Even My Cats are Bad Jews

I like to joke that I'm a bad Jew - it's a good joke if you know me and my family, but it sounds weird out of context. Here on the blog, it's kind of out of context. But if I say this, it might help... What made me think of it is this:

I'm such a bad Jew, even my cats eat ham.

All three of the cats seem to really like sliced ham, the lunch meat stuff, although in varying degrees. Bub's last chemo appointment was a doozy, so his appetite still isn't what it was before he went in last week, but he'll still eat a few bites of ham (but only if I hand feed him - I have no idea why). Jasmine adores the ham, so I just cut it up into tiny pieces so she doesn't have to worry about chewing it too much. And Abby, Bub's sister, eats whatever ham is left on the plate when Bub's done. She's very polite about it, it's cute - she'll let him eat what he's going to eat without bothering him, and then after he's gone she'll move in and clean up. It's pretty funny.

The Year of the Cat

I don't care what year it actually is on the Chinese calendar, this is the Year of the Cat for us.

Here's the good news - Jasmine is doing much better. She had a rough night that first night back, but she's mostly back to her old self again now, thank goodness. And I think our experience dealing with Bub's recovery each week after chemo has been helpful in dealing with Jasmine. Instead of assuming she was going downhill and never coming back uphill, I just assumed that she'd be getting better gradually and we just needed to find the things she'd eat no matter what. I browsed the cat food aisle at the grocery store the other day, and then made my way to the baby food aisle. I'd heard that the turkey baby food was a hit with most cats, but Bub hadn't shown interest. I bought some to try with Jasmine, and also got some chicken sticks (like the ambiguously-named meat sticks shown in the picture) to try as well. I think they're repulsive, but I'm not the one who has to eat them, right?

(As an aside, every time I open a jar of cat food, I recoil from the smell and think, "Good god, we feed this to human children?!?" It smells so vile...)

At any rate, thankfully Jasmine seems to enjoy the chicken sticks - I chop them up really small so she doesn't have to chew them - and she even likes the turkey baby food occasionally. She's always been the pickiest eater, and that trend has (unfortunately) continued, but we'll just keep trying new and different foods. It's just a matter of trial and error, I've learned, and not worrying about "wasting" food if I open a can of something she doesn't end up liking. It's just about figuring out the new pattern for her eating schedule that's going to work for both her and us.

In other news, my dear boy Bub is at his chemo appointment now - I'm awaiting a call from the vet that I can go pick him up. It's the 3rd drug in the cycle, and one he hasn't had as yet, so I'm curious to see how he'll react to it. They give the animals a week off after receiving this particular drug, which also takes several hours to administer, so I'm guessing it'll take him awhile longer to bounce back than normal. But I'm ready - I've got a roast chicken from the grocery store in the fridge, and it's all his. Not all at once, mind you, but I'm calling it cat food - it's not for human consumption. I've got a big plate of cut up chicken pieces ready and waiting for him for when I bring him home today, too, poor guy.

So, yes - the Year of the Cat it is.

The Unhappiest Cat in the World, Part II

You may recall the original post about the unhappiest cat in the world - well, here's the rest of the story, at least through today.

Poor dear Jasmine got wrapped in a towel this morning so we could stuff her into a carrying case, and then Chris dropped her off at the vet. We knew they'd be sedating her, because there's no other way to do the necessary check-up stuff on that feisty creature, and they were also going to be cleaning her teeth. Or so we thought. Chris got home a few minutes after me, Jasmine in tow, and announced that she'd had to have six teeth pulled. Not only that, the vet says she's under weight - probably because eating dry food has been painful for some time now. So, how much do you think we feel like the worst cat parents ever?

The poor thing is still disoriented (she got home a few hours ago) from the drugs she's on, which include morphine right now, and she keeps licking at the stitches in her mouth. She's on a strictly wet food diet now for the rest of her life, and luckily we had a can of food which is actually meant for cats on cancer treatment (but Bub doesn't like it, of course) - it's really tasty (to cats, I guess) and super soft, so she's eating that right now. It's also full of calories, which she really needs.

In case you're feeling too badly for her, know this - she'll get her revenge on us twice a day for the next week. We have to give her pain medication at night and antibiotics in the morning. They're both in liquid form, so we've got to grab her and get the little plunger-full of medicine into her mouth without letting her shred us to bits. That would be a challenge under normal circumstances - this is the cat that doesn't even like to be held - but right now she won't let us come near her. Well, that's not exactly true - she'll let herself be petted, but if you try to do anything more than lightly stroke her back she hisses. She's pissed off, and with good reason, and I'm seriously dreading having to give her any kind of medicine whatsoever - especially tonight.

Chris & I know this will pass, and she'll be fine (especially once the drugs wear off and she's not so disoriented anymore), but we both feel awful right now.

And a quick note - I realize this has kind of turned into the all cats all the time blog, which I hadn't planned... It's just that, for obvious reasons, this is the big news that's going on for us right now, so that's what's on my mind.

Oh, and if you've got any suggestions about soft foods that would be treats and that cats would like, by all means - let me know.

How a Family Reclaimed the Deck

Bub
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti

Now that the weather's (mostly) good around here and our deck is finally done, we've gotten the deck furniture back out again and we're spending more time out there - it's been great. We had forgotten how much we enjoy sitting outside in nice weather, grilling dinner and eating outside. The cats are loving it, too - I planted three big pots (low ones so they can reach them) of catnip, which all of them have been enjoying. They alternately eat the leaves off and rub their faces in the branches - it's very cute to watch. And then, when they're fully drugged out, they doze in the sun. That's when I take pictures of them.

The charming guy at the right is my dear boy, Bub, from before his lymphoma diagnosis and his frequent trips to the vet. He still loathes those trips, but he also still loves us afterwards, which is one of the wonderful things about him. I particularly love how regal he looks in this picture, because usually he's just a goofball.

A Few Notes

First of all, I heard that my friend Michelle is already at home, she's recovering from her brain surgery so well. She's damned amazing, that's all I can say. As I told her, "Cancer clearly doesn't know who it's fucking with here."

Second, my dear boy Bub was scheduled to get his 4th dose of chemo today, but the vet called Chris to come pick him up after just his preliminary exam - apparently his white blood cell count was lower than they'd like, so they sent him home with a week's worth of an antibiotic and we'll try again for the chemo next week. He's only put on a tiny bit of weight, which is disappointing (although any progress is a good thing) because it seemed to us like he'd gained quite a bit. I guess optimism doesn't make the best scale.

Finally, I used to do these more often - when I drank more tea - so when I brewed myself a cup of tea today, I thought I'd save the quote on the tag to post here for y'all:

"He who has begun has half done. Dare to be wise; begin!" - Horace (65-8 BC)

Girls Weekend in Lincoln City

ride 'em, cowgirl
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti

A few weeks ago, I got together with a few of my college girlfriends for a weekend at the beach. It went too quickly, as weekends with friends often do, and we had a great time. If you're so inclined, you can see the best of the photos from that weekend over here. There are some in there of driftwood that I really like, but that one of Steph to the right is probably my favorite of the bunch. It may not mean as much to you, but it just gives me the grins.

Yeehaw, baby.

Farmer's Market = Donuts = Happy Me

asparagus
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti

The Lake Oswego Farmer's Market started up a few weeks ago, giving my Saturdays a bright start again. Freshly-made donuts never taste so good as they do after you've gone without them for months. And, of course, it's always great to see market friends again - like the donut-making family and the folks at the Baird stand who, at this time of year, have the best asparagus in town. So far, the weather's been great for the market, so the crowds have been great, too. It's nice to see. I'm going to bring my camera to the market more this year than I did last year; I'll be putting the best of them in the photo album here.

If you've got a farmer's market anywhere near you, do yourself a favor and go. Every week. You'll be glad you did.

The Unhappiest Cat in the World

The title of this post doesn't even refer to my dear boy, Bub, who is undergoing chemo treatments for lymphoma. No, that title refers to our eldest, Jasmine, who had a vet appointment today.

See, when Bub started his treatments, I thought it was a good time to get the other two cats in to the vet for checkups - partly because they hadn't been in for years, and partly because with his suppressed immune system it made sense to try to limit any potential for the other cats to give him something. So Jasmine's appointment was set for this afternoon, and Chris had to come home from work to take her. See, I can't handle her when she's pissy. When it's just Chris and I around, Jasmine is a complete love-muffin, or really frisky and playful. She's not really friendly with other people, but that's okay. What we discovered this afternoon, however, is that when you're trying to shove her into a cat carrier, things get ugly.

She escaped from our first attempt to stuff her into the carrier, and when Chris next captured her she put up a huge fuss; she probably would have clawed him to bits in an attempt to get away had he not held her at arm's length. He finally managed to get her in by scruffing her, but the poor thing looked absolutely terrified and traumatized by the whole ordeal - and that was just getting her into the carrier, she hadn't even gotten to the vet yet to get her shots!

When they returned, I learned that the vet hadn't even been able to do anything - when Chris tried to get Jasmine out of the carrier, she went after him (claws and teeth and hissing), so the vet tried to look at her teeth while she was hissing (clever!) but they made another appointment in a week and a half or so when they'll sedate her and do what they need to do. What I don't know is how in the hell we're ever going to catch her and get her into a carrier again. I'm honestly thinking a home vet visit might be the best option...

Now, I'm at my desk at home and Jasmine is wandering around my feet as if nothing happened. Wait, now she's crawling into my lap. Wow. Must be nice to forget traumas so quickly.

Kicking Cancer's Ass

So, a quick update on my friend Michelle - the positive thoughts worked. She got through the brain surgery yesterday with flying colors. She was even talking not long after coming out of the haze. We joked that not even brain surgery can shut this girl up. She'll be in the ICU for a few days, then in another part of the hospital for a few days (maybe a week, I can't remember) and then will go to her folks' house so they can look after her. Then at some point she begins a 9-10 day regime of radiation, which isn't going to be fun. And then, I guess, we'll see.

And my dear cat Bub had his 3rd chemo appointment today, and when I got home from work this afternoon I fed him his newest favoritest treat - lunch meat. He just gobbles the stuff up. I also cooked some hamburger for him, which he likes, but not as much as he likes the lunch meat. He's gotten both turkey and ham and seems to like both equally well. The other day I made cold cut sandwiches for Chris and I, and he hovered around us (meowing loudly) as we ate. He even tried to swipe my sandwich. We've created a monster, and we couldn't be happier.

If you can spare some positive thoughts...

...my friend Michelle is, at this moment, undergoing brain surgery to remove a tumor on her brain stem. It's her third bout with cancer. She's 42. I'll be thinking about her all day today, sending positive energy to the hospital in Chico, and hoping for the best. Brain surgery isn't easy, and this one is a risky proposition - but the alternative isn't acceptable to Michelle. She's one tough cookie. Cancer clearly has no idea who it's dealing with.

How to Travel the World (and Improve It) for Free

BootsnAll is working with a fellow called Tim Ferriss, who recently wrote a book called "The 4-Hour Workweek", to award one lucky person the chance to travel the world for free while also improving the planet.

How would you use 36 extra hours per week?

If you can answer that question in 350 words or less, you could win a roundtrip anywhere in the world, private consultation with me to plan it all, and $1,000 for the cause of your choice.

My goals with this are 1) to get people to take action towards their dreams, and 2) to help people to develop a global consciousness and feel the rewards of contribution.

The deadline for entering this contest is June 15th, so act fast. You'll find the rules at the bottom of this post.

This Cat is a Fighter

Bub is a fighter, all right, and I mean that in a couple of senses. First, the good news and then the funny news.

The good news is that at his second chemo appointment on Wednesday, the vet apparently couldn't even feel the tumor anymore. Now, they didn't do an ultrasound, so it's probably still there a bit, but the fact that it has shrunk enough that she can't feel it after only one treatment a week ago is really exciting to us. And after the initial first couple of days post-chemo last week, Bub was nearly back to his old self, playing and eating almost like normal. We're quite pleased with that, our little guy fighting off cancer so well.

The funny news is that he's also becoming more and more of a fighter when it comes to taking his daily pill. He's on steroids just for the first month of treatment (we've got three weeks to go), and it's a decreasing amount each week. Last week it was twice-daily pillings, and after that it's only once a day - but that doesn't keep him from fighting harder and harder each time. He's never been good about taking a pill, but it now takes both Chris and I to do it and it still takes two or three tries. He's crafty about it, too - he'll chew on the lump of food (pill hidden inside) until he finds the pill and then he'll push the pill out the side of his mouth, cleaned completely of cat food. Yeesh. So far, he still loves us anyway.

After his second chemo appointment this week, he doesn't seem as logey or sleepy as he did last week but his appetite was basically non-existent yesterday (the day after chemo); I'm not panicking like I did last week, as I'm confident that he'll be eating again soon (hopefully today), but I'd love to find something he really liked - something he couldn't even refuse in his post-chemo days - that I could feed him each day-after. I haven't found it yet, but I'll keep trying. I swear, if I find that he likes liver pate, I'll feed it to him once a week...