Sunday AM: blog-surfing, COFFEE and rcty!!

I am still around reading just not posting much.

Hope everyone has a good Sunday.

Darlene in Toronto

Good evening Noreen, it's teatime here, but I just had to say I'm so pleased to hear that Don's one year remission has arrived and passed: what good news

Love & higs Christine

Good morning, Tennessee, from slightly snowy Massachusetts! (Okay, so I don't sound like Robin Williams...)

Big congratulations to Don on his 1-year rem-day. Way to go!

Not doing much of anything; reading newsgroups right now, and earlier was trying to introduce a new kitten to the household. Our 14-yr old Queenie went to Rainbow Bridge last week, and there has been a stray white and tiger cat hiding under our back room for a couple/three weeks. He is now known as Hidey, formerly Heidi, until otherwise advised by the vet on Friday; guess he's a bit shy in more ways than one ;-))

He's spent a few days in the workshop that he had been hiding under(also described as an enclosed porch), and when the vet called to say his feline AIDS and feline lukemia tests were negative, we decided he'd spend last night locked in the bathroom (only room in the house with a door). He's been out in the livingroom in a cat carrier for a bit, and the 1-1/2 yr old cat has shown interest, but also hissed. The 5-1/2 yr old has seen him through the back door glass while I held him up to look, and he growled. Think it's going to take a while. Don't quite dare let the poor little guy loose; not sure if he'll get creamed by the other two, or if he'll tear the house apart. This one likes to head for high ground, it appears.

Stay warm everyone!

-- Carey in MA (heading downstairs to get some tea, and maybe put some soup on.....)

So did you get any on you? Waving your mug around in the air like that. ;oP~

This is wonderful news! I remember what an absolute relief it was when I reached that point. Congratulation, Don! :o)

Gemini

Awww, poor baby kittie! I hope the older ones accept him and that he gets more used to being around you and your other cats so he'll have a nice warm safe home to live in.

Umm... Rainbow Bridge? Can I assume that they older cat has passed away? I am sorry if this is the case... I know it's hard to lose a pet, they are definitely part of the family unit.

Gem

Woke up to a snowy morning here in NJ. I estimate we got about 2 inches of heavy snow. Not the powdery stuff. Kids have been outside most of the day sledding and snowman making. They don't need much to play in it. I am putting up our Christmas tree today and will sit and work on projects later on today. It is a very relaxing day with nowhere to be.

Right now I have a XStitch bug. I am finishing two small kits of Amish girls that I want to give to Amy for her birthday in two weeks. I hope I can finish in time.

Is everyone working on last minute gifts as well? The pressure is on as they say.

Spent yesterday shopping for gifts, ate at Panera. Has anyone else eaten there yet? Great for soup and sandwich on a cold day.

Congrats to Don!! I hope everything continues on course.

Diane

Hi, Gem, Yes, our oldest cat had to be put to sleep. Rainbow Bridge is referred to at this url:

had developed a lump on her side last February, and the vet and Ithought it was most likely a mammary tumor. However, the thought of havingan older female spayed and having her lymph nodes taken out, and exploringwhatever they'd need to find didn't seem like a good idea, and I was sure itwould shorten her life. She was starting to act uncomfortable in otherareas, as if something was becoming painful and I didn't want her to suffer. I'm starting to think the new kitten would rather be in the cold: when I put the kitty bed he's been using in the back room into the bathroom last night, he decided to sleep behind the toilet. We did block up a hole in the floor that led to the (dirt-floored) basement, which made the room retain heat, so it may have been too hot for him. Hidey has a lovely tiger-type face, with white underbody, but his back half looks exactly like my rabbit fur mittens, salt-and-pepper if you know what I mean, and very fine fur. One of the girls at the veterinary hospital said he looked like he had a bit of Maine Coon Cat, and his face looks a little like it might be Persian. At the moment, he's back out in the workroom, so he can roam loose, and he seems very happy about it. I've been popping down to the kitchen and opening the door to coax him in every little while, so maybe he'll come around once he thinks it's his idea.

He's going to have to get used to us: he's started his shots and he's not going back outside. Too many cats outside already, and I couldn't stand to see him hit by a car. My yard tends to be a cat haven for the neighbor's white cat, and she has trained the two remaining of her last batch of kittens to think they own my yard, too. The two boys in the house next door to that have 2 kittens as well, who are enjoying the other two and the safety(as well as the food that gets put out). Since we just had a bit of snow, I'm hoping all the appropriate owners will get their animals inside. I know the boys took all 4 kittens inside the last couple of nights and let them out for the day while they were in school. This year I just don't think I'm going to be able to feed my own three indoor cats and 6 or so outdoor cats as well.

"MRH" wrote in message news: snipped-for-privacy@corp.supernews.com...

And you shouldn't have to feed everyone else's pets... they should be tending to them themselves. I agree that animals should be kept indoors as much as possible in the cold winters. I let our dogs out to the backyard to do what they need to do, and they come right back up on the deck and sit by the door waiting for me to let them back inside again. The couple of extremely cold days we've had so far, I put them out, watched through the kitchen window, and as soon as they were finished, I opened the door to get them back inside right away.

I'm sure Hidey will get used to you, and to being inside the house in no time. :o)

Gem

Someone gave a pattern for a crocheted hat this morning. Since I don't have any other gifts for Matthew this year, I will take a look and see what yarn I have that would make a nice hat for him. He has two pairs of knitted slippers and doesn't need anymore of those.

Other than that... any yarn things I make will be for the needy to keep them warm during the winter.

Gemini

We are almost leaving sunday ,,, i had quite a busy day ,,,, in half an hour 24.00 will ring the door of Monday ,,, and she will walk in with her nose up ..... Good dreams all ,,,we pray for rain and Italy and France have Floods !!! what is the point in that ???? mirjam

Carey ,, slightly snowy mass,,,,,, Suddenly i remembered the time we had Snow in Boston .... thank you for giving me this nice flash back .... mirjam

Hi, Mirjam, Glad you remember it fondly. It seemed so much colder today than it has been, with the snow coming down. (Rather silly thing to think in December, I know.)

It actually only looks like it amounts to about a couple of inches on my truck across the street, but since I'm not venturing too far out my back door, I could be wrong. We do get a bit of a wind tunnel down my driveway.

Sleep well and have nice winter dreams.

-- Carey in MA (heading down to put more tea water on; it's only 5:00 PM here....)

Thanks for posting the link to The Rainbow Bridge. When I lost my beloved Pammy at 15 (that was almost four years ago) The Rainbow Bridge gave me much comfort. I cried again today when I read it.

Pammy was a Peke-a-poo and I got her when she was 8 weeks old. When she died it was very sudden, and I was such a mess, that on the fourth day my dd took me to the pet store and we brought home my Dusty.

Thanks again for the link,

Rusty in CT,USA and Dusty the Dog

I didn't have time to look at the website this morning, but I just went there, and now have tears running down my face! That is so beautiful... thank you so much for sharing that website. I have it saved in my Favourites now!

I really do believe that our pets will be there waiting when our time comes. I'm sure my Rex (the dog I grew up with) and my Tasha (who was only about 4 weeks old when she was sent home to me... the last of her litter, and I could hold her in the palm of one hand... who was my baby and passed away one month before my son was born) were waiting to greet my parents and are very happy now to be reunited with part of their family again. They will all be waiting together for me when it's my time to leave this earth.

Gem

Woohoo, indeed!

Higs, Kather> Good m-oo-rrr-nin' ya'll!

I just can't imagine that the creatures we are given to care for have no purpose other than to exist. They must be more important than that.

It's either a lesson, or a purpose, but it's more than only thier existance...

Sandra Rose (who always was a little strange, so don't be afraid! - cause she makes rockin' good brownies and grilled cheese!!!)

I really do believe that our pets will be there waiting when our time comes. I'm sure my Rex (the dog I grew up with) and my Tasha (who was only about 4 weeks old when she was sent home to me... the last of her litter, and I could hold her in the palm of one hand... who was my baby and passed away one month before my son was born) were waiting to greet my parents and are very happy now to be reunited with part of their family again. They will all be waiting together for me when it's my time to leave this earth.

Gem

Katherine! You're BACK wooohooo! Hugs, Noreen

Unconditional love.... that is their greatest gift to give and to teach humans, I think. :o)

I read somewhere once (wasn't crazy about it, but it made me think) that pets stay with us until their "usefulness" runs out. Once they know or feel that they are no longer needed to fill a void in our lives, they leave us (pass away). It made me feel bad to read that, because it made me wonder if Tasha felt that because my baby was close to being here that her usefulness had run out and I didn't need her anymore. :o/

-- On another way of thinking... and this one is going to sound REALLY weird. When I got Casper, he chose me.... I kept looking at other puppies (yellow ones, rather than white, thinking that white would be too hard to keep clean), but he was very persistant and kept coming over and nudging the other puppies away to have me to himself. Finally after the third time I said to the lady giving the puppies away "Well it looks like this little guy has decided that I am to be his new Mama, so who am I to argue?" As he grew a little more we came to realize exactly how gentle and patient he was... and I could almost swear I felt my Dad's presence with Casper at times. Then to top it all off... one day when he was waiting to go outside, I opened the gate between the kitchen and the laundryroom where Buffy (the older dog) sleep. She had gotten sick on the floor right in front of the door. Casper backed away from it and started whining, like he was saying "Nooooo, I don't want to go near that!!!! Yucky!!!" We laughed at his behaviour, but as I was cleaning up the mess, I suddenly remembered that my Dad absolutely hated when anyone would get sick around him... it made him sick too! Not that I'm saying that my Dad came back as Casper... but it sure made me think a few times.

Casper has another more outgoing type of personality than my Dad did (my Dad was very quiet and shy, unless he was ticked off... then everyone heard him and everyone moved in a hurry)... and he does make me laugh sometimes when I'm feeling down in the dumps. For instance, the day I got a large envelope in the mail from Cher (because I had won a prize here on the group) :o) my son and I had been on the outs with each other for a few days which had me feeling bad... well, I heard this ruckus behind me, and turned to see that Casper had stuck his head inside the envelope and was swinging his head all over trying to get out of it. I laughed so loud and hard at him and his antics that my son came to the room to see what had hit me so funny... and he started laughing too. :o)

Gem

I know what you mean about the animals choosing us , our late Dog , chose us , and thus the cat we have now Hamudi ,, he came to us ,,, mirjam