Update on Punky and My Son's Car Accident

Just a little update to catch you all up on the latest. I have been so busy with caring for all the sick kitties here. I start at 6am and never finish until the last med is given at 10pm. It's been one thing after another, or so it seems. I am sorry to say that I have had no time for blogging these past few weeks, and I really have missed that so much!!! I keep hoping that I will be able to read, but then I am so tired at the end of the day, I literally pass out when I finally hit my Lazy Boy chair!

Punky finished her radiation just last Friday. Well, today we had to take her back for a re-check to see how much the tumor had shrunk, if at all. She has lost a little more weight, and the tumor measured somewhat smaller, but we were told to bring her back again next week, that the radiation needed a little more time to do its work. At that time, we are to meet with a surgeon to discuss the risks of the surgery to remove the outer portion of the tumor. We were told that since it is radiated tissue, she would undoubtedly lose a considerable amount of blood during the surgery and would no doubt require another blood transfusion. Then there is also the question of it healing, as radiated tissue usually does not heal well. They feel NOW that the cat should be euthanized! The oncologist said we needed to consider her quality of life. We KNOW that!!! But WHY then didn't they say this before even starting the radiation???!!! Once they get their money, which, by the way, this time was just shy of $3,000, they say the cat should be put to sleep just 6 days after finishing radiation!!!!

That kind of angered me, and if any of you know me, you know I speak my mind. So I told this oncologist that THEY need to know when to draw the line, too!!! I had asked her before the radiation was ever started if it was the right thing to do. She replied, "Oh, absolutely! Punky responded so well the first time, that we need to go ahead with it again." So then, even after the 3rd radiation treatment last Wednesday, I asked her about moving forward. Again, her reply was the same since we were already halfway through the treatments, we should proceed, but that euthanasia is always an option. I know that if she had told my son the cat should be put to sleep in the very beginning, he would have done that. So needless to say, I am a little ticked off at the moment!!! She said it didn't have to be done right away, since Punky is eating okay, but in the very near future. To tell you the truth, I am really infuriated! Had I not questioned her in the beginning before the treatments were ever started, I wouldn't be so upset. But I DID question her!!! I have come to the realization that everything today has to do with money!!! The more anyone can "take" a person for, the more they try to get!!!!

So for now, I am going to continue to feed Punky as often as she wants, and watch and see if her cancer shrinks like it did last time. If it doesn't, and I feel that she is suffering, then it will be time to take her for her last ride to the vet. I have done this many times and will not allow her to suffer.

My son's other cat, Scooter, has lost the use of her left rear leg due to an aortal blood clot that cut the blood supply to that leg. She will never regain use of it. It is of no use to her now, but amputation is out of the question as she would never survive the surgery with her bad heart condition. During the weekend, I noticed that her leg felt kind of cold. So Tuesday, I called this specialists' facilty, but they wouldn't be re-opening until Wednesday after the holiday. So my own vet took her in. Not much can be done for her except add Plavix to her list of meds to try and prevent another clot from forming. I brought her home and caged up the 2 of mine who are on Buspar for overgrooming and took them to visit the vet! They have been on Buspar for a month now and I cannot see where it has helped them one bit. So they were started on dep shots, which is a steroid shot. They will have to receive them as long as they overgroom....maybe a shot once a month or maybe a shot every 2 or 3 months. We just have to play it by ear and watch them closely. They both have licked all the hair AND skin off their bellies!!! So I got them tended to the same day, too! This is how my days are going, so you can see why I haven't been to visit you all. I am trying....hopefully, after I post a birthday tribute to my dad this coming Sunday, Sept. 7th, I will have time to visit and comment. I am waaaaaaaay behind in reading them!!!! I apologize to you all....just please bear with me. I'll get there just as soon as I can!

Another thing, my son was involved in a 3-car pileup Labor Day morning at 3am in Charlotte. We had just finished the newslettters on Sunday for the apartment complexes and had the ones delivered in Columbia and all the others had been mailed out a few days before. He went to Charlotte to get those dropped during the night when traffic is lighter. A woman stopped as she was to merge onto the interstate and he rear-ended her car, and the car behind him rear-ended him, spinning his car around with the back end hitting the concrete divider, placing his car in the 3rd position instead of 2nd where he was initially! He was so fortunate that the cars didn't explode as he had just filled his gas tank. It totalled his car. So the policeman took him to the airport where he got a rental and then he had to go back to the tow yard to empty his car out. Newsletters were thrown all over, and the backseat had come loose from the impact, so the boxes of newsletters in the trunk were all over, too! He finally arrived home for Labor Day late that day. His dad and he shopped for a new car for him, and he got it on Tuesday then. It's been a rough time for all of us here. I just thank God that my son wasn't killed. He was cut up and bruised some and was complaining of his muscles hurting him. He had a hard time getting up out of a chair at the table.

And now tonight, I am invited to my ex's home for dinner again, as his cousin is here from California. He was there last week and then flew into Florida to visit his brother and is flying back here today. I need to do a post on that, also, as I did get a pic taken last week. I thought it has been 40 years since we saw his cousin, but he said he was at my father-in-law's funeral in '88, but I don't recall seeing him then. Eddie was quite the lady's man in his younger years! These 2 cousins have so much in common, it's just unbelievable!! My daughter is able to join us tonight....boy, she doesn't know what lies in store for her! Whenever any of my ex's family get together, they have such a fun time! Always lots of laughter, so I am looking forward to an enjoyable and relaxing evening!

STOSH AND EDDIE

I have rolls raising and need to finish my strawberry cheesecake yet! Anyhow, I just wanted you all to know that I haven't forgotten you!!!! I hope to visit and catch up soon....verrrry soon!!!!!

(((((( HUGS ))))))

Company from PA

On Father's Day, my ex had a cookout at his home as his sister and his niece from another sister were here from PA. I tried my best to get there early....but, as usual, I was late! I am never anywhere on time. I just have so much to do to get out the door! Cats to feed and scoop, the scoop pails to gather up and put all in one big pail and double bag it all, kitchen bag to tie up, then to get it all loaded....after I got my trunk unloaded from my visit to PetsMart the other night! Then back into the house to scrub my hands, again, and then get the cheesecakes out of the fridge and boxed up, gather up my purse, sunglasses, and shoes, and THEN out the door! Oh, yes, I also made a dish of brownies for Stosh to use for the brownie delight for another night's dessert, so I also had that dish to carry out. By the time I got the trash disposed of and headed up the street, I was already whooped! And, oh, was it hot!!! And humid, too! So....that is why I am always late! It's a habit, I know, but a hard one to break....I just can't stand to go anywhere and leave any trash behind in my house! It's just got to go with me every time!

Well, now back to the company and cookout....It was sooooo good to see Arlene again and reconnect with Sharon after so many years! Arlene is my ex's sister, and I hadn't seen her in a little over 2 years. I hadn't seen Sharon for literally years! Here she is a beautiful grown woman with a grown son!!! As a little girl, Sharon always entertained the family with her twirling and dancing, and, I must say, she hasn't lost her charm. She's still just as sweet as I remember. Arlene and I were friends in high school, although she was 2 years ahead of me. I remember our lunch table in the school cafeteria every day as being the best part of going to school! She has two daughters, so her family has now grown to include grandchildren and even two great-grandchildren, so we had a lot of catching up to do. It was a delightful afternoon, with many laughs, some over my cat tales. We had a great meal, a wonderful host and cook, and no one left the table hungry, that's for certain!

Arlene and Sharon are leaving tomorrow, so there was not enough time for me to prepare for a company dinner. The next time they come, I'll invite them to come share a meal at my place. I took a bad fall the other night, so I have been moving quite slowly, plus, with arthritis of the spine, it takes me days to get my house just so, shopping done and things together for company.

Did I get pictures? Again, no, I didn't! We were all showing pictures we had on our cameras but then didn't take any! I am still not 100% into this blogging thing, as I swear you all must carry your cameras around your neck all the time! You always seem to have photos of just everything! I need to get with it, wouldn't you say?

With or without pictures, it was a fun day for everyone...at least for me it was! I love seeing friends and family from back home since I don't get to PA very often.

Oh, a little message to Arlene and Sharon...."Y'all come back now, ya hear?"

I hope you all had a great Father's Day, too!

Sunday Surprise

Lyle and Ann left Saturday for Atlanta for their last trade show during this trip. We said our goodbyes Friday, and that was really hard for me. I love company and always hate to see anyone leave. We didn't talk at all on Saturday, but I called them Sunday to see if they had arrived in Atlanta okay. Lyle said they'd never made it to Atlanta on Saturday. He went on to tell me that once they got on the interstate, the wind was so strong that it made it difficult to haul their fifth wheel and that they had to pull into another campground about 20 miles from here. I thought, oh, my gosh, they are still so close! They were getting ready for church when I called, and he said he had a few questions about his blog, so we decided to talk more after church. Later, we worked on his blog a little more, back and forth by phone.

With severe thunderstorms forecast for the day, and the wind still quite strong, they had decided to wait it out and leave for Atlanta Monday morning. I asked him if they would like to come and join us for Sunday supper that night, as Stosh and Tammy were coming. I told him I wasn't going to fuss, that it was just going to be pot luck and leftovers, as I had so much stuff in the fridge, and if they wanted to come and eat, to just come along.

A little while later, Ann called and asked me what time supper was going to be. I told her 5:30 and asked if they were going to come. She said yes!!! I couldn't believe it!!! What a surprise!!! I was just ecstatic that we were going to get together one more time! I told her I would call and tell Stosh, and she said no, that they'd surprise him this time. (Remember what they did to me on Friday, telling Stosh 1 o'clock and telling me 12:30 for lunch, knowing that I am always late and would surely be there by 1.) So this time the joke would be on Stosh! Anyhow, they arrived a little early, and I was glad. I had baked a chocolate cake, so to give me a hand in the kitchen, Ann jumped in and whipped up the cream cheese icing just like an old pro! They used to own and operate a restaurant out in AZ when they were younger.

When Stosh pulled in, he was surprised to see their big diesel truck parked in front of my place, but he wasn't quite sure if it was theirs or not, as he thought they were in Atlanta! What can I say? It was just like a reunion all over again with hugs, laughter, and more chit-chat!

Well, we had a not-so-bad meal of Thursday night's leftovers of roast beef, potatoes and carrots cooked together, applesauce, sliced homemade rolls, and chocolate cake with cream cheese icing and also strawberry shortcake with freshly-picked berries! I don't think anyone left the table hungry...at least, I hope not! I guess I'm still not quite 100% into this blogging thing, as I should have had my camera wrapped around my neck and taken pics of the group around the table and the desserts, etc. as Lyle had chocolate cake with strawberries on top of that cream cheese icing! It made a very pretty dessert!

Lyle brought his laptop along so I could show him a few more things he needed to know so he could post next time by himself. You can see by the pic above that he is deep in concentration, and then in the pic below, he looks like he is very satisfied that he accomplished what he wanted to, by the looks of that smile on his face! Welcome to blogland, Lyle!

All said and done, we squeezed in one more supper together and more time to chat before they actually left for their last trade show before heading back to AZ. We probably won't all get together for another very long time. We hope they enjoyed the week as much as we did! It was a fun, fun week!!! Only thing is, it didn't last long enough!!! We just wish they lived closer!!!

A Week to Remember

We have had a busy, but fun, time this past week. As you know from my previous post, we have had relatives visiting from Arizona. They arrived a week ago today. Just to recap the week a little, it went like the following:

Sunday, we were invited to the campground where we had a wonderful time catching up on the past 3 years, as we hadn't seen each other for just a little more than 3 years. Ann whipped up some delicious blueberry Belgian waffles in her new waffle maker. She had a variety of toppings, and I must say we did not leave there hungry!

Monday, Memorial Day, Stosh had us to his home for a cookout of NY strip steaks, grilled baked potatoes, corn-on-the-cob, baked beans, dinner rolls and 2 different strawberry desserts, both different recipes...one with an oreo cookie crust and the other a graham cracker crust.

Tuesday, we had dinner in a little town north of the city at a relatively new restaurant called Copper River Grill. Now let me tell you, that is quite the place to eat! You wouldn't believe the size servings they brought us! Ann had a grilled chicken salad which looked the size of a half basketball, mounded up, Stosh had a grilled chicken Caesar salad, another huge dish, and Lyle and I both chose the 1/2 pounder burger plates, which were just as huge as the salads! We just had to ask for take-home cartons! I have never eaten such a mouth-watering burger in all my life!!!

Wednesday, Stosh picked us all up about 11am, and we got a tour of the city. The city here just goes and goes in all 4 directions! It takes a good half hour to drive in any direction before you get to the outskirts of the city. It wasn't long before everyone was hungry, so we decided to eat at IHOPS. Another great meal!!! We also hit one of the two local Starbucks for coffee later on.

Thursday, I cleaned all day and cooked a sirloin tip roast with potatoes and carrots. I served it with applesauce and warm homemade rolls that I had made that afternoon. For dessert, I had fresh strawberry shortcakes. It's kind of hard to put a meal on the table at my place, as the cats are always all over the place, trying to see what's cooking! I had to get my squirt gun out and get after them a few times! After dinner, I helped Lyle set up a blog! He will be joining the blogging world soon! They have so much to tell, as they have travelled all over the country, so I'm sure he will do a bang-up job writing about their travel experiences. He wants to wait before he publishes his first post until they get back to Arizona in late June as he has photos at home that he would like to put on his blog page. I'll be sure to let you all know when he publishes, and I will also add his blog name to my list.

Friday, Stosh and I were invited to their RV for lunch. Ann told me 12:30, and I said I thought I could make it by then. (I am never anywhere on time, but I really thought I had it all figured out in my head so I could arrive there on time.) I like to sleep in since I don't sleep much during the night, plus I have 2 hours of work scooping litterboxes and feeding cats every morning. And then I need an hour for myself to get showered and ready. Wouldn't you know it....I was late!!! I had called ahead and told Lyle that I was leaving and would be there shortly, as it's only about a 10-minute drive. Well, there must have been an accident as they were diverting all the traffic from the big highway over to my shortcut! I think I sat through that one traffic light about 8 times before I finally got through it! Then came 2 more traffic lights! I never arrived at the campground until 1 o'clock! When I walked in, they all appeared to be waiting on me. You know how you feel when you're late like that? Well, I apologized for being so late and told them about the traffic situation, and they all started to laugh. Then to my surprise, Ann said I was "right on time." The 3 of them had cooked up a little scheme the night before (unbeknownst to me) to tell me lunch would be at 12:30 so I would be there by 1 o'clock, which was actually the time lunch was to be served! They told Stosh 1 o'clock and told me 12:30! LOL

Ann had made the some delectable turkey salad sandwiches with lettuce on some very tasty natural bread, served with potato chips. My, they looked beautiful!!! They were just so-oooo good!!! I can't believe I ate the whole thing!!! I have never had any turkey or chicken salad like that, ever!!! She said she got it at Costco's. If you get to a Costco, try it. It comes in big cans, brand name is Snow, 4 to a pack....oh, my gosh, it's delicious!!! I think I could live on that stuff alone! I am going out tomorrow to get some myself! Then for dessert, she had a choice of rice, chocolate or tapioca pudding! We were absolutely stuffed by the time we finished, believe me!

Later, we all hopped in Stosh's car and decided to go for a ride. He was going to surprise us with the destination. We had no idea where he was taking us! We kind of thought he was taking us back to Starbucks, but he pulled into the plaza where Panera's is located! So we had coffee there and watched the people using their laptops and just chatted some more.

What a great week!!! We thought they were leaving Friday, but they weren't leaving until today, Saturday. They are in Atlanta tonight for their next trade show. I woke up this morning at 9:20 and looked at my clock and thought immediately of them being on the road already. I felt such a sadness and emptiness in my heart, and I cried. We had such a wonderful week of catching up and reminiscing of years gone by, and it's just so hard to see it all end. And we never know when, or if, we will all get together again. Their daughters and families live in Arizona, and that has been their home since 1969 when they moved there from the Rochester, NY area.

I just want to tell you, Ann and Lyle, that Stosh and I both enjoyed every minute we spent with you. I am praying for a safe journey home for you! We love you guys!!! As I stated on my previous post, "Y'all come back now, ya hear?"

Memorial Day Reunion

This holiday weekend has been a great time for our family. My ex-husband's cousin, Lyle, and his wife, Ann, from Arizona are in our area and are staying until Friday. We have had the most enjoyable time over the past weekend, and there is still more to come! They travel around the country doing trade shows, and they are in our area this week. They have their Fifth Wheel RV parked in the campground where I had mine for quite awhile. Below are a couple of photos of them taken Sunday evening.

Sunday, we were invited to the campground for a visit. We hadn't seen them in 3 years, the last time they were in SC. Stosh and Lyle played together when they were just little tykes, so this was a wonderful reunion for the guys, as well as us gals, as we had a lot of catching up to do, too! (Oh, how I wish I could put my hands on a photo I have somewhere of those two when they were just little boys about 5 or 6 years old, dressed in their knickers!) Ann prepared some delicious blueberry waffles (yum-yum!) in her new waffle maker while we were there. It was just such a pleasurable evening! Have you ever wondered why families have to live so-oooo far apart?

When we were leaving the campground later that very warm evening, there were so many people sitting outside around campfires, oblivious to the heat, I guess. There were really a lot of RVs there for the holiday. It looked quite full to me. There is nothing like camping to bring you close to nature! My son loves it, too. When he was little, he just wouldn't shut up about camping...everything was camping this and camping that. Finally, we went out and bought him a really nice tent with a floor, zippered door, a real tent, not a kid's tent, and put it up in our backyard. Well, he and his little buddy, Brian, played in that tent the entire summer that year! They didn't even care if they went swimming or not. Now back on track to Memorial Day.....I get sidetracked so easily these days!

Stosh had us all to his home yesterday for a Memorial Day cook-out, which consisted of steak, grilled baked potatoes, corn-on-the-cob, baked beans, dinner rolls, and 2 strawberry desserts. My daughter made a beautiful strawberry dessert, too, and I had made strawberry cheesecake. When strawberry season is in, you eat strawberry desserts! I had all good intentions of taking pictures of the steaks sizzling on the grill and the desserts...well, you know how it is when you get to talking. I completely forgot all about snapping photos for my blog until we got ready to leave!!! Imagine that....me forgetting!!! LOL After dinner, we all sat and watched a video we had made back in 1990 when we had gone back to PA that summer. We watched the part where we had gone to Olean, NY as Lyle's mother, Aunt Myrtle, from AZ was there for a couple of weeks visiting her sister who lived in Olean. Another sister and her husband from CA had also flown in. Aunt Myrtle and I corresponded quite frequently for many years, and we were thrilled when she wrote that she was going to be in Olean during the same time we were going to be in PA!

What a fun afternoon it was! We listened to many stories about when the sisters were young and raising their families. We heard stories about "speakeasies," too, which we found to be quite entertaining. For those of you too young to know what a "speakeasy" was.....a "speakeasy" was an establishment that surreptitiously sold alcoholic beverages during the period of United States history known as Prohibition (1920-1933, longer in some states), when the sale, manufacture, and transportation (bootlegging) of alcohol was illegal. The term comes from a patron's manner of ordering alcohol without raising suspicion — a bartender would tell a patron to be quiet and "speak easy." One of the sisters described it in her own words, as follows: There was a little eye-level door within the door that could be opened from the inside. When someone knocked, that little door was opened to see who was knocking. If it was the cops, they all took off running!

The sister who lived in Olean was a quilt maker. She showed her beautiful quilts while we were videotaping. We all enjoyed watching the tape as it didn't take long for the 3 sisters to forget that the camera was rolling and talked as if it wasn't even there. Lyle and Ann had never seen it before. Now all 3 sisters are together again in heaven. I am so glad we documented our entire visit home that year, as we tried to see as many friends and relatives as we could. Many of them have passed on, also.

Here are a few more photos of Ann and Lyle, and the last one is of Stosh and Lyle.

When you've lived away from home as long as we have, you welcome family and friends. It's always so much fun to see loved ones again and reminisce about old times and catch up on the kids, who are now grown and raising families of their own.

Tonight we are meeting for dinner at a new restaurant, as if we need to consume any more calories. (Yikes!) I plan on having them to my home for dinner also one night this week. I hope they like cats! I know they do as they had a 19-year old cat that travelled with them last year. We were surprised by their cat's name. He was an orange striped tiger. Both of my children graduated from Clemson University here in SC, and the university's color is orange and their mascot is a tiger. The cat's name? "Clemson." What a coincidence! Anyhow, we are looking forward to spending more time with Ann and Lyle this week. Tomorrow is tour day of our city.

Welcome to South Carolina once again!!! We are so happy you're here!!!!! "Y'all come back now, ya hear?"