Cats Corner - Message Board

Topic List

Replies | Active | Stats

Post New

General Chat

Chain Games

Author Lounge

Help & Feedback

Movies & TV

Arts & Recreation

People & Celebs

Our World

Literature

Music

Sports

Virtual Blogs

Tributes

Recruiting

Subject: Cat's Corner

Posted by: Catreona
Date: Nov 11 20

A virtual blog to post updates on my mother's illness and other thoughts

629 replies. On page 8 of 32 pages. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

rubytops

Hope it does well Cat.
How is your mom?

Reply #141. Jan 21 21, 12:25 PM

Catreona

LOL Postie. And I even have a second Video Games quiz finished and ready to go in case Adventures in Authoring requires it. Before then, though, I have to wrestle with a Food & Drink quiz. Though I do in fact know a little bit about a lot of things, Food & Drink is not one of them. The ideas are flowing rather like molasses uphill in January. *sigh*

Mom is hanging on. Occasionally she's bright and alert for a brief time. Mostly she's in the fog. It's hard for her to move or to speak. When she does speak, she mostly uses the wrong words, which makes working out what she means quite difficult.

Yesterday she had oatmeal for breakfast and slow cooker pot roast for supper. AT first we hoped she'd just take a little broth, but then she wanted veges and then a little meat. Today she's back to hardly eating anything. As far as I know, all she's had is some orange juice in the morning. I hope Sis can get her to take some more pot roast tonight. Lately though she's been very fussy and insisted on only eating ice cream, when she eats anything at all. She's understandably quite weak.

Sometimes she notices more than we think. Wednesday she was restless and fractious and we thought she wasn't paying attention to the Inauguration ceremony on television. The next day though she mentioned to Sis that Lady Gaga was wearing a dove broach. That kind'a floored us. We can never tell about her eyesight. Sometimes it seems pretty keen while at other times she hardly seems able to see anything.

Nothing ever changes and yet everything's always in flux.

Reply #142. Jan 22 21, 3:00 PM

Catreona

I've just spent a good hour searching for a book, a much loved book called "The Golden Treasury of Children's Literature". It isn't where I last remember seeing it, nor does it appear to be anywhere. I have a terrible feeling it went into a box for the library - a box that is long gone. Sometimes I do incredibly stupid things like that.

It wasn't just for sentimental reasons that I wanted it though. A story referred to in a quiz I'm working on is in that anthology. Some Internet searching did at least turn up the author's name, but the story itself doesn't seem to be online - It's not old enough for Project Gutenberg for example - and I can't find the publication date. Of course, that's not strictly necessary, but I like to give thorough info. *sigh* It really does upset me to think the book is gone forever.

Reply #143. Jan 23 21, 1:47 PM

Catreona

People can be soooo nice. I mentioned the lost book in the blog community I belong too, and my friend Alan tracked it down for me at Alibris. The right book, the right edition, and a very reasonable price. I went ahead and ordered it. What the heck!

Reply #144. Jan 23 21, 3:54 PM

rubytops

Cat, Thanks for the update on your mom. I hope you are all managing to cope. It must be so hard for you.
I am glad you are authoring the quizzes and getting involved with other things too.
March will soon be here and I am already looking forward to and thinking of the challenges we may be faced with from Aaron.
Life here in the UK is very strange with the lockdowns. I won't get my covid jab for a while yet. It seems somewhat of a Hodge podge and post code lottery. I can no longer walk with any of my friends who do not live within my local area as we are not supposed to travel out of the local area unless it is essential travel. The good thing is that twice a week I have zoom meeting for choir and for my church home group and we have the service on line you tube every Sunday. I also what's app face time with a couple of friends. Life is not that bad just different.
Take care and stay safe.

Reply #145. Jan 25 21, 7:33 AM

postcards2go

Ruby, I like your attitude, "Life is not that bad just different."

Cat, so happy you found a copy of your beloved lost book.

Reply #146. Jan 25 21, 6:31 PM

Catreona

Thanks, ladies. Indeed that is a great way to look at life now, not bad just different.

Mom had an unusually good day today. It's getting a bit late in the evening for her now, so she's winding down, but still in good spirits.

Scary news today: Engelbert has Covid. He's eighty-four and besides that he is vulnerable to respiratory infections. But he's more worried about his wife Patricia, who has been suffering from Alzheimer's for several years. It's all terribly worrying.

Reply #147. Jan 26 21, 9:26 PM

rubytops

Good your mum is brighter bless her.
Sorry to hear about Englebert and I hope he recovers okay. Jackson Browne had it earlier in the year but of course he has 10 years on Engles.

Reply #148. Jan 27 21, 1:11 AM

Catreona

Didn't hear about Jackson Brown. I'm so glad he recovered. Neil Sedaka had it too, sometime in late December through early January. He didn't announce it because he didn't want to upset his fans over the holidays. He's eighty-two. We can only hope and pray for Enge and Patricia.

Reply #149. Jan 27 21, 2:44 PM

Catreona

Last evening Pixie, who is a small Tuxedo cat, had an adventure. When Dad let in Jessalee (the care aid) just before 11:00, Pixie darted out. She gamboled on the front lawn,, leaping and diving in the snow, which was fortunately only a few inches deep. Then she took to the sidewalk and marched down to the corner house (that is the house next door). On coming back, she went up the driveway and under the car. After that it didn't take her long to come inside. Dad said she must have been cold. I didn't see her myself, but she was probably pretty wet too. Her fur is kind of long so when she's dry she looks kind'a like a fuzz ball. Anyway, all this took place in the middle of the night. A little more excitement than Dad needed at that hour; but he said Pixie seemed to enjoy herself enormously.

Reply #150. Jan 27 21, 2:47 PM

samak

Pixie had fun pretending to be a snow leopard !

Reply #151. Jan 27 21, 8:05 PM

rubytops

Cat, your tale about Pixie which I enjoyed reading sort of mirrored a little of what happened with my cat Pepper a week ago. Pepper came to me from friends across the road just over 2 years ago because one of their dogs was making her life a misery and she was starting to be afraid to go into the house and was becoming a little bit feral. My younger of two cats Topsy had died in the March so I agreed to take Pepper on. My front door faces the house she came from but my cat flap is at the back where she could not see her old house so she settled just going out the back and being in my garden and I was always careful when opening the front door she did not get out. I live in a mid terraced property so there is no immediate side path round the back although there is access via either of the houses at the ends of the terrace. I had always been concerned that if she did get out she would be able to find her way around the back. Anyway the weekend that we had a bit of snow I had emptied the litter tray late in the evening before bed and then did a few jobs and went to bed. Ruby my other cat(Topsys mum) always sleeps on the pillow next to me and Pepper seems to move around the house. Anyway next morning when I got up to give them brreakfast there is no sign of Pepper, being a cat who loves her food and is first in line it was a little worrying so after calling her and checking all my rooms without luck went back into the kitchen and that is when I heard these meows coming from the other side of my kitchen outside door...there is a cat flap in the door but it was shut as they are kept in overnight. On opening the door there was my little girl who had apparently been out all night having an adventure and then couldn't get back in. I was so glad she was safe and nothing untoward happened to her. However one good thing is that I now know she can find her way back home to the cat flap from the front so if she ever slips by me again I won't be so concerned about her getting home.
Thank you again for your story of Pixie your cat and I am glad she had fun.

Reply #152. Jan 28 21, 7:34 AM

Catreona

LOL samak

Ruby, it's so worrying when they get out, and especially when they stay out all night! Once when Campion was a kitten he somehow found his way under the front porch, and stayed there all night! Not only that, it was winter; so, in the morning he was too frightened and cold to come out. In the end Dad had to crawl under there to get him. And, do you know, even now sometimes he stays out all night, even in the winter. Pixie does too now and then. Naughty kitties!

Reply #153. Jan 28 21, 10:03 PM

MiraJane

The last time Quentin ran out the door the temperature was drooping to right below freezing. Worse, it had been raing so the step was icing up and the rain turning to sleet. Before his back feet left the doorstep his body was turning to come back into the house and his front feet were both raised, ready to jump back into the warm kitchen.

Reply #154. Jan 29 21, 12:30 AM

Catreona

Smart kitty!

Reply #155. Jan 31 21, 6:48 PM

Catreona

Mom had a hard morning yesterday, with quite a vigorous, even verbally violent outburst. That was probably because Sis was late giving her her anxiety medication. After that she calmed down but seemed tired and sad. She asked again if we're going to put her in a nursing home. This prospect preys on her mind, no matter how often Dad, Sis and I reassure her that it is out of the question. Sis reassured her again and that satisfied her, for the moment. She had a quiet night and has been sleeping most of today.

Yesterday I forgot to post here that another quiz, my seventieth, went up.

https://www.funtrivia.com/trivia-quiz/Music/Paper-Roses-404524.html

I was eager to submit it to the Quizometer, which is probably why I forgot. Not surprisingly, it didn't make the grade with the quizometer. Still, you don't know till you try.

The breakfast cereal quiz is coming together and should be submitted in the coming days.

Reply #156. Jan 31 21, 7:03 PM

Catreona

It has been snowing here all day. I don't know when Pixie went out, but at lunchtime she came in all cold and wet from being snowed on. Silly kitty!

Reply #157. Feb 01 21, 2:48 PM

C30

Certainly can relate to your cat stories..............less able to relate to the sad tales of your mother Cat.............not because I dont care but because I dont know what to say. I often prefer to say nothing when I am unable to offer anything constructive.

Anyhow, we have a cat flap fitted to back door............KELDA, has worked out how to exit it................but what she still has failed to grasp is how to get back in again. I think to little feline brain, it has a "non-return valve" and only operates one way.
So often she gets herself out unknown to us..............then when you open the door get run over by an "Inter-City 125" express cat. She hurtles in at around Warp 5, grumbling away to herself and in cold wearther fluffed up like a high speed tribble.
She is a long haired tuxedo cat........13 years old. Our old silver tabby Tom Cat LEO (who died Boxing Day aged 18), never had the slightest problem with a cat flap, come and went as he pleased................KELDA however is another thing!

Reply #158. Feb 01 21, 4:22 PM

MiraJane

Ah, but Kelda is a Queen. Leo was a mere Tom. Don't you realize Kelda is expecting you to *know* when she wants to come back in and open the door for her?

Reply #159. Feb 01 21, 10:59 PM

rubytops

I had to take Pepper to the emergency vet on Sunday. She was straining in the cat litter tray and passed some blood. The vet said no blockages but she had cystitis and so he gave her an antibiotic and anti inflammatory by injection which seems to have done the trick. Very expensive as it was a Sunday. Just to book an appointment with the emergency vet was £185. Total bill was £222.73 pence. I should get all but my £50 excess back from the insurance. The vet said it was probably stress that caused it and the only thing I can think of was a delayed reaction to her adventure the other night when she couldn't get in the house. I have now ordered a supplement recommended by the vet.

Reply #160. Feb 02 21, 3:15 PM

629 replies. On page 8 of 32 pages. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

Legal / Conditions of Use