some reason, there was nothing on the schedule to pick the damn thing up. So, today, if no one shows by two or three this afternoon, I'll just take it to a Mailboxes, Etc. Or drive around looking for a UPS man. *grins* I have to go to the bank, so I might as well do it all while I'm out there.

Brian told me last night that Buddy's old owner never gave Buddy his food in a bowl, but just tossed it on the ground. He told me this after Buddy started shoving their metal food bowl around again. It's so annoying to hear that bowl scraping on the cement. He's been doing a lot of that lately. Brian yelled at him and told Buddy that if he did it one more time, that he (Brian) would dump the food out. And he did. LOL!! When we got home from Sears, Buddy was on top his doghouse. He used to get up there all of the time, but quit as he got too heavy. It was kind of neat seeing him up there, but I don't want to find out *why* he was up there. I know darn well he was barking at something. Probably in the neighbor's yard. Most likely human. Most likely someone who lives there. And we all know how much she likes to complain about our stuff (trees, dogs, house color....)

Bobby seems to be more with it in the evenings. He's certainly more active. And when given a food that he likes, he definitely perks up. I took him outside again last night. I think it's good for him to have a couple of minutes in the sun, feeling the warm breeze on his fur. I don't take him out for very long, I don't want to over stimulate him. He made it to the garage to poop yesterday, still a little runny, but much of it was firm. Besides knowing that this means his intestines are getting better, it also tells me that he *is* getting some solid food into him. And his eye is looking better. To be honest, if you only look at the eye with the infection, you would think he would be dead in the morning. But looking at his other eye, he looks good. For a cat in his condition. I just wish he would eat more. He's skin and bone. He wasn't a fat cat before and he's gotten smaller.

6:27 Bobby's gone. I took him to the vet and had him killed. I mean put to sleep. I released his strong spirit from his weak, almost useless body. Earlier today, I went to the doctor's to get him something to perk up his appetite. He did eat, even though the medication takes three days to work. As the afternoon progressed, he seemed to get weaker and weaker. More and more listless. I took him out into the sun, for what was to be the last time. He sat in the grass and dragged himself over to the cement. Oh, he looked so bad, how could I not let him go with dignity? How can I be so damned selfish to keep him here, just for myself, when I know he's telling me, he's been telling me he wants to move on to the next level? I finally realized that Bobby won't ever be chasing bugs and butterflies again, not in this life. I have to let him go if I love him. What's that saying "If you love something, set it free". Well, that's what I had to do. I called the vet and asked if they could fit me in. Yes, was the reply, bring him down. I did. I didn't have much of a wait and they had laid a blanket down for him. The doctor wanted to check him out first, to make sure that euthansia was the right thing to do.

He looked Bobby over. He mentioned how yellow Bobby was. He listened to Bobby's lungs and heart. He weighed Bobby. Bobby has lost two pounds since June 26th, when I first took him in. The doctor shook his head. He says that Bobby has really gone downhill fast, that it's just been one thing after the other. He said that you see that type of thing with old people. They are fine, then one day everything starts to quit working. He suspected that Bobby's liver wasn't working properly, especially when you add in the diarrhea he's been having. He said that it was good that I was able to face reality, that Bobby wasn't going to get any better. He gave Bobby a shot to sedate him. He said this is how he does it now, he sedates cats first, then he gives them the lethal shot. I stayed with Bobby as he fell asleep, his head on my arm. I said goodbye to him for the last time, I told him I loved him and how sorry I was if I dragged this out too long for him. I just didn't know for sure. I told them that I wanted his ashes. We'll settle up later.

When I got home, I paged Brian. I hadn't mentioned my plans to him. I was picking up the piddle pads in the tv room when I heard the gate. He was home. I met him at the door, sobbing. I told him that Bobby was gone, that I'd had him put to sleep. Brian put his paperwork down and held me closely while I cried and talked into his chest. As the evening has progressed, we've talked a little about Bobby. Brian said that Bobby's lost interest in life ever since he quit going outside to sit in the sun by himself. And Brian compared Bobby's quality of life to his father's. A man just waiting to die, a man who feels he has nothing to live for. He's given up, just like Bobby had.

I'm sad. But at the same time, there's a sense of relief that Bobby no longer has to live as he was living. It wasn't really a good life. He ate and slept, got the occasional petting, when he was in the mood. Like I said earlier in the diary, he hasn't watched the birds in a long time. Now, he's at peace.

I love ya, wubbers. I really do.

july 21, 1999 Well, sleep wasn't easy last night. I ended up on the couch, watching an old movie with Doris Day and Rock Hudson. "Send Me No Flowers"...it's a cute movie. Rock Hudson is a major hypochondriac and he overhears his doctor talking on the phone and mistakenly believes he only has weeks to live. I got the sneezes, which is never fun and my stomach was really upset. Pepper curled up against me, keeping me company on the couch (Pepper who's laying on my knee right now as I type). I finally got to bed around 2 am.

Well, the tv room is back to normal. I got rid of the heating pads and Brian put the wood partition, that kept Bobby from getting lost in the house at night, away. I won't be stubbing my toe on it any longer. Boy, that use to hurt. Last night, in the dark, I stepped over it from habit. It wasn't there. It's strange walking into the television room and not seeing Bobby, because he's been a fixture there for so many years. I'm sad that he's gone and I'm going to miss him. But it was his time and that does make it easier for me, knowing that I couldn't do anything to make him better. He had a long good life. With the exception of the dogfight, he was a very healthy cat. Never had any problems until last month. Then everything went at the same time. Life is great, it's death that sucks.

The vet asked me if Bobby was the first cat Brian and I got together. Nope, that would be Pepper. I had Bobby for four years before I knew Brian. Rusty and Boney for two years longer. Brian didn't think it was that long and I told him I got Bobby in 1981. Brian and I didn't even start dating until 1985. Bobby had been with me an awful long time. He was my first cat after I moved out from living with my mom and dad the second time.

Yesterday morning, I was just so cold. I couldn't get warm. I changed all of Bobby's pads, then put a towel over him to keep him warm. He purred for me. Late morning, he threw up again and he also pooped on the carpet. Some solid, some runny. I got out the steam cleaner and cleaned up the mess. At one point, he walked over to where I was sitting on the couch and pawed at my leg. I picked him up and let him lay next to me. We were like that for a half hour, then he started getting restless. He was so restless and I understand why. He was uncomfortable. He won't be uncomfortable again. *sigh* I'm not crying so much, maybe because I knew, deep down in my heart, this moment was coming. I'm glad I was able to do it.

UPS showed up yesterday. And he had a package for me, from Gateway. It was an envelope and in the envelope was another label. Oh, well.... At least I didn't have to find a Mailboxes, Etc. Now, I just have to wait for Gateway to acknowledge receipt of the monitor. I do have the tracking number, so I can tell when it gets there. And I'll print out the progress, so I can send it to my credit card company.

I'm very tired. And my eyes hurt.

july 23, 1999 Yesterday I washed and waxed the kitchen and laundry room floors. I even took the table, where I put the detergents, outside and washed it off. I did a real good job and it's a good feeling. It was therapeutic.

I don't miss Bobby much. I thought it would be harder for me, because he was here so long. I guess the fact that he hasn't been much of a companion for a couple of years has something to do with it. I remember feeling so sorry for him when he would drag himself out to the garage to pee or poop. Or when he wanted up on the couch. He slept most of the time. Sure, he didn't mind being petted, but it wasn't something he actively sought out and he didn't beg for food from our plates. His spirit left a while ago.

I did break down when I washed the blankets he had been sleeping on. That was hard. Final. He won't ever sleep on them again. He's in a better place now, a place where he doesn't need a heating pad.

I woke up this morning to the sound of a cat urinating against the wall. It was Gracie, standing on the headboard. And it ran down the wall and hit the electrical outlet, directly below. I heard it sizzling, jumped out of bed and pulled the plugs out of the wall. *sigh* Brian has to put a new outlet in. Since it's behind the bed, I'll get a freezer bag, duct tape and cover it once I have everything plugged back in. That way, the pee won't drip into the back of the outlet cover. That happened alot to the phone outlet here in the office.

I found some cool new games for Ben's Den. A jigsaw puzzle (it's great, you can turn the pieces around to get them into the right direction), lego like blocks, a game where you swim across a river before the sharks get you (yeah, yeah, I know, you won't find sharks in a river), and an airshow. To get to the airshow, you go into the garden where Benny is, then click on the plane at the top right. To get back to the garden, you click on the catnip plant. I don't have the puzzles linked yet, I have to build a new shelf in the gameroom. The shelf that's in there now is full. LOL!!! Just like real life. Oh, until I get the puzzles linked, if you're interested, they are puzzle 1, puzzle 2, puzzle 3, puzzle 4, puzzle 5.

Dare I say this? We've been letting Ciara out for the last week and she's been really good. Even with the doors open, she'll lay just inside the door or go into the four story house and sack out on the bottom level.

My neighbor's (the one who doesn't like our trees or the color of our house) daughter moved home. She brought her son and three cats with her. Those poor kitties. They've been indoor cats, but since they've been next door, they've been kicked outside because my neighbor is allergic. At least, they are putting them up at night, so they don't wander off. And the dogs chase them. She's trying to find new homes from them. I wish we could take them, but I'm not even going to say anything to Brian about it. Our cats have been so stressed this year, with the addition of Ciara, her heat, the introduction of Blackie, his death, Bobby getting so sick and being here and being gone and the tv room all messed up with the pads I had put down and then he dies.... I think it's a good time to not make any changes to the environment. Let things level out again.

I have my mammogram next Tuesday. I'm really looking forward to that. A new adventure.

Maybe I'll lay in the sun today. I've only done it once or twice this summer.

july 24, 1999 Last Tuesday, someone posted a very touching poem.....I'm in the process of setting it up on a page right now. Anyway, I printed it out and faxed it over to my vet's office. Yesterday, I got a sympathy card from him and he thanked me for the poem. I had printed out the Rainbow Bridge for him on really nice paper a couple of years ago and they now go to a printers to have more made when they run out. So, I found a nice font, some pretty paper and printed out about thirty copies of the poem to take over there when I settled up Bobby's bill. I took my card out to pay for him and Jennifer looked up my balance. There was none. ????? She said "let me look one other place." Nope. They did an invoice for Bobby's euthanasia, then zeroed out the charges. That was so sweet of them.

Last night, we were watching television. We hadn't gotten the cats in yet and it was getting dark outside. It was probably about 7:30/8:00. Since Ciara hasn't been doing any disappearing acts, we've been leaving the doors open. I looked down the tiled hallway and had to smile. Buddy was laying on the floor. I quietly told Brian to look. He did. "Buddy!! Do you like it there?" he said. He mentioned how happy Buddy looked. Then I noticed Junior looking around the entry door, into the hallway, testing the waters. We both started talking to them and they came into the tv room with us. They stayed in there until it was time for the cats to come in. I think they might be in more and more. Of course, I'll have to make adjustments, move catfood feeders and litterboxes. Lola just sat on the floor looking at them as if to say "what the hell are they doing in here?"

Brian's gone this morning, he left at 6:00. He's with his mother, brother and sister-in-law. They went to the sticks. Personally, I think he's jinxing the whole thing by going up there so much. I could have gone but I think we know how I feel about useless rides up there. I'd rather not. Guess I'll just kick back.

july 26, 1999 Mickey is *such* a brat. The past month he's been chasing cats off of the bed. Leaving himself and Boney as the only bed cats at night. At first, it was kind of cute, but now it's getting past cute. When he went after Annie last night (and the middle pillow belongs to Annie) that was it. I chased him out of the bedroom, slapping at him with the shirt I had on earlier. Annie came back to bed and made herself comfortable. This morning, he went after Lisa and then Ciara when she came in. We're gonna have to work on this behavior, because it's not acceptable.

We think we have a shuffling of the heirarchy going on right now. Bobby, even though he didn't do much, was the boss cat for a very long time. All the other cats deferred to him. Now, there's a shake up. *sigh* I hate this.

Ciara sounds really, really bad. It's painful just listening to her. I've been giving her the nosedrops without fail, but they aren't working as well as they did the first time she got them. She is getting more through her nose. I put a mirror up to it yesterday and there was a little vapor on it. I just wish we could do more. I did a web search on rhinotracheitis last night and from what I could find, there's really nothing that can be done. Her immune system has to fight it off. *sigh*

Brian thought that it would be nice to go to breakfast yesterday morning. So, we did. We went to a local IHOP. On the way, the CD was playing a live version of "Friends In Low Places" and Brian made some sort of derogatory snort. Now, I like this song and I like the live version, because Garth Brooks just sounds like he's having such a good time. But Brian scoffed at the audience or Garth's good time. Whatever it was, it bugged me. So, I said something to him about it. We got into a little argument, ending with me telling him I wish he would get rid of that stick that's up his ass. He certainly didn't appreciate that, but sometimes he can just be so obnoxious. We get to the restaurant, I'm pouting. We go inside and the host asks how we're doing this morning and I told him I would be better if *he* (meaning Brian) didn't have a stick up his butt. The guy's eyes got big and he kind of stuttered and said "well, the day is early" to which I replied, "great, that means I've got hours of this to go through, thanks alot". Brian was really nice after that.

After breakfast, we went to Home Depot to get a new outlet for the bedroom and I went to look at little lampshades for the lamps in the bedroom. They didn't have any small enough and the woman who worked there told us that WalMart had some. Oh, yay!! So, we went over to WalMart after we bought stuff at Home Depot, I got my lampshades and I also got a new floaty for the pool.

On the way home, Brian figured we'd go get gas in the truck, since the tank was pretty low. He stopped the truck and let the CD keep playing. He popped the hood on the truck to check the oil. Some guy in a red pickup pulled up and talked to Brian and I couldn't hear what they were saying. The guy left and Brian had the hood back down, finished with the gas and got in the truck. He started it up and off we went. "What did that guy say?" of course, I had to ask. "He wanted directions to Willow." "Boy, he's a long way from Alpine" I say. Brian gets quiet. "Oops. I gave him wrong directions". Brian sent him a totally different direction. He starts laughing. He says the bad part is he was so certain of the directions. He said go this way then turn at this street and on and on..... That poor guy was so far away from Willow. I told hubby if his ears started to burn in about forty five minutes, he knew why. I bet that guy was cussing him. It was really funny. Not for the guy, but for Brian, who knows where everything is. And here I am, couldn't find my way out of a paperbag, well, I knew where Willow Rd was. Ironic.

Brian fixed the outlet that Gracie ruined. Boy, finding the correct breaker outside wasn't very easy. So, Brian came up with this brilliant idea that we would turn everything off, then rename the breakers on the box. There are three different breakers that run in the bedroom. What kind of deal is that? It makes no sense at all. The rest of the house was just as confusing. Brian yells out "forget it". LOL!! Well, resetting clocks is so much fun.

Then it was my turn. I vacuumed behind the bed, cleaned the wall and got everything plugged back in. I got Brian's phone working back in the shop (we have one of those wireless phone jack things), which hasn't worked in some time. Then I put a big plastic bag over the entire outlet and plugs and duct taped it a couple of times around. That should keep the pee out. I figured since I had the vacuum out, I would do the walls. Then I washed my mirror wardrobe doors and vacuumed the floor. I put the new lampshades on my lamps, folded laundry, did a little dusting, then called it quits for the day. I still had some laundry to do, but that's no big deal.

Well, Annie spends most of her time in the bedroom. And she's been able to get under the bed (formerly a water bed, it has a pedestal bottom with drawers and storage space in the middle). At one point, the door to the storage area got opened and left that way. And she sleeps in there, behind all of my bags of yarn. After all of the ruckus in the bedroom yesterday, she wasn't coming out from under the bed. She's a very sensitive cat. She didn't come out until bedtime and that's when Mickey went after her.

I was checking out my garden yesterday and guess what? I have full sized tomatoes growing too!! Yay. I was dreading making tomato sandwiches with cherry tomatoes. What a hassle to slice. *grins*

Oh, here's the link to the poem I was talking about on Saturday. I finally got it finished. When I Grow Weak and Frail.

I got the baby blanket finished, too. Yay!! Very productive weekend.

july 28, 1999 Well, I had my mammogram yesterday. Didn't hurt a bit. To be honest, my bra is more uncomfortable than the procedure. The tech told me that one woman once told here it was the worst thing she had ever felt. The tech told the woman "I guess you've never had kids, then". Me, I woulda said "well, I guess you never had a bad tooth then". Now, all I have to do is wait and see if they call back. Hopefully, they won't. But you know what a wonderful imagination I have. After the x-rays were taken, I was told to go wait in the dressing room and not get dressed yet. I guess she had to make sure the pictures turned out okay. Well, she comes back and says everything is okay. Well, I start thinking "was she acting a little weird? did she see something that doesn't belong and can't say anything because she's the tech and not a doctor?" Now, keep in mind that my doctor did the breast exam not even a month earlier. But of course, we all know how much my little head voice likes to yabber on and on....

I made an appointment for Rusty to get his teeth cleaned. His fangs are brown. His gums look bad. Of course, because of his age, they have to do a pre bloodwork test to make sure he can handle it.

And then I'm sitting here typing. Ciara was up in the box. Ciara really has been sounding worse and worse. Brian and I discussed it. He felt that we should finish out the medication before taking her back. I felt that what if there was something wrong with her, something that had the same symptoms as the rhinotracheitis? And we're missing it because of that? You know, maybe a URI? She's certainly not getting any better. After discussion and after Brian really listens to her, he agrees. Something else I've noticed is that she isn't eating as much. Like her throat hurts. After I had made Rusty's appointment, I realized that I wanted Ciara to see the doctor. I call and made the appointment for today at 9:45. I could bring Rusty in at the same time. Thinking about the hassle of two cat carriers, I took the wrapped baby blanket down to Sheri yesterday, then came home. Well, about a half hour later, Ciara wakes up. Makes some gawdawful noises and scares the hell out of me. I look at her. Her eyes are light sensitive and she looks terrible. I call back. I talk to Charlene this time. She said bring her down, it's quiet now. I did.

I told the vet my concerns, about how I didn't want Brian and I to write off any symptoms as relating to the virus, when something else was going on. He looked in her ears and in her nose. He noticed, too, that she was light sensitive. Then he looked in her mouth. He wasn't pleased with what he saw. Her soft palate was very, very swollen. Could have been from a number of things, even an allergic reaction to a bee sting. Since he hadn't done surgeries yet, he asked if I would leave her there and even though he was pretty booked for surgeries, he would check her out. He wanted to get to the root of the problem. I said sure. He said he would call between noon and three.

I got home and Brian was here. I started to tell him about what had happened, started to cry and stomped my foot in frustration. I just can't stand it, I tell him. Then I repeat what the vet said. So, now we have to wait (and worry). Luckily the vet called at 12:30. Ciara was fine, it was a polyp. A big polyp. He described all that he did to her and now she should be much better.

We picked her up on our way home from my appointment. They showed me the polyp. It was as big as the top portion of my thumb. Huge. I can't even image this thing growing between her ear and her mouth. Brian didn't want to see it, he felt that his constitution is too weak. (Big baby.) So, of course, I had to explain it in detail to him. *BEG* The doc wanted me to see the x-rays. He showed me the growth progress of the polyp. It started in her ear. He pointed out the area around the middle ear. It was eggshell thin on one side, about a quarter of an inch thick on the other. It seems that she had an upper respiratory infection that went unchecked. This caused a pretty bad inflammation, which in turned caused the polyp to grow. The polyp just got bigger and bigger, pressing on her nasal passages and then into her soft palate. It would have kept growing. He said he's never seen one this big, in his entire career. Hopefully, it won't grow back, but that is a possibility. I asked about stitches and he explained that he sliced the soft palate and peeled the flap back. Then he burned/cauterized the polyp out. The flap was then put back into place. There are no stitches. He said there's another operation that will take care of it once and for all if it does come back. They go in through the neck/jaw area. So, fingers crossed we're done with this. He explained that he put a small hole in her eardrum, placed a catheter in her ear and flushed all of the crap out. It excreted through her mouth. He said it was pretty clear by the time he was finished. We got to bring her home and she was very unsteady on her feet most of the night. At one point, she climbed into the rafters, but Brian got her down. I put her in her carrier and covered it with a pillowcase so that she couldn't see out. She slept for a while, I let her out and she spent the rest of the night in the bedroom.

Of course, I'm sure her ear hurts this morning as well as her throat. But she's breathing so quietly. A new sensation for her, I'm sure. Air. A nice dose of fresh air when she takes in a breath through her nose. Poor little girl.

july 30, 1999 Well, Ciara's doing fine. It's strange not hearing her coming. Brian thought it was kind of scary at first. I kept checking on her to see if she was okay, she was so quiet. She's slept alot, but last night, she started perking up. Yesterday and Wednesday, she wanted me to hold her. She likes to snuggle on my shoulder or cuddle in my arms. This morning she was back on the counter begging Brian for eggs. He gave her what she wanted. She's been purring a little, not meowing much. She will look up at me when she wants to be held and the only way I can tell is her mouth opens. No sound comes out. And she had a couple of incidences when it seemed she was coughing or sneezing, but that's probably because her throat hurts. I haven't seen her do any of that this morning. And she can eat her dry food without choking on it. That always made me nervous. She didn't chew the kibble small enough and it would get caught in her throat. Now I know why. She isn't as restless, either. Probably because she can get a good rest, not fighting for air.

And Rusty has the most beautiful white teeth. His bloodwork all came back fine, he's a healthy boy.

Other than that, it's been pretty uneventful around here. Brian's been home most of the week, his work truck broke again and we just picked it up late yesterday morning. I have a bunch of laundry to do today and I think I'll clean house. I did find a new counter, one that I can run from LV Designs and I won't have to depend on someone else's site for the counting. The one I had been using cost me $9 last month. It varies on how much traffic there is. So, I'll be pulling all of his code from the pages. It's nice.

Hope everybody has a great weekend.

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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