It’s National Cat Day!

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Things are definitely looking up. I am feeling pretty much normal again (thank You, God!) and there’s good news on the “cat front,” which I am celebrating on National Cat Day. Perhaps the story will be more interesting with a little background.

Back in January, when I first met Jou Jou B at Gasow, I was introduced to her two sisters as well. The three cats were strays, whom some “Good Samaritan” had had spayed and ear-tipped. When she could no longer care for these tame kitties, the “Samaritan” took them to Gasow so they could find homes. The sisters were named Jou Jou, Mimi, and Clarisse. Before I officially adopted Jou Jou B, Clarisse–the friendliest of the three–found a home.

After Calleigh duTwain crossed the Rainbow Bridge in June, I started thinking a lot about the remaining sister, Mimi, still at the vet six months later. She was very shy. Jim graciously agreed that we could adopt her. I renamed her Jolie Fille (“pretty girl”).

Fast forward to October…Patch the Pirate was unlucky enough to be “trapped” in one of the cat carriers we leave out to lull hapless cats into complacency. I took her in on a Tuesday for her overdue vaccines and learned that she needed a dentistry. She had to wait until Friday for that procedure, but I did not dare bring her home. I would never have been able to “catch” her again. Although Patch never came out of her carrier or showed any appreciation for my efforts, I visited her every day except the day she had the dentistry (seven more teeth removed…darned cervical neck lesions!).

When I came in that Saturday, Dr. R. mentioned to me that the third sister, Clarisse, had been returned two days earlier by her adopters. She was being picked on by one of their other cats, who had more seniority in the household. One of the cat-loving ladies behind the desk told me that the poor cat looked completely traumatized when she arrived, but was doing better now that she was no longer being tormented.

If you know me at all, you will not be surprised to learn that I immediately began imagining the addition of the third and final sister to our feline family. Jim’s initial response was an emphatic “NO!” I continued to talk about her at home and visit her at Gasow on my trips to visit Patch, who finally came home after a week.

I decided to take a different approach with Jim: “Let’s Make a Deal.” What would he like that I could agree to if he would agree to let me adopt Clarisse? Surprisingly, this method worked; Jim might be interested in joining a fitness club. I introduced Jim to Clarisse on October 23, and we officially adopted her that evening. I chose a name for her that sounded similar to “Clarisse” (pronounced “Clarice,” not “Clarissa”) but started with a ‘J.’ Her new name is Jenise.

Feeling Better…But Not Fast Enough

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The night before my teaching responsibilities at Birmingham Bible Institute began, my throat became quite sore. “Rats!” I thought. “This is the worst possible timing.” I nevertheless did my three hours of teaching and briefly introduced my classes during the Chapel period. The sore throat lasted a little over two days before it turned into a heavy-duty upper respiratory infection.

By the following Tuesday my sinuses were working overtime, and I was coughing endlessly. Sleep was difficult. Thanks to one of my students, I was able to get a cough syrup that really helped. It dried up my system very well, which led to a really awful sinus infection. Thank heavens I had recently had an appointment with my allergist, so I was able to get a five-day course of azithromycin. That was effective in eliminating the sinus infection, but the drainage and coughing returned, although to a lesser extent than before.

It has now been seventeen days, and I think I am finally on the mend. It has been hard to let co-workers and family members down by not being there to do my jobs as I desire to do them. For much of the time, I spent hours in bed, drifting in and out of sleep. I missed church services and being on campus on the deadline date for submission of financial documents for fiscal year 2014 at Wayne State. At home I did my twice-daily cat chores and not much else.

I am a person who values her “down time.” I like spending time at home with family and felines. To live my entire life that way, however, would be the ultimate waste of the time God has given me here on earth. It is important to make some sort of meaningful contribution(s) to others. I am glad to be feeling better and am praying that I will continue to heal so I can soon resume my “normal” schedule of work and worship.

Technology Crash Day

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Today has been both a little too interesting and a little too frustrating. Most of the problems have involved technology and its vast potential for glitches. Among today’s events include:

  • MJ’s equipment did not function properly on a photo shoot.
  • Our home suffered a more-than-four-hour brownout this afternoon (fortunately I was at work during most of it).
  • My work printer refused to print a PDF document from Internet Explorer and Chrome, but did print it from Firefox. Who knows why? Not I.
  • My printer then started making some very strange noises, so MJ and I had to swap it out for another (identical) model.
  • MJ was demonstrating how to use Adobe Photoshop and Bridge CS6 to edit RAW images, and after saving 2 images in JPG format my computer (which had been used by the now-retired staff photographer, Rick) ran out of memory. MJ was counting on my help with editing images for the great number of photo shoots she is doing this month, but my remote access to my computer will not be of value after all.
  • My lengthy attempt to resolve an incomprehensible hold placed on an order I made with Dell ended with the call being cut off (whether by accident or on purpose, I can’t say…but I have my suspicions). I will NEVER order from Dell again. The salesperson lied about several aspects of the order, and trying to resolve the mess is taking hours I would prefer NOT to waste.

I am so grateful to have a God Whom I can trust absolutely and a family I can count on to keep me on the right track.

Praise Where Praise Is Due

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It occurs to me, belatedly, that I omitted the most important part of the story about Jolie Fille and her paw: the praise I owe God for the way He worked out all the circumstances for me to be able to get her to the veterinary hospital, see the right vet for the circumstances, and get prompt treatment for her condition. Without Him working out the details, this could not have been accomplished.

First came the problem of getting Jolie into a carrier. Having been bitten the first (and last) time I forced her to go where she did not want to go, I had no idea how I could manage it. I got the idea to move the carrier into a more accessible location in the area where Jolie and two other kitties spend their time. I put comfortable bedding inside. Then another thought occurred to me: sprinkle catnip on the bedding in the carrier. I did that Thursday afternoon after work. I figured I had a one-in-three chance of luring the right cat into the carrier.

Before heading upstairs for dinner I peeked in and discovered Jolie in the carrier. Even more amazing was the fact that she was still there when I returned. Too late she realized that I was going to close the door on her…and so I was able to transport her to the vet.

Upon arriving at the veterinary hospital, I requested Dr. T, a vet whom I like and the only one I knew was there on Thursday evenings. Jolie and I were shown to an exam room, where we waited quite some time. Another vet I know and like–Dr. L–passed by and greeted me. When I overheard one of the women on staff tell another client that Dr. T would be tied up for a while yet, I told her that I would be happy to see Dr. L instead.

God worked in that circumstance also. It turned out that Jolie needed surgery on her paw. I asked if Jolie could have the surgery the following day, because I knew I would never get her back in the carrier any time soon. The vet who usually does surgery on Fridays (Dr. R) had taken the Labor Day weekend off, and was not available (as she had told me herself the previous Tuesday). Remarkably Dr. L said she would step off the floor Friday afternoon to do the surgery. Had I seen Dr. T as I had initially asked, this would not have been possible since she does not work on Fridays.

All weekend I felt guilty about Jolie, thinking that something in my home had caused or allowed Jolie’s injury to occur. I worried about her coming home; would she be hurt again? When I took another one of my cats in on Tuesday, I learned the probable cause from Dr. R . . . and it had nothing to do with anything in my home environment. I had hoped to consult Dr. L about when it would be best to bring Jolie home, but she was having a much-needed day off after working the holiday weekend. I posed the question to Dr. R, who said that Jolie was doing well enough to come home any time, per Dr. L; but because I was so concerned about Jolie’s safe recovery, it might be good to wait until Friday.

I am so grateful to Dr. L for doing the surgery and caring for Jolie so well. Even more, I am grateful to God, who worked out every detail so that Jolie could get the treatment she needed. To adapt a well-known refrain:

I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free,
For His eye is on my kitty, and I know He watches me.