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Tuesday, December 28, 2010

What a Christmas Tree means to me.

When I was very little, I waited while my older brothers and sisters went into the woods to get a Christmas Tree.  They would drag it home on the back of a toboggan, set it into the stand, tie it to the wall to keep it from tipping over, and proceed to decorate it with the heavy lights that had to be clamped to the branches, the ornaments that were fragile and delicate, if one fell and broke the guilt was intense, the fear for bare feet even more intense.  Then me and my little brother would be allowed to add our efforts by feeding the garland and then at last I would be given 1/2 a package of icicles to place on the tree.


That's me sitting on Dads knee (I have been chastised for posting pics without permission in the past)

Later the siblings grew up and moved away, the Mom and the Dad went separate ways, and it was up to me and the one who came after me to trek into he woods to chop down a tree, drag it home, and decorate it.  Fortunately by then the quality of tree stands had improved and we did not have to tie the tree to the wall with an invisible string.  We came to appreciate the efforts of our predecessors.  Finding the perfect tree in a "real" woods is not easy.  We would arrive home wet and cold with a tree that we felt was unworthy.  We would apply lightweight lights (no clamps required), ancient ornaments, shiny tinsel garland and icicles and decide that it was not such a bad tree after all.

Then came the time for me to leave the nest, and escape extreme rural PEI....for....TORONTO.  My first few years were spent living in places that I now refer to as dungeons, there was no room for a tree.  But after a few years I started becoming a grown up, I had an above ground apartment (with a roommate) and a credit card...with my very first credit card, one of my very first purchases was Ornaments for our Christmas tree. 





A new tradition had been established...finding the cheapest tree at the closest tree lot and dragging it back to the apartment whether that apartment involved roommates or was a independent.

Then a new twist got added to my tradition when my nephew started coming to help me decorate the tree with me...he was more interested in watching "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" and figuring out what "paddicakes" meant.  It seemed around the time that his younger brother was getting old enough to join our tree decorating tradition that the bottom fell out of his parents relationship and "poof" nephews were whisked off to Quebec, far beyond the reached of tree decorating.

To assuage my loneliness I began inviting friends and family to help decorate the tree.  And to change up the tradition of going to a tree lot was discarded when I purchased an artificial tree.  Sooty especially loved the artificial tree.  This is a picture of Sooty 3 months after her gotcha day exploring the Christmas Tree

Every year she would climb in that artificial tree.  Cleo on the other hand was more interested in helping to decorate.  Whether it was the artificial tree or when we moved to our house and began again putting up a real tree, it was the decorations that mattered most.

She especially loved the Christmas Tree pearls

Over the years memories have been built one on top of another, sharing a batch or two of eggnog. Digging through the CD collection for the dusty Christmas ones.  Bearing the off tune singing of my brother.  All while decorating the Christmas Tree.

Some appreciated the Nogg, some the music collection, others the placement of particular ornaments.
It is imperative that the clear ornaments be placed near a light or they are practically invisible.

A woman cannot help but be flattered when a friends insists that this decoration needs to be added to her tree.

Every year I try to add some new special touch.
But for Bunnies what is under the tree has always been more important than the tree itself.

It is just about two years ago that Lily and Stu began their love story under the Christmas tree
Last Christmas season, for some reason, I did not take many pictures.  I am very thankful that I took this one of Cleo enjoying her last Christmas tree.



My Christmas tree has evolved into a melancholy thing filled with memories of special times spent with special friends and family....its a little bit magical.

Every year I will have a Christmas Tree....I will share with Sooty and Stu....even if Stu wont pose.


Friday, December 3, 2010

Sootys Surgery and Post Op

Yesterday morning I got up early, brushed my teeth, got dressed like any other day. Then the weirdness started I picked up the pet carrier and attempt to have Sooty go inside.  I ended up chasing her around the kitchen, cornering her, grabbing her behind the neck and forcing her into the carrier.  Then I put her in the car, brought her to the scariest place in the world (for her), and left her there, while I sauntered off to work.

For some reason I was not feeling like the best kitty mom in the world.  I was feeling downright sucky.  I wished that she would understand that the world that we live in has no bigger fear than the fear of lumps. Her lump had to be removed. I needed to know if it was the dreaded C word....and I hoped that if it was the dreaded C word that having the lump removed would removed the threat.

I called the vets office at about 11:30 to ask them to do good nail trim on Sooty while they had the chance....I was told that her surgery had just begun that they would make sure that the nail trim was done, if it had not already been done.

About an hour later Sootys surgeon called to give me an update....the lump was not cancer. There would be no biopsy required.  It seems that Sooty has a hernia.  Normally hernia is nothing to be concerned about....unless it grows.   This one was growing.  Could have cause some intestinal issues if it had not been fixed. Needless to say, it is now fixed.

That news was better than any outcome that I had imagined. 

By the time she was ready to come home, I had finished my day at work, I rushed off to rescue her.  I was a little bit perturbed to discover that the price of her ransom was more than I had been expecting due to the fact the the surgery had required 30 minutes of surgery time instead of the expected 10....therefore an extra $250.00.  (Just between you and me Sooty has already received her Christmas present).

Once home and freed of the carrier Sooty wobbled around the house.  Having been told that she had not eaten at the vets I expected her to be starving (she had to begin fasting the night before).  She had very little interest in the canned food and none at all in her usual kibble...the reaction to kibble was nothing new but can food is a treat.  She took a few bites and walked away.  I'm not sure if she was restless or if she was in pain (the pain meds were not supposed to wear off till this morning), but she would not be still.  She gingerly moved from position to position and from room to room.  I suppose having me following her around like a demented stalker didn't to allot to make her feel at ease.  At times she seemed to appreciate the attention, and at other times she seemed to want to be left alone.  She would gently push her head against my hand but not her usual banging her head against my hand.  It seemed like she wanted to purr but nothing was coming out. 

She was weaker and wobbly.  Not what I had been expecting but I reminded myself she had just had surgery, and kept an eye on her throughout the night.  This morning I crushed up one of her pain pills and mixed it into a teaspoon of food...I found her hiding under a chair.  Again she was responded to being petted but where a usual purr would come now there was nothing.  She was spitting up bile and no interest in the food I offered...by this time I knew her pain meds were wearing off so I became mean mommy again and forces the spoonful of food into her.

Vets office called to check up on her and confirmed what I was suspecting, that the tube that had been put down her throat during surgery was often more irritation to cats than dogs and that could be the reason that she is not interested  in eating.  Her incision looks fine, her wobblyness has worn off.  I am still trying to keep her from jumping up on the bed.  I would be happier if she was wanting to snuggle and purr, but I'm sure she is progressing normally.

Day or two from now I hope this will all be history

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Sooty has Surgery Scheduled for Tomorrow

The last blog entry that I made that was about Sooty was in early September,  then on September 29th she had another gotcha day....she is now 12 years my kitty cat.

Last time that I wrote about Sooty it was to tell of her vet visit to investigate "The Lump".   When the vet sent me home with the advice to "wait and see if it gets bigger", I was euphoric.  My fears of having by beloved kitty torn from my arm to face a barrage of tests or worse were belayed by the "wait and see".  I convinced myself that if the lump were something to be concerned about the vet would never say "wait and see"

So I took my fluff muffin home with visions of happily ever after in my head.  The problem is that while I waited I came to see that the lump has gotten bigger.  Last week I had to shove her back into the carrier and take her back to the vet....again she does all that she can to have the floor open and swallow her whole.  Again this reaction, while nowhere near her normal behaviour, proves useful when it comes to completing the examination.  The vet confirms what I already know....the lump has gotten bigger.  She still has no idea what it is, the options are to try and get a sample by syringe (hit or miss), or do a small incision to get a sample, or do surgery to remove the lump and send it for a biopsy. 

I figure that if the lump is nothing a syringe or a incision will be the end of the story but if it is something she is going to end up having to have surgery.  Rather than have the process drawn out I opt to get the lump removed.  I like to think that my philosophy is to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. Hoping and praying and wishing and praying some more.

Most of my prayers are just for her to get through tomorrows surgery and post op without any complications and then I remember to pray that the bbiopsy comes back clear.

Sooty had no Idea why I am chasing her around the house to pet her and brush her and smother her with kisses.

Sooty is as healthy as a cat her age can be.  Her has dandruff, I am convinced that this is because she steals the Meow Mix from the outdoor cats instead of eating her Science Diet.  There is no reason to believe that she will not pull out of the surgery and get on with she existence of demanding to be fed and then refusing to eat, watching over the backyard and freaking out when White Kitty shows up, ignoring Stu at all times except when he is getting snuggles, and breathing her tuna breath into my face when I try to watch TV.

But I worry.....thats what Mummys do.