One of the many joys (/sarcasm) of being a parent is teaching kids to share. Sharing their toys, sharing their food etc but one thing I don't like them sharing are their illnesses. I've been doing pretty well on the sinus front for the last six months or so. I was probably getting a little complacent about it though. Last week my daughter starts with the sniffles. I get her OTC medicine to help treat the symptoms and think nothing much of it. I take her to the GP earlier this week as she's complaining of a sore throat still. This kid has a history of tonsillitis and came very close to getting them out a few years back. Turns out she's fine and there's next to no inflammation (always a blessing).
However, the day before I take her to the Dr, I notice the niggling feeling of a cold. Just feeling blah with a nose dripping like a leaky tap. On Tuesday night I go to the local pharmacy and ask for some Sinus tablets. I opt for the pharmacy brand because it's cheaper and generally works the same. I pop a few pills and soldier through the night shift at work. Yesterday I feel a little more lethargic, grumpy and generally unwell yet I manage to get through an extended shift without killing anybody. Always a bonus.
Today however I wake up in a pool of sweat. I down some Neurofen and go do my volunteer shift with my local thrift store. It's nice and airconditioned (unlike my home) and I seem to be fine. Then I step outside after my shift and it's like an elephant just sat on my face. You see, the last few days have been the typical monsoonal rainy deluges that we get in this lovely tropical climate. When it's raining the temperatures are actually quite tolerable but when it stops, especially in summer, it becomes so unbearably hot and humid it's like you have to force yourself to breathe.
Now, normally this wouldn't be too much of a challenge but add in the blocked sinus cavities to this hot, humid and horrible weather and it becomes significantly more difficult to breathe. One thing I'm glad about is that I don't have to work to night, or tomorrow night so I can rest up and try and and obtain more of a sense of wellness than I do right now. All I can say is that my supply of medication is doing me well (for now). My fever has somewhat abated and I'm a little more comfortable. I just wish my daughter didn't feel like sharing her bugs with me. Bleah.
Thursday, February 20, 2014
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Cat's Eyes
They're staring at me. A pair of cat's eyes. They belong to my Chocolate Tortoiseshell Burmese kitty. She's currently sitting in her little kitty condo on my computer desk waiting for bugs to land on my desk lamp so she can eat them. Cats are strange like that. Burmese moreso than most I think. I have three Burmese cats. Mother and two sons from different litters. Back when I used to breed and show European Burmese. The two boys (a Red and a Cream) are 4 years apart. So we have mum (Micah aka Gritty Kitty) who is 9, Blinky (the Red and eldest boy) who is 8 and Rune (the Cream and the youngest) who is 4. They all have their foibles.
Micah: She adores my daughter. Ever since my daughter was born she's been close by her side. She's not a particularly huggy cat but she tends to sit beside you to be petted. She would always sit close to my daughter when she was a baby. Never getting too close, just patiently watching, making sure she was OK. As she got older she'd creep closer and when she was old enough to sleep in her own bed, Micah would sleep on her pillow beside her head. The name Gritty came about when my daughter was first learning how to talk. Instead of being able to say 'Kitty' it came out 'Gitty'. Then the R made it's way in there. Sometimes she gets called Micah but most of the time it's Gritty. Micah also enjoys eating bugs. If she sees a moth on the wall she will attempt her best Olympic High Jump and try and catch it. Though she much prefers the sit and wait method whilst eyeing off my desk lamp. She is a very affectionate cat though is choosy with her affections. She particularly likes my SO. So much so that she abandons me when he comes to visit. I consider her favourite feature to be the speckled tortie patterns across her nose. They look like little brown freckles. I just love taking photos of her. The colours are quite enamouring.
Blinky: When my daughter was 9 months old Blinky was born. He got the name Blinky as he was the first kitten of that litter to open his eyes and blink. Blinky soon became my daughter's favourite. She would dress him up in baby clothes, put him in her little doll beds and tuck him in with a miniature pillow and blanket (complete with teddy bear) and rock him to sleep. She'd also put him in a doll's stroller and push him around the house. Blinky never once complained. I could liken him to the cat Faron in Peanuts. The cat that would get dragged everywhere without really putting up a fight. Blinky has been through a lot. When my daughter was a toddler she found some scissors and chopped off his whiskers (she got a good scolding for that), she painted him with Revlon Colourstay Lipstick (she painted herself too and I used up a good deal of Palmolive Dishwashing Detergent to get it off the both of them), painted him in acrylic poster paints (that I thought I'd put up high enough for her not to reach - never underestimate the ingenuity of a 2yo) and also covered him in papaya ointment (the lesser of these evils). When my daughter's father and I separated I left Blinky behind to be her comfort. I took the other two cats with me. When I got custody of my daughter after a 2 year court battle (which is a story for another day) I got custody of Blinky too. He was rather sick when I got him and it took me a long time before he was fit to fly to me (I lived interstate). There was also an incident when he was about 4yo where he jumped off a 7ft bookcase and suffered a severe concussion. He is the wonky accident prone cat. Well, he was, up until the end of last year but now he's a diet controlled diabetic, wonky, accident prone cat. He's still very much loved by all and my daughter is very thankful to have him with her.
Rune: He was the saddest kitten. He came from a litter of three. He always looked depressed. There was something about him that made me keep him. He is very vocal though. He's like one of those telemarketers trying to sell you something. He just doesn't shut up. He also meows in such an annoying tone it grates on your nerves. This cat knows his name. Mostly from the phrase 'Rune! Shut UP!'. He really loves me though. Always sleeping close to me when he can and harassing me for pettins. He's the autistic younger brother. He thought he could do a Steve McQueen one day and escape the house (he's an indoor cat) and he juped out of the 2nd storey window. Unfortunately the window caught his leg on the way down and it shattered into what looked like a bazillion pieces on the x-ray. I could've spent several thousand dollars to *maybe* fix it or amputate it. Needless to say Rune has 3 legs. He's missing his near side hind. Does it slow him down? Not a bit. He zooms around like he's always done. He has got a lot of muscle up front now though as he uses his front to pull himself around with a pogo stick of a back leg. The cutest/saddest thing about being 3 legs is that the vet left a small amount of femur behind to protect his internal organs. Sometimes, when he's not particularly attentive he still tries to scratch his ear with his missing leg and you see the stump moving like crazy.
I don't know where I'd be without my three cats. Sometimes I think I have one too many but they all have their place in the family.
Micah: She adores my daughter. Ever since my daughter was born she's been close by her side. She's not a particularly huggy cat but she tends to sit beside you to be petted. She would always sit close to my daughter when she was a baby. Never getting too close, just patiently watching, making sure she was OK. As she got older she'd creep closer and when she was old enough to sleep in her own bed, Micah would sleep on her pillow beside her head. The name Gritty came about when my daughter was first learning how to talk. Instead of being able to say 'Kitty' it came out 'Gitty'. Then the R made it's way in there. Sometimes she gets called Micah but most of the time it's Gritty. Micah also enjoys eating bugs. If she sees a moth on the wall she will attempt her best Olympic High Jump and try and catch it. Though she much prefers the sit and wait method whilst eyeing off my desk lamp. She is a very affectionate cat though is choosy with her affections. She particularly likes my SO. So much so that she abandons me when he comes to visit. I consider her favourite feature to be the speckled tortie patterns across her nose. They look like little brown freckles. I just love taking photos of her. The colours are quite enamouring.
Blinky: When my daughter was 9 months old Blinky was born. He got the name Blinky as he was the first kitten of that litter to open his eyes and blink. Blinky soon became my daughter's favourite. She would dress him up in baby clothes, put him in her little doll beds and tuck him in with a miniature pillow and blanket (complete with teddy bear) and rock him to sleep. She'd also put him in a doll's stroller and push him around the house. Blinky never once complained. I could liken him to the cat Faron in Peanuts. The cat that would get dragged everywhere without really putting up a fight. Blinky has been through a lot. When my daughter was a toddler she found some scissors and chopped off his whiskers (she got a good scolding for that), she painted him with Revlon Colourstay Lipstick (she painted herself too and I used up a good deal of Palmolive Dishwashing Detergent to get it off the both of them), painted him in acrylic poster paints (that I thought I'd put up high enough for her not to reach - never underestimate the ingenuity of a 2yo) and also covered him in papaya ointment (the lesser of these evils). When my daughter's father and I separated I left Blinky behind to be her comfort. I took the other two cats with me. When I got custody of my daughter after a 2 year court battle (which is a story for another day) I got custody of Blinky too. He was rather sick when I got him and it took me a long time before he was fit to fly to me (I lived interstate). There was also an incident when he was about 4yo where he jumped off a 7ft bookcase and suffered a severe concussion. He is the wonky accident prone cat. Well, he was, up until the end of last year but now he's a diet controlled diabetic, wonky, accident prone cat. He's still very much loved by all and my daughter is very thankful to have him with her.
Rune: He was the saddest kitten. He came from a litter of three. He always looked depressed. There was something about him that made me keep him. He is very vocal though. He's like one of those telemarketers trying to sell you something. He just doesn't shut up. He also meows in such an annoying tone it grates on your nerves. This cat knows his name. Mostly from the phrase 'Rune! Shut UP!'. He really loves me though. Always sleeping close to me when he can and harassing me for pettins. He's the autistic younger brother. He thought he could do a Steve McQueen one day and escape the house (he's an indoor cat) and he juped out of the 2nd storey window. Unfortunately the window caught his leg on the way down and it shattered into what looked like a bazillion pieces on the x-ray. I could've spent several thousand dollars to *maybe* fix it or amputate it. Needless to say Rune has 3 legs. He's missing his near side hind. Does it slow him down? Not a bit. He zooms around like he's always done. He has got a lot of muscle up front now though as he uses his front to pull himself around with a pogo stick of a back leg. The cutest/saddest thing about being 3 legs is that the vet left a small amount of femur behind to protect his internal organs. Sometimes, when he's not particularly attentive he still tries to scratch his ear with his missing leg and you see the stump moving like crazy.
I don't know where I'd be without my three cats. Sometimes I think I have one too many but they all have their place in the family.
Sunday, February 16, 2014
Hiatus ad infinitum
Well, not really. I didn't think it was that long ago that I posted my last entry. A lot has happened over that timeframe. Suffice to say I can quit bitching about not having a job. I've been gainfully employed as a grocery night filler for the past 7 months (it's really been that long). The strange thing is, I never anticipated in being a night filler. I also never thought I'd actually be good at it.
I can still run around after my daughter during the day. Taking her to swimming and art classes along with riding our horses. Yup, we have horses now. One is a leased horse that's owned by a friend of mine, the other is owned by us. We take turns in riding each of them. I'm so very thankful to have horses in my life still.
I also get to chip away at my TAFE course. I'm almost another two modules down since I last made an entry. I think I have another four modules to go after this one. How time flies.
Life has been pretty good. I'm financially stable, my daughter is happy (for the most part). My relationship with my SO is still going strong and hopefully we'll close the distance in a few months time and make our first steps towards our new life as a family. It's hard to imagine really.
It's not all rainbows and unicorns though. I still have to deal with the sad reality that I'll never be able to have any sense of normal interaction (even on a business like level) with my daughter's father. He still has to make life difficult for me. Still sends me emails that are hateful, antagonistic and sometimes borderline libelous. I can't change him. I know that. I can only control my own behaviour.
I'm really hoping to get my shit in a pile and start making new notes. At least a little more regularly than 8 months apart. Where'd I go wrong? I'm really not sure but I let it slip away from me. So, here's to new beginnings and more motivation (or something).
I can still run around after my daughter during the day. Taking her to swimming and art classes along with riding our horses. Yup, we have horses now. One is a leased horse that's owned by a friend of mine, the other is owned by us. We take turns in riding each of them. I'm so very thankful to have horses in my life still.
I also get to chip away at my TAFE course. I'm almost another two modules down since I last made an entry. I think I have another four modules to go after this one. How time flies.
Life has been pretty good. I'm financially stable, my daughter is happy (for the most part). My relationship with my SO is still going strong and hopefully we'll close the distance in a few months time and make our first steps towards our new life as a family. It's hard to imagine really.
It's not all rainbows and unicorns though. I still have to deal with the sad reality that I'll never be able to have any sense of normal interaction (even on a business like level) with my daughter's father. He still has to make life difficult for me. Still sends me emails that are hateful, antagonistic and sometimes borderline libelous. I can't change him. I know that. I can only control my own behaviour.
I'm really hoping to get my shit in a pile and start making new notes. At least a little more regularly than 8 months apart. Where'd I go wrong? I'm really not sure but I let it slip away from me. So, here's to new beginnings and more motivation (or something).
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