And Never Brought to Mind

Today is the last day of what I've said a half dozen times has been a bad year. 2007 has several promising personal changes including moving and working from home. We'll have at least one new family member this next year and financially everything looks good as well. Here's to good health, peace, and love for us all in 2007. Happy New Year!

Adios, Navidad

The last few days have been filled with ups and downs, but I think I can see light at the end of the tunnel. In two days we'll be back to work and vacation will be a distant memory before you know it, but I think I'm ready to get back to "normal". M's birthday was fun-filled and she was as always completely adorable and entertaining. We got to visit everybody this weekend, but some for longer periods than other due to a disagreeable family member, but hopefully in the near future we can spend more time with everybody.

Now, my mind moves to upcoming work and New Year's resolutions.

In the picture, Ike stands where the Christmas tree once did wondering why his chew toy has been removed.

Spending My Time

In hopes of spending one of our gift cards from a restaurant we don't have in our town, we ventured to Eville. Well, the restaurant doesn't open until 4 and we were ready to eat at Noon 30. Oh, well. We visited Staples, Circuit City, Pet Smart, Target Greatland, Knit Witts, Best Buy, Michaels, and Barnes N Noble. On our trip, I discovered that Dungeons & Dragons the cartoon is now out on DVD, so I have to have it. My bday is coming up relatively soon, so I can wait for a little while but not for very long.

Tomorrow we head back to my parents to visit with Needlefingers (not the borg) and Pilot. Looks like due to our schedules, we'll miss visiting with Rudy and Brando and the bunch this time around, unfortunately. We've got a pretty full social calendar from here until we go back to work which will make the time fly. At least it will be 2007 then.

In the photo Izzie and Cooper wait on/by the toilet for Ragged to get out of the shower.

I Really Can't Stay

It's cold outside but it's warm in here. I don't really care if I ever leave the house again. The next few days we'll be putting away all the Christmas decorations which I will secretly be glad to see go. We don't have alot of space around here, so the less cluttery type stuff we have the better. Ragged and I went out for breakfast and rented a movie for New Year's Eve. Bring on 2007 because I'm certainly sick of 2006. The only thing missing is a little snow to make staying in the house day in and day out reasonable.

Today is my niece's birthday. She is the big 2. Happy Birthday, M. Her birthday party is Saturday. Should be fun.

In the picture, Eli (Roosky) lounges under the tree after all the presents are gone. I think he misses his big brother. I know I do.

The Day After

I consider today my first day of vacation. Since Friday, we've been busy with Christmas stuff, so today was the first day of pure relaxation with no obligations whatsoever. After sleeping in late and some homemade breakfast and lunch, Ragged and I ventured out to return some gifts that didn't fit, literally or figuratively, and take care of some other things like getting my hair did. Ragged and I also got a short workout in which we haven't done together in a long time.

Tonight, Ragged is going out to dinner with her brother and I'm staying in and apparently providing warmth to the cats. Since I've been home, I can't sit down with a cat or two piling up on me. As I write this, Cooper is draped over one arm and Izzie is up against me on her pillow.

In the picture, Cooper sleeps with his head under the chest of drawers. This picture was taken a year ago today.

So This Is Christmas

Because whoever dies with the most toys wins, here's a rundown of what Santa brought me:

a watch

a gym bag

two movies

Star Trek The Animated Series on DVD

a car cellphone charger

2 CDs

Money

Gift cards (Sonic, RedLobster, Starbucks, Hollywood Video, Outback, & American Bounty)

Cranium

a crockpot

Sudoku calendar & electronic game

popcorn

coffee & mug

skittles

lifesavers

notepads

and other stuff I'm forgetting.

This morning started early (5:30 am) and involved us going to Ragged's parents for gifts, a trip to my parents for dinner and presents and then back to Ragged's parents for dinner. Christmas wasn't so bad, but I'm still glad it's over. Ike got a box for Christmas. Well, not really, but he certainly enjoyed it.

No Fartin', No Pickin' Your Nose, and No Playin' With Mr. Peabody

It's Christmas Eve. Who would have thunk it. And, just as anticipated, the bottom fell out of Christmas this morning. The details are not mine to discuss, but no one died, so that's a positive note. Nothing we can't recover from thankfully, but nevertheless we'll have to trudge through tonight and tomorrow with the bad taste in our mouths.

Anyway, I hope everyone manages to have a nice holiday despite those who may try to piss on it.

Prozac, A Crazy Check, and Cable TV

Is my head going to explode? That remains to be seen. Yesterday when I gave blood my blood pressure was up. The bottom number is usually a little high, but this time the top number was elevated as well. I expected my bp to be up. I can just tell it is. There has been alot of stress lately and there's not a light at the end of the tunnel. It's not as if things have been going that badly lately, with the obvious exception of Sammy's death, but for some reason I can't seem to relax. We went out with Ragged's college chum and her sister last night and I enjoyed myself. Typically I'm not one for socializing, but I had fun. Later, Ragged's brother and sister-in-law and niece came over. Ragged's niece was asleep when they arrived, but the rest of us stayed up and talked and laughed until nearly midnight. Today we went over for breakfast at Ragged's parents and her brother announced he and his wife were having another baby. Lots of good news and not too much holiday drama, so why can't I calm down. I'm still watching episodes of Voyager that I've recorded. I liked this show, though in the Star Trek fandom it gets a bad rap.

Bah Humbug is an Understatement

Vacation has arrived. Today, I bid adieu to my co-workers until January 2, and I headed out to get my doings done which included giving blood and getting some warts frozen off. I had lunch by myself and then headed home for some Star Trek Voyager marathon on Spike and a failed attempt at a nap.

While Ragged was away with her soon-to-be sister-in-law and mother, I stealthily wrapped her last present as well as my grandmother's and called Christmas a done deal...well, except for the, at times, excruciating time that has to be spent with la familia during the season. For anybody not paying attention, Christmas Eve is in two days. God help us all.

Today, before I left work, some carolers from our building came up to our floorto spread some Xmas cheer. At the time, I was chit-chatting with a co-worker who upon hearing the singing promptly instructed me to shut her door. So much for the spirit.

The Fleas Have It

One of the side effects of Ike spending the night outside was our home being infiltrated by fleas. Today, I bit the bullet and bought some expensive frontline for the cats and some spray to use in the house. We'll probably never fully get rid of them, but we're going to mount an attack anyway.

I have one more day then I will begin my vacation. Actually, I only have 3 more hours of work as I have a dermatologist appointment and I'm giving blood tomorrow as well, so I get part of the day off.

Our houseguests arrive tomorrow and hopefully we are prepared. Ragged hit the grocery today to get some supplies. Hopefully the next few days will be happy and problem free.

In the picture, Ike yawns as he participates in his favorite pasttime, napping.

Crap In, Crap Out

At work today I was without a computer and, as with any place of business, I was rendered completely useless without the vital technology. I tried to accomplish some things, but I couldn't name 5 tasks I completed today. My computer along with several others were taken to our IT department in the state's capital to switch them to a new domain or some flibberty jib. Hopefully I'll be back in business tomorrow.

2006 has got to end...well, only if 2007 is going to be better. If there's more crap in store for next year then forget it.

Feels Like Today

Today we had our Christmas get together at work which wasn't too bad. Since I changed job duties, I've noticed a lightening of my workload which is probably due to the time of year. I'm anticipating the flood gates opening in January, but for now I will enjoy the downtime. We continue to struggle with our new case management system. It just doesn't work properly and management refuses to accept the fact. Hopefully a conference call later this week will straighten out some problems we're having, but I don't know.

After this week, I'll be off for several days. I'm always jealous of Ragged at this time of the year for having so much time off, but I think we'd probably just get on each other's nerves if we were both home for such a long period of time.

I'm starting to feel somewhat better after losing Sammy. I think I only teared up once today and trust me that's a record.

Sun on My Face and Wind at My Back

Part of moving on is facing that Christmas is a few days away. We're going to have houseguests during part of this time which is causing me alot of anxiety. I need a place to retreat from all that the holiday brings, and my home is that place. When there are others there, it doesn't feel like so much of a retreat.

Thankfully, have completed most of my Christmas shopping. I only have a few things left to buy. I don't want to wish my life away, but I'll be glad when it's over.

Tomorrow, I'm going to be brave and go settle up with the vet. I have food and meds to take back to get credit on the final bill for Sammy's treatment. I hope I can be strong.

Sammy

Moving on is the hardest thing to do, but it is absolutely necessary in life. I've spent the last few days trying to do it and slowly I am getting there. I was so attached to Sammy, I'm not sure I realized how much until he was gone. There is a void now. I'm going to miss him badly. It's difficult to talk about him and even to write this, so for now I'm going to move on, but I'm never going to forget.

Stop the Hurtin'

My stomach has been in knots with worry for the past two days over Sammy. I found out from my sister whose cat had a similar ailment that the liver problem could be a side effect of the urinary tract problem, so I don't feel quite as concerned that something very serious is happening. I'm going to take Sammy back to the vet tomorrow for a checkup. He is still quite groggy from the anesthesia and he is still vomiting, but hopefuly he'll get better with each passing hour. We've got to get him started on the medicine and we've got to get him on a new food that only he can eat. That's going to be difficult. Sammy gets upset when his food bowl isn't brimming with food and from here on out, free feeding is no longer an option. His new food is moist too. I just want him to stop hurting. I don't care about the inconvenience of trying to feed them all different food.

There is some good news. Sammy jumped up on the couch to lay beside me. I feel better. I hope he does too.

Baby Mine

Sammy is having problems again. He's doing the same thing as before and today, his third trip to the vet brought about more antibiotics and some anti-spasm medication for his urethra. There are tests pending which will help determine what meds might finally work for him. He is home, but he's obviously in pain. They attempted to cathederize him but they couldn't, so there's something blocking his urethra or it is clinched. They did an xray and he had what looked like needles from the Christmas tree in his stomach, but they couldn't find anything obvious. They did find a large amount of blood in his urine and a high level of protein and white blood cells. Since getting home, he has vomited a couple of times, probably due to the anesthesia, and he keeps squatting like he's trying to pee. He keeps wandering around the house trying to find a comfortable place to relax. It is sad to watch. He is obviously hurting and there's nothing I can do.

If Only

There is no justice in this world! Why couldn't that guy in Oregon just have been found alive. Would have been too much to ask, particularly at this time of the year, for something nice and kind of miraculous to have happened. I tell you, things like this make it hard to be anything but cynical. In addition to that, one of my co-worker's who I don't particularly get along with was promoted today. This person is one of the cruelest people I've ever met, yet people are drawn to him. It's one of the strangest phenomena I've ever seen. Kind of like the anti-Christ. Anyway, I'm not feeling optimistic.

Neurotic By Nature

Today I was asking a co-worker of mine that moonlights at a veterinary office about Freddy. You see, I believe Freddy has worms. He is Nicole Richey skinny and the other day I saw him poop and it was very red, indicating he has blood in his stool. Anyway, my co-worker said it's probably worms or another possibility she mentioned was feline lukemia which is apparently contagious. Now, our cats haven't had any contact with him with the possible exception of Ike who spent the night in the garage, but Izzie has been puking her guts out the past two days. Things seem to have gotten better for Izzie today as she hasn't puked since early this morning, at least I couldn't find any puke the short time I was at home. There are two puke spots in the front sidewalk/flowerbed, possibly from Freddy or one of the feral cats who comes to feed the bowl we've put out for Freddy Fred. I'm kind of nervous that somehow Freddy has infected Izz with something, though I know logically it's pretty impossible. I always jump to the worse case scenario when it comes to the cats. Hopefully Freddy just has worms and Izzie just has a hairball. I gave her some paste today to help with the hairballs and my co-worker is going to see if she has some worm meds for Freddy. We'll see what happens.

Christmas Time Is Here

This weekend brought lots of Christmas-type activity for Ragged and I. I was mistaken about the play. That's next week, but I was right about my work Christmas party. It was fun and I even won the centerpiece, but I punked out on doing the Electric Slide. We didn't stay very long after the DJ took over. Earlier on Saturday, Ragged, her dad, and I got our tree and Ragged decorated it. I like having the tree, but decorating it isn't fun for me, so Ragged happily takes care of it. She also has decorated the entire house and with the cold weather coming on, it feels like Christmas. Tonight, Ragged went over to help her momma put up her Christmas tree while I

stayed home and didn't bake some no-bake cookies and I'm watching Charlie Brown Christmas which I recorded last week. I'm also making some lasagna. We went to Wally World and got some supplies and some stuff for those less fortunate than we are. My Christmas gifts have been bought and have arrived or are in transit from various locations across the US after they were ordered online. It feels like for once I'm ahead of the game. We'll see.

The first pic is our mantle with all our stockings, including the cats. The second pic is reindeer dootie...uh, I mean the no-bake cookies I made.