Indiscriminate Contemplations == Random Thoughts
I mentioned last Friday that Gracie, one of our two cats, was sickly and that we’d taken her to a fully loaded Animal Hospital. We took her in that Friday night and well, things are looking promising. She underwent some testing and most came back negative. Poor thing ended up with shaved areas around her mouth and ears. She did have a high white cell count which indicated parasites (such as ear mites), allergies, or an infection was present. So,
- The vet wanted to treat her for ear mites, even though the testing came back negative for them. That frustrated me because she was tested two times before and ear mites weren’t present. However, the vet said that ear mites could be present even though none are found. So, we were given Revolution and she was given ear drops. And,
- The vet also wanted to treat her for bacterial infection as she the areas around her ears and mouth were causing her the most problems. So, we were given a special kind of soap to wash her with along with some antibiotic ointment that had anti-itch stuff in it. We were to to this twice a day.
We started washing Gracie the next morning and putting on antibiotic ointment. It was just putting the stuff on the corner of a wet washcloth and then scrubbing around her ears and mouth. Tip: hold the cat on a tile floor (or a slick surface) – they have no surface to which they can grab onto with their feet which translates into slipping or sliding. All they can do is struggle indignantly. Ha!
Anyway, We started to notice improvement after about two days of treating Gracie. She wasn’t scratching as much and her easy going personality returned. And, most importantly, she stopped hiding, which eased my mind tremendously. It is normal for them to go off and hide/sleep somewhere; but, not for days on end. And, with Gracie, she would to come to me every morning demanding attention and cuddles. I had missed that.
On Sunday, she felt good enough to be in the open windows and watched Dan mow the lawn (I have a series of pictures on that and will post them later).
And then on Monday morning, she was a very loving and demanding kitty. She wanted attention. And she played – first time in ages. And, she came to me and lay in my lap, which she hadn’t done for many days because she had preferred to hide.
Here she is in all her happiness and glory. Ha! Poor thing, she’s not looking very pretty with her shaved fur.
I had snapped this with my phone camera which I have with me most of the time. She was sacked out on my lap while I was on the computer. I have to support her with my left arm or otherwise she would fall off. This makes things difficult for me because I’m a lefty. But, she was happy and roaring like a little Harley before she slipped into a deep sleep. It was too cute with her head back and mouth slightly open. How could I NOT try to get a picture?
We’re taking Gracie back into the Animal Hospital tonight or tomorrow for a follow up. And, I want to talk to them about controlling this problem as it keeps returning. I absolutely hate seeing her miserable and I don’t want it to return again. Ever!
Okay, enough about the animals. Moving on.
I quit drinking sodas – Both diet and regular. It has been about four weeks now since I last let a drop of sodas pass through my lips. I am now beginning to notice a difference.
At first, it was hard because I was miserable – I guess I went through a withdrawal of some sort. And, it took a long time to get through this period. I am now beginning to notice a difference in my general health.
I had quit eating and drinking stuff that had fake sugars (artificial sweeteners such as saccharin, aspertame, and sucralose) previously and then anything that had High Fructose Corn syrup as an ingredient. The last gasp was the sodas, which also has High Fructose Corn syrup in the ingredients list. Most regular sodas do have that ingredient and the diet sodas had at least one of the fake sugars present.
It has been beneficial to me so far. I think my body was poisoned and it will take awhile to heal and get rid of the crap in my system.
As soon as I feel ready to start, I’m going to quit table salt – anything with iodine in it. I will switch to sea salt or kosher and then gradually reduce my “need” for the stuff. At least, that is my plan.
Okay, enough about that. On to another subject.
Now that my life isn’t so chaotic, I’m getting back into routines based off Flylady. I’m so much happier when I’m on top of things. I don’t follow Flylady strictly; but rather, loosely – what fits our lifestyle and energy. I am slowly starting to get back into it by making lists.
Yes, I’m a list maker. You didn’t know that? Well, now you do. I make a list for practically everything – groceries, running inventory of freezer items, “to do” list (such as pay bills, go to bank, go to Realtor, etc., and etc.), “things I want to do” list (projects – mostly crafting), “Bucket” list, and on and on.
I think I drive Dan batty sometimes with my lists. At the very least, there were times when I saw him smiling in amusement. That’s a good thing, right? Ha!
Anyway, I made two lists. One to list things that need to be done. The other is a "routines" list -- things to do in the morning, afternoon, and evening. So far, the first list is long because I'm way behind on things and the last list is pathetic because, well, I'm way behind on things. Ha!
Once I tackle an area and completely have it set to rights, I cross off item(s) on the "to be done" list and add item(s) to the "routines" list. I already have the kitchen conquered. It's the rest of the house that needs help. Ha!
Here’s another tidbit about me relating to lists. I have to write my checks with black ink. And, it has to be one of those pens that helps prevent check fraud. When I couldn’t find one of these pens of mine with black ink recently, I whined to Dan because I had to use blue ink to write my checks. He thought it was hilarious and said I might have OCD. Hmmppfffhh!
I don’t have OCD. Well, I might have a slight case. But, I highly doubt I’d get diagnosed with it. I don’t have enough traits (symptoms) of having OCD.
Let's move on to another subject before I dig myself into a hole here.
As I mentioned before, we’ve been looking at houses. We have been living in this tiny rental house for over two years. And, that alone was unexpected. We didn’t think we’d be here this long. And, I’ve run out of patience with the tiny rooms, unpacked boxes, etc., & etc. – It makes for one big giant messy place. So, we’re looking for a home to call our own.
We’ve seen a couple that we like; but, they each had issues that we didn’t think we could live with. We’re looking at pre-owned, newly built, and model homes. So far, each of the homes we liked best is the Pulte homes. Even most of the pre-owned ones we liked are by Pulte. Even the house that bit me was a Pulte. I find that interesting.
We’re going to see two more houses tonight. Fun! (Seriously, it IS fun! I’m having a good time looking around at the variety of houses.)
Surprising, I have no links this week to share. Either I didn’t come across any that I thought was share worthy or if I did come across one (or two), I forgot to save the link. Sorry! Well, maybe I do have one link to share.
I have started a 1,000 gifts journal which I may or may not share in the future. It's kind of tough sharing personal things publicly. Anyway, it is loosely based upon the Multitude Mondays that Ann Voscamp of a Holy Experience blog started. It's "giving thanks for a thousand graces".
I enter at least five things that I feel are gifts from God. I haven't been consistent in entering every day; but, whenever I do, I enter five things. I started it out this way. I think the "1,000 gifts" community does it every Monday. But, I just do it whenever it strikes me and whenever I remember to. I have no deadline either.
I don't wish to list just anything - that is easy enough. No, what I wish to do is list things that I truly feel that are gifts from God - things I'm truly thankful for. A tough challenge. And, it truly makes one ponder upon His Grace.
Whoa! I have been a chatty little thing today! I think I will close off for now. Have a wonderful weekend everyone!
poor kitty, we just rescued a kitty and are loving him to pieces he he is about a year old hope yours feels better soon
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