I've never been good at commitment, aside from my marriage, son, and pets. I have a few other things I am committed to, but I tend to flow with the wind.
It's been a rough few years since I've last checked in. The world turned upside down. It seems callous to say, but I really don't care. It's like watching a dumpster fire from across the street. I see it burning, I know it's there, but there's literally nothing I can do. I can't call 911, because they are already on the scene. The problem is, they can't get through the milling bands of idiots protesting the dumpster fire polluting the environment, next to the people protesting that dumpster lives matter, with the people protesting that we don't know if it identifies as a dumpster or a bin, nearby are the people protesting that we can't know if it's a blaze or a fire, down the street are the people socially distancing from the dumpster,bin.blaze,fire calling it an inferno of lies. Somewhere there's a corn dog vendor with vegan vegetable free corn dogs made from dry fallen leaves and fallen twigs because this week vegetables have souls, there's a merch vendor nearby selling everything imaginable but not one single fire extinguisher. Amid all of this the fire department still can't even reach the dumpster, so now it's spread to the nearby tent commune....see, this is why it's hard to really put too much effort into staying up on current events. There are entirely too many layers of BS to cut through to even use a fire extinguisher before something becomes a major incident. I'm somehow stuck in the stupidest timeline.
If this post doesn't get me a slap on the wrist for offending the dumpster society of America or something else, I'm not sure what will.
I also don't even think anyone aside from bots reads blogs anymore. But I'm writing this anyway just to say that for now Blogger still exists, and so do I.
Over the years of my blogging. I often mentioned my cat, Kung Pao. I mentioned his two friends Simon and Skippy Jon as well. As it happens 2020 was a bad year for my cat family. Simon was fine and dandy in February. Then one day I heard a few sneezes from a bush. Simon popped out. He seemed ok. I figured I'd give him a day or so before I called the vet to see if it was just a one off. I didn't hear anymore sneezing. Then I really noticed how thin he looked and just how tired he looked in March. I got him to the vet. He was diagnosed with FIV. Apparently he'd been born with it. I was advised to keep him separate from his friends. Simon was about 17 and had been with Kung Pao since he was around 2. Simon had been with Skippy since he was about 4. They were not biters, they were all older gents who were friends. There was no way I was going to isolate him and break his heart and the other boys hearts for the last little bit of Simon's life. He passed away one month after his diagnosis in April, 2020. Skippy and Simon were the best of friends. Skippy and Kung Pao did their death songs. Later that year, the neighborhood chipmunk killing champion Skippy started to look thin and his coat was scraggly. His eyes appeared to be sunken in. We took him in to the vet. He was 14, he had advanced kidney failure. He never showed any signs at all that we could see. We had to make the decision on October 31, 2020 to have him put to sleep. His ashes stand on the mantle.
In April of 2021, we finally decided it might be time to see if any other cats were in need. We found two. Big Al-9 years old (grey tabby) bonded to Skippy- 10 years old (marmalade). They are in/out cats. Their owner became too ill to take care of them. We brought them home. Our son informed us that "Skippy" was not allowed to remain "Skippy". Big Al is now Alvin, "Skippy" is now Julius. These names just suit them much better too. They responded right away.
They were allowed to visit with Kung Pao, who at that time was quite elderly. Kung Pao had gotten a clean bill of health at his physical on May and was just getting ready to celebrate his 19th birthday. He'd been through chemo for lymphoma when he was 7, was misdiagnosed and had a constant nasal problem from the time he was 9, he had hyperthyroidism, arthritis, stress induced gastritis, but was still VERY much invested in life. He still played like a maniac for short bursts, raced me up the stairs, enjoyed his catnip and singing the songs of his people late at night. He did meet the other two, Alvin and Julius, all he had to do was turn his head to send them running away. His birthday celebration in May was typical, his favorite fried chicken along with some macaroni and cheese. He was predictably in heaven, we just didn't realize how soon he'd really be there.
The problem started in August with two nights of horrible nose bleeding. I really thought he was going to die. I looked in his eyes and saw fear for the first time (aside from the fear of cars). My husband and I were calling emergency vets, our son was holding his little brother/best friend (they'd been together since our son was 3 and Kung Pao was 2 months, a lifetime). No emergency vet would see us, the waits were too long. One did offer if we just wanted to have him put to sleep. We were horrified, he was just a little bloody. After the second night we were able to get him in to see his regular vet. We got him back later that same day. He paced for at least an hour when he got home, he always did that after the vet. There were no answers. I took the day after off work to stay with him. He seemed to rally. We were very excited. He was eating well and playing some, while still building strength. Something changed during the next week. He seemed really tired, he wasn't very interested in food anymore, he seemed like he wanted to play but didn't have the energy. He brightened up whenever we got near. Sept 15, 2021 his breathing became very labored. It was no better the morning of the 16th. I took him in for a chest X-ray. His lungs were full of lesions and his abdomen was filling with fluid. I still have no idea why there was nothing showing in his bloodwork a few months before. I also don't know why there were no X-ray's taken when he went into the hospital for the day after the bleeding. I was told to make him comfortable at home, spend time with him then bring him back within two days to have him put to sleep. I could not do that to him. He would die at home, where he belonged. We found a hospice vet to come out September 17, 2021 to end the life of the largest little Siamese heart we knew. He fought until the end. He hopped over the coffee table to escape this new vet. Then he laid down panting from the effort, just to prove how fine he was. It was an absolutely awful day. We sent him to be cremated with some of his things and a T-shirt from Daddy. His ashes are at the opposite end of the mantle from Skippy. Simon was buried.
On July 11, 2022, this stray bundle of fur poofed onto the scene, his name is Chester. He brings a certain level of light and chaos into our home. We adopted him from an animal rescue, they said he was three, but he does seem younger. We also don't believe he was really a true stray, he's entirely to used to heaters, air conditioners, litter boxes and toys.
First set are the original boys. Kung Pao has the solo photo, Kung Pao and Skippy Jon were both Siamese, Simon was Russian Blue.
Alvin is the grey tabby, Julius the Orange, and Chester (his face fur is MUCH fuller now, is Balinese, to the best of our knowledge)
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