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Please donate if you can, and spread the word. Facebook, email, tweet, or even phone — however you can get the word out!
Yesterday was apparently my heavy lifting day. I went up into town and stocked up on bird seed, and then I stocked up on Diet Coke, and then I stocked up on cat food. That won’t get us all the way through the next six weeks ’til I can lift all that heavy stuff again, but it should buy us a few weeks.
Every time I go in for surgery or am going to Maine (or Pennsylvania), I get into this kind of obsessive mindset and decide that there’s one thing that I ABSOLUTELY MUST HAVE RIGHT NOW.
This time around, that one thing was a travel pillow – you know, those u-shaped pillows that support your head when you’re sleeping upright? Well, I’ll be sleeping in the recliner for at least a while, so I absolutely HAD TO HAVE one of those pillows. Tuesday when I was on my way home from the recycling center, I stopped by Walmart to see if they had any. They had one, a memory foam pillow, but it was in a box I couldn’t open without breaking the tape, and I wanted to try it on for size and make sure it wouldn’t be too tight around my neck or bother my ears or anything.
(I’m going to have incisions around my ears, and I imagine that having a pillow squeeze on those would be annoyingly painful.)
Yesterday, I ran to Kohl’s to see if THEY had one of those pillows. They’re renovating the store, so I wandered around the pillow section for a while. I had just decided they didn’t have any of the travel pillows and was about to walk out the door when it hit me that – dur – I should maybe look in the section with the suitcases and such. I did, and they did have a couple, so I bought one.
NOW what’m I gonna obsess about ’til tomorrow morning?
Okay, so, the story on Reacher.
First, I have to tell you a sad back story. Do you remember Maura? We had her about a year ago, got her while I was recovering from my hysterectomy. We thought she was pregnant, but as it turned out, she was never pregnant, was just a bit tubby and enjoying the attention and extra food she was getting from we morons who thought for sure she was going to drop those babies ANY moment.
Kathy adopted Maura in May and took her home to Birmingham. Maura settled in quickly, and things were going just fine (Maura was a total lovebug). And then, sadly, Maura passed away unexpectedly while I was in Maine last July. I got the email from Kathy while I was in Maine, and I intended to write about her when I got home, but I never did.
So that is very sad news, but it does lead to good news: Kathy and her husband decided that they were ready to adopt again, and I suggested Reacher because I fully believe that once he’s past his fear of being in a new home, he will reveal his sweet loving nature – like I’ve told Kathy repeatedly, Reacher is a lover of people AND cats; not surprising, since he’s grown up in this house where kittens come and go regularly. Kathy has a boy cat, Beau, who needs a friend, and I think that once things have settled down they’ll end up the best of friends.
And, of course, if for any reason it doesn’t work out, Reacher will always have a home with us.
The good thing about this, of course, is that I can harass Kathy for updates on how Reacher’s doing! And you know I’ll be sure to pass it along to y’all.
Kathy arrived around 7:30 last night to pick up Reacher. As soon as she stepped through the door, Reacher vamoosed. I sent Fred upstairs with the carrier to get him while Kathy signed the adoption papers. We talked for a few moments, and in that time Reacher went from trying to dig his way out of the carrier to laying down and looking fairly relaxed.
I missed him as soon as he was gone, but I know he’s going to a great home and I think he’s going to be very happy.
I snapped a few last pictures of him, of course.
A last snuggle with the princess.
Tommy makes sure he’s spiffied up for his new mom.
Snuggling with Tom.
And an absolutely terrible picture I snapped, right before they left.
And then there was one (Bookworm). Corbie wonders if this means he gets Reacher’s snackin’?
Princess Alice of Smugonia, hoggin’ the Permanent Residents section of the posts. Smugly.
Previously
2010: GOODBYE, ORGAN THAT SHALL NOT BE NAMED! DON’T LET THE CERVIX HIT YOU IN THE TUBES (?) ON YOUR WAY OUT!
2009: Usually, Fred’s Ross and I’m Chandler. Or Joey. Except that I’m kinda ditzy like Phoebe. I am an amalgam of Friends characters!
2008: No entry.
2007: No entry.
2006: Unless maybe it’s a magic leotard and the source of all her powers?
2005: “Life’s too fucking short to read books that suck.”
2004: Damn you, DVR! I WANT to love you, but you’re toying with my emotions!
2003: No entry.
2002: No entry.
2001: No entry.
2000: I’m not sure what effect, if any, it had on her.
I am so excited for you and already thinking the good thoughts for your big day. Hang in there and know there’s a gazillion of us Internets sending good vibes for your surgery.
And congrats to Kathy for her new addition, he’s gorgeous!
Good luck tomorrow Robyn and congrats to Kathy, Reacher and Family!
I’ll be thinking of you tomorrow, Robyn, and sending well-wishes telepathically. If something feels weird, that’s probably coming from me. 🙂
Kathy and her husband are awesome and Reacher is a lucky boy.
Great news for Reacher. So sorry about Maura — I wonder if she had some kind of problem that related to that strange weight gain? And that it caused her to die?
Good luck with the surgery!
Did you get any snow today? I’m south of you, and we have about 2 inches on the ground, county schools closed again. Kids will be going half the summer to make up these days, if we get much more snow. I’m tired of it; I thought this was the South! Hopefully it’ll warm up fast today and melt this stuff.
Yeah, we got about 2 inches. Fred went into work, and said that the roads were pretty bad. The sun’s out and there’s not a cloud in the sky, so hopefully the roads will improve before he comes home!
Thanks for your well wishes, everyone! 🙂
I’m glad your surgery wasn’t today! I am home since the arsenal closed though I didn’t realize it changed from delayed to closed until I’d showered and put my makeup on.
I was so sad to hear about Maura. I wonder if it was a heart problem that will hit cats when they are young like her – very sudden and unexpected. Poor baby. I know that broke her family’s hearts and yours, too. I hope Reacher and his new brother get along great. It must have felt a little like giving away one of your cats after having him and his brothers so long. Go ahead and give Corbie his snacks.
Love the smugness of Alice. I keep having that song in my head – White Rabbit – “Go ask Alice when she’s 10 feet tall…” (http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/go-ask-alice-lyrics-jefferson-airplane/9558cf5506258d5f48256d650010f27e)
Will be thinking of you tomorrow. Tell the girls to smile. hahahahaha
Sending good thoughts to you for tomorrow, Robyn! 🙂
Best wishes for an uneventful recovery from a highly successful surgery!
On another note – and not trying to rain on your parade – but did you read the new info on diet sodas? Are you going to change your Diet Coke intake at all? It does seem kind of scary …
It does seem kind of scary if it’s true, but I think more research is needed. In the meantime, it certainly wouldn’t hurt me to cut down on the Diet Coke and drink water instead!
Hey yall, re: Maura – it was pretty heartbreaking! I wrote about it here. We suspect there may have been some connection with Maura’s unusual rotundity and her sudden death, but we’ll never know for sure. Her stools were never 100% normal, she went thru spells of dripping poo everywhere, and was treated every way they could think of for that. She really was such a sweet little love bug, and had the easiest transition into the household of any cat we’ve brought home. I felt soooo terrible (guilty) when she died, even though we had done everything we could to figure out what was going on with her. Oh and when I realized my email to Robyn about it reached her while she was on vacation in Maine (BECAUSE I AM A SKIMMER AND HADN’T KEPT UP) I felt even worse! Sorry Robyn!
Anyway, we took awhile to feel ready to adopt again. But we are ready, and we’re so happy to have Reacher. Robyn, I kind of forgot until we were standing there in your kitchen with Reacher in the crate that it would be so hard for yall to say goodbye to him. A year! Thank you for raising and training him for us 🙂 And thanks for letting us take him away from you. We will take good care of him, and you can visit him any time!
Sorry about Maura…but relieved to know she was loved and cared for in the time she was part of your family!! You gave her the greatest gift of all…a forever home!!
Best wishes with Reacher…may he light up your home and hearts for a lifetime : )
So sorry about sweet Maura! One of our cats (our favorite) became constipated, was treated at the vet’s, and then his abdomen swelled up. The vets thought it was FIP, since the swelling is a classic sign. Sadly, he died several week later. But I’ve read that the swelling can last for longer than weeks.
Best wishes for your surgery tomorrow, Robyn!!!
Best wishes for tommow & to a speedy recovery. So sorry to hear about wee (or not so wee!) Maura. Wonderful for the Reacher Creature – a forever home & a new best friend.
That Alice! Her colouring makes her look like shes a cartoon character of a cat, mind you, so does that loony Jake. Ever thought of turning their antics into a cartoon strip?
Princess Alice & Loony Jake sounds like a good name for a comic strip. 🙂
Are you having a facelift? I know, I know-that’s what I get for being a skimmer….
Neck lift, upper arm lift, breast lift (no implants).
Good luck tomorrow!! Can’t wait to see the results! (living vicariously and all…)
I’m sending good thoughts your way, Robyn, for a successful day of surgery. I hope you bounce back quickly and look better than ever. You will be on my mind tomorrow so best of luck. Very happy that Reacher found a forever home. I hope he adapts well to his new surroundings and new cat friend.
Good luck tomorrow. Recover quickly so you can update us quickly – it’s all about us, your readers you know.
Love Princess Alice of Smugonia -purrfect name for a cat. And yay for Reacher finding his new forever home.
Best of luck to you tomorrow!
Best wishes again from me, Robyn!
I hope Fred will let us know how you’re doing.
So happy for Reacher and his new Mom. I hope they will make each other very happy.
It’s a little late now but I have been thinking about you and your surgery, Robyn. Hope it went well!
The people who work in stores LOVE polite people like you who don’t open things like that. The amount of rebag from things being opened is amazing and probably drives up prices like shop lifting. No one wants to pay full price for opened and rebagged stuff so usually it doesn’t sell unless it gets marked down. It wouldn’t hurt the pillow but you are a very considerate consumer.