Medical

A very long day, and that’s hilarious!

/ Re-Farmer / 3 Comments

Today was my day to take my mother in for her doctor’s appointment, but it was late enough in the day that I could still do my morning rounds.

The double lilac in the old kitchen garden are starting to really open up. With the recent deluge we had, with other areas getting snow, quite a few people on my gardening groups lamented the loss of everything they planted on the May long weekend. Quite a few others responded by saying to not put out any tender transplants or seeds until after the lilacs start to bloom.

We have 5 different kinds of lilacs, and they all bloom at different times. These double lilacs bloom first, and we’re still almost a week away from our last frost date! So that’s a rule of thumb I’m going to ignore! 😄

Speaking of thumbs, we’ve got more Red Thumb and Purple Caribe potatoes coming up. No sign of the German Butterball, but they were planted quite a while later. Of the sugar snap peas, the first ones we planted still have a whole three sprouts growing, but the second planting has quite a few breaking ground now! The carrots are still so tiny, it’s hard to tell how many have actually survived. We’ll need to plant more, anyhow. The spinach seems to be struggling, too. We’ve had both excellent results with spinach, and absolutely awful results. In this bed, though, I would have expected better results. We’ll see how they do as our weather clears.

I also spotted some tiny, distinctive leaves in the wattle weave bed. The chamomile successfully self sowed!

I headed out to go to my mother’s early, first to make sure the truck was prepped for her to be able to climb in, and to be able to get her folded up walker in, behind her seat. The little step stool I got was also handy. Of course, I checked the tires, because I always check the tires! The spare is holding up nicely, but that front driver’s side tire needed a top up again. It’ll be good when we can finally change out those valve stems, but my goodness, our budget has been hit hard these last few months.

Before going to my mother’s, I swung by the post office to get the mail. I’ll get to what was in there in just a little bit! As I was in the truck, updating the family before leaving, who should pull in, but our vandal. At first, he seemed to avoid looking at me, but as he got to the door of the store, he actually waved hello, pleasantly, before heading in. My hands were occupied, so I just smiled and nodded. I have heard that he’s been going to AA and such, as well as struggling with health issues, so maybe he’s improving. I’m not holding my breath, but there was a time when we were very close. One can hope things will get better.

Once at my mother’s, I was early enough that we could go over a few things first. She had two shopping lists; one for the pharmacy, and one for the grocery store. She also had a few little things she needed help with that I could do when we got back, plus some stuff she wanted me to take home with me. This included a church bulletin, which is basically just a newsletter. When we had a church to go to in the city, I really liked their bulletins, as they were basically what the service was for the day, with either responses right in the bulletin, or page numbers for them in service books/hymnals. This was especially appreciated when we first starting going there.

Gosh, I miss that church.

Along with the bulletin, she had a couple of women’s magazines for me. The social workers that visit her building give them to her, then she passes them on to me instead of putting them in recycling. I told her, we don’t read them, so go ahead and recycle them. This was about the only time my mother went on a bit of a rampage. Apparently, she wanted us to read the magazines because we (meaning my daughters) don’t go anywhere (she assumes), and don’t do anything (???), so we need to be exposed to stuff like magazines. I told her, these particular magazines are pretty much all about selling weight loss products. Oh, but they have good recipes! To which I said, Mom. We have the Internet. We have access to everything that’s in this magazine, and more. If fact, we can have access to these magazines, too! She finally stopped pushing after that. I must say, I am getting rather tired of her basically giving us her garbage to get rid of.

Speaking of which, she also had a container of something frozen… for the cats.

*sigh*

At least this time, it wasn’t something full of onions! I mentioned that onions are poisonous to cats, and I think she remembered.

We left fairly early for her appointment, so we had a bit of a wait. That gave me time to show her some photos and videos on my phone that my brother and his wife had sent me, as they are currently out of province. As time passed, I ended up showing her pictures on Pinterest to keep her occupied. I know what to look for, for her, and she seems to really enjoy it. She never got much chance to complain about how long it was taking, which she started to do a whole 3 minutes past her appointment time. 😄

The appointment itself went far more quickly than I expected. When we told the doctor we were there for a long term care assessment, she looked up the file and read the report from the woman that assessed my mother’s cognitive abilities a while back. The one area of note involved memory loss – more short term than long term. There is a medication that can help with that, but I already know my mother wouldn’t want to take another prescription. It turns out to be a moot point. One of the medications my mother is on is for a heart condition, and this medication is dangerous for people with heart conditions. Not that my mother actually has one. When she last saw the coronary specialist, it was shortly after we moved here, and I was there for it, along with my brother. My mother has a very healthy heart, and she was most unhappy to hear that, since she was convinced she was having heart problems and that he must be lying to her (we now know she was feeling really bad heartburn, but it took a few years to figure that out!). This heart medication she’s on is for something else. However, if there’s any sort of contraindication, my mother is not going to get this other prescription.

As for the long term care assessment, I was expecting my mother to get lots of questions, but the doctor basically accepted that, if my mother feels she needs to be in long term care, then she needs to be in long term care! There are just hoops to jump. The first ones, we could take care of right away. My mother got requisitions for lab work, chest X-ray and an EKG. All of that was available right across the waiting room. The only set back there was my mother had to get onto a bed for the EKG. She really struggled to get up there, and there wasn’t any way for us to help her. There was a stool available, but that was actually more difficult. Later on, as she was struggling to get into the truck, she told me it was easier to do that, then get onto that bed for her EKG!

The next things she needs will be done later. She’s got a referral for a home care panel, which will be done in her home, and she has a referral for a brain MRI. Once the doctor gets the last of the results, it all gets sent in for the long term care referral. I’m assuming there is some sort of approval process, then she gets put onto a waiting list.

I had been told we’d be asked to give the names of our top three preferred long term care centres, and I had that ready. However, when it came up, the doctor said there isn’t a choice. You get wherever there’s an opening. Which I found rather strange. Still, even if she doesn’t get in where she wants to be, my mother can be transferred later, when there is an opening. Transfers take precedence over the waiting list.

So the ball is now rolling. My mother is getting increasingly eager to move into a nursing home! I think part of that eagerness is because she feels that, if she ever did need help where she is now, like if she had a fall or something, the people around her couldn’t be relied on to come to her aid. She wants to be somewhere with a staff that has that ability to help, and I think she recognizes her own decline, to a certain extent. Talking about things like memory loss, during the drive back, we talked about things like forgetting the stove on – something she is already extremely cautious about, even if she hasn’t used the stove! When I commented that, if she were having such issues, she wouldn’t even know it, she immediately agreed. I think that was something else she was aware of, but didn’t have the vocabulary to express.

So that was done.

Before taking her home, we made the stops we needed for her shopping. She stayed in the truck! After everything was brought in and put away, I did the few things she needed help with in her apartment. By then, it was time for her to take her evening meds, and she was feeling really tired. So was I!

Once at home and I brought in the mail, I had a package I was told was coming – but the contents were a rather hilarious surprise!

Healthy Poops! 😂😂

Thank you, M, for the donation! 😄😄

The ingredients are pumpkin, flax seed, coconut, chicory root, turmeric, ginger and banana. The dose for under 25 pounds is 1/2 Tbsp per day. The container holds about 28 Tbsp. When we make our cat soup again (we are currently out of wet cat food), this can replace the ground pumpkin seeds we are using now. Until then, it can be dusted onto the kibble.

Not all the cats have … issues… but it certainly won’t hurt! Turmeric is anti-inflammatory, and I’m sure our elderly cats will appreciate that, too. It should be interesting to see how they respond to it! Apparently, cats like it enough that it comes with a warning that this is to be used as if it were a treat, not as a meal, and to start off slow.

So that is something we will start using tomorrow. The lysine we ordered came in early, along with some other cat meds, too.

Yeah. We’re sucks for the cats!

The Re-Farmer

I’m going to be feeling this tomorrow…

/ Re-Farmer / 2 Comments

Actually, I’m already feeling it now.

I definitely over did it today.

Our bare root strawberries came in today, and they need to be planted soon. My original thoughts on where to plant them is too far from the house, so I had to decided on someplace closer, which turned out to be a much bigger job that it should have been. This was after I’d done some yard clean up, then amended and added more soil to the empty raised bed in the West yard.

I’ve taken pain killers, but will need to take more, if I’m going to get any sleep tonight. Still, the job got done, and tomorrow we’ll be able to plant the strawberries.

Also…

Those elms need to die.

Die.

Die!!!

More on that later!

The Re-Farmer

All the things…

/ Re-Farmer / Leave a comment

… and it’s barely past noon!

First the fun stuff.

I counted 31 yard cats this morning! Likely because it’s a rather chilly and damp morning – and I was a bit later than usual for bringing food out!

With the chill and that damp, I don’t expect to get much done outside, but I might get some seeds planted into cells this evening. I might wait another day, but when I checked the mixed melon seeds when shutting down the lights last night, I saw a whole bunch of radicles peaking out! None of the other seeds are showing them yet, but almost all the mixed seeds were sprouting. I checked again this morning, and it looks like we’re at not quite 100% germination with the mixed melons, already! This was the packet that had 21 seeds in it. The large celled trays I am trying out this year have 21 cells, so that works out, if they all make it. I don’t want to put them in soil too quickly, though. A bit more time in the warmth and dampness above the heat mat will be good for them.

Speaking of dampness…

While checking the status of the basement, I was able to shift the new blower fans to focus more on the stairs. The space under the stairs is looking pretty dry, as well as most of the concrete floor, but it’s going to take longer on the steps.

We should probably remove that carpet that’s nailed to the stairs. Most likely, it’s scrap carpet salvaged from somewhere that my parents acquired and added during the years we lived out of province. Likely to make them less of a potential slip hazard? Or just because they felt like it. I don’t know. I think, in the near future, we should pick up a gallon of durable paint, get rid of the carpet, and paint the stairs as soon as possible, so there aren’t any exposed holes in the wood. The girls have plans for fixing the basement up a bit, including painting the ceiling – the exposed floor beams and joists – white, to brighten up a really dark area. I’d like to get more of those shop lights that we are using as grow lights. I prefer them to the lights that are already down there and, to be honest, I’m not too keen on replacing the existing wired in fixtures just yet.

But those are plans to slowly work on over time.

I checked the root cellar floor as well, and it’s mostly try, so the box fan remains. The hydrometer I’ve got in there was at 60% humidity still!

We might later need to move the new blower fans to the counter shelves. The pedestal fans are still aimed at them, and there is significant improvement, but there’s a lot of stuff blocking air flow. We’ll probably need to move some things out – and it’s a good excuse to finally drag out the old door from our old van that my brother was able to replace for us, shortly after we moved out here. Yeah, it’s been sitting there all these years, just in case parts were needed. Now that we no longer have the van, there is no reason to leave it there.

Other than the weight and how awkward it would be to get it up the stairs and out the door!

Anyhow.

After I did my rounds this morning, I called my mother. She sounded better, but she told me she was preparing to head out to the clinic. I asked how she was feeling, and yes, the Pepto seemed to really make a difference. We talked a bit about that, and then she went back to talking about going to the clinic today.

Why, if she’s feeling better?

She kept jumping back to my brother telling her that she needed a doctor to say she could move to the nursing home, and I eventually figured out that she believed she could just show up at the clinic, have a doctor say she needed to move to a nursing home, and basically start getting ready to move.

She has gotten really eager to move out of where she is and into the nursing home! Specifically, the one in town, where her sister and my father spent their final time, as well as many old friends and neighbours of hers.

Once I figured out why she still wanted to go to the clinic, I told her it doesn’t work that way! I told my mother she would need to make an appointment, then told her I would call the clinic about it right away, and get back to her.

Which I did, and had a great conversation with what turned out to be an unusually knowledgeable receptionist on the topic. It turns out she also does home care and is quite familiar with the process.

One of the things she told me is that we need to give the doctor a “top 3” of nursing home choices, not just the one my mother wants to live in, and they all have to be in the same region.

My mother’s doctor, however, is on holiday for most of May, so the earlier appointment I could get for my mother was at the end of May. She booked my mother for a longer appointment, since it is for a long term care assessment, and made sure the appropriate forms were attached to the appointment file.

I really like the people in this clinic!

Then I called my mother back with her appointment, and explained things to her, including how this just puts her on a waiting list, so the whole thing can take months, and she might not end up where she wants to be. We talked about other towns with nursing homes, and even the smaller, nearer city, which is in the same region (the bigger city is its own region, by itself). When we’d talked about assisted living previously, she was adamant she never wanted to live there, but now that we’re talking nursing homes, she actually seemed quite okay with the idea of living there. Particularly since it puts her closer to both my brother and sister. It’s roughly half way between us and my brother’s, so our trips to see her would be about the same length of time. My sister would be only maybe 15 minutes away, at most.

But, who knows? We have to get her assessed first, and we now have an appointment to get that ball rolling.

My mother updated, I then updated my siblings. While we can all help out, ultimately, it’s on my brother, as Power of Attorney for my mother, to finalize things on her behalf.

After all that, I was finally able to take a breather, have breakfast and start this post – at lunch time! 😄

I’m glad to have gotten that done, but I’m also glad to NOT be making a trip to the clinic with my mother, nor anywhere else. I don’t even have to go to the pharmacy; my husband’s refills are going to be delivered today.

Between all the phone calls and writing, and the cool, damp weather, what I’d really like to do now is go for a nap. Weather like this always makes me so sleepy!

The Re-Farmer

I didn’t think I’d pushed too hard!

/ Re-Farmer / 3 Comments

… but apparently, I did.

After I finished working outside, I sat at my computer to upload photos and video, write a blog post, etc. I was on the computer for maybe an hour? Hour and a half? I was feeling fine the whole time.

Then I got up to do something, and it hit me.

The first problem was stiffness. Top to bottom.

Then the second problem hit.

Pain.

Source: https://webstockreview.net

Full body pain.

Muscle pain, not my usual osteo pain.

I had forgotten to take painkillers again after I got back inside, because I was feeling so good.

You know it’s bad when my husband can move around better than me.

He took one look at me trying to move around and offered me two of his painkillers.

I only took one.

Good grief. No wonder he’s having such a hard time. It’s had more than enough time to kick in, but I’ve had almost no improvement.

I know I got a lot done today, but only working on the garden bed against the chain link fence was something I’d consider physically taxing, mostly because of all the bending over to pull roots and weeds out. I’ve been doing other manual labour as the days have warmed up, without getting anywhere near like this afterwards. This is really a big surprise for me.

My family, on the other hand, are not.

I guess they know me better than I know myself at times!

My daughters are making me something to eat, and then I’m going to bed.

Hopefully, I will be able to sleep!

The Re-Farmer

Shifting plans

/ Re-Farmer / 4 Comments

This morning, my husband had if first eye appointment in many years.

He also took an appointment time just 15 minutes after they opened. I normally book for the afternoons, because of travel time and… well… I’m just not a morning person!

We left early, in case road conditions were still slippery. They were not, so we got there half an hour before they opened. Which neither of us minded. It was a painful drive for my husband, so sitting in comfortable seat while it wasn’t moving was a good thing for him! He also decided to leave the walker at home, since he only intended to walk from truck to door and back again. We were planning to swing by a grocery store afterwards, but he was intending to stay in the truck while I picked things up.

He ended up getting the dilation test as well, which meant spending some time in the waiting area while the drops did their work, then back to finish the testing. By the time he had everything done, and they processed the direct billing on his insurance, with our provincial health care covering any diabetic testing 100%, the final bill was a whole $5! Which was less than my first tests! They also said he could come back in a year, instead of 6 months, with me. It seems I have more damage to my eyes to monitor than he does.

He did not get glasses, though.

He talked to the eye doctor about various options, including contact lenses, which he’s interested in trying again. Personally, I’m not a fan of using something you have to buy over and over, anywhere from every few weeks to every 6 months. Not when a pair of glasses can last many years. To get glasses, though, is going to be a large initial outlay. Aside from needing things like prisms, he needs some of the more extreme concave prescription lenses. The super thick ones would be cheaper, but heavier. They can do thinner ones, but that jumps the cost significantly. The woman helping us (she also helped my mother, and was fabulous with her) has extreme lenses in the opposite direction – hers are convex rather than concave. She also gets the thinnest possible lenses to reduce the weight, plus photo-sensitivity and so on. Her lenses alone cost her $1100. When lenses are that extreme, the types of frames that will hold them becomes more limited, and at that level, start at around $200-$300.

Which we don’t have.

Since he needs to talk to them some more about his options, we’ll come back another time to talk about contact lens options. They can then order some testers for him, and he can see how that goes.

When we were done, he wanted to grab something to eat, but nothing was open yet. We ended up driving to my mother’s town, but the place we wanted to go to, there, wasn’t open yet, either! It was finally past 11am, though, so there was one fried chicken place I knew for sure was open.

It wasn’t until we were driving to the highway to do that, when my husband remembered we were supposed to hit the grocery store. I wasn’t about to turn around, though. Instead, I decided that, after we ate, I’d drop my husband off at home, then go to the town nearest us. One of the things on my list was a pharmacy item, anyhow, and if I was going to the pharmacy there, I could get prescription refills, too.

Once settled in the restaurant, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to order. I have given up sugar and simply carbs again for Lent, and the meals all included carb heavy sides. I asked and found that I could order just chicken or just shrimp, with no sides. They still had a bread crumb coating, but for the amount on them, it was not really an issue. So I ordered a some fried shrimp while my husband got fries and chicken – it was the fries he was really craving!

During all this time, of course, his eyes were quite uncomfortable, and he was wearing his sunglasses over his regular glasses – we have several pairs of sunglasses designed to fit over regular glasses! When he asked me to check his eyes, I just had to take a picture, so he could see for himself!

This is about an hour after getting the drops! 😂 He was quite happy to put the sunglasses back on while he ate!

Also, my husband has the most gorgeous eyes. *melt*

That done, we headed home, I dropped him off then left immediately for town. After getting a few groceries – a bit more than intended, as there were some really good sales on – I went to the pharmacy. We actually had his bubble packs delivered yesterday, but he forgot to call them back to add on his insulin. While getting that done, I asked what the status of his Ozempic was, more because they have had such a hard time getting it in the dose he needs, since it became so popular as a weight loss drug. I’m glad I asked about it, as it turned out his prescription renewal had run out. So the pharmacy sent a fax to his new doctor and, once they get the new prescription, they’ll have his refill delivered next week. Then there was my one prescription. I still have almost half a month at home, but since I was there, I figured I’d take care of it, too. I was able to refill it, but that was the last of my refills on file, so they sent a fax to my interim doctor, who is also now my mother’s new doctor. So in the end, it’s a good thing we forgot to go to the grocery store after the eye appointment!

By the time all the running around was done, it was far later than I expected to be home! In fact, in a few minutes, I’ll get heading out to feed the yard cats so they can finish eating before it gets dark and the raccoons come out.

I am really appreciating the longer days, that’s for sure.

I’ve made sure to tell my husband, though; the next time he makes an appointment, book it for the afternoon, if at all possible! 😂🤣

The Re-Farmer

Our 2024 garden: T&T seeds are in, plus some updates

/ Re-Farmer / 10 Comments

This morning, I headed out to drive my mother to her doctor’s appointment. It really sucks to not be able to use her car right now, because it’s a real struggle for her to get into the truck, even with the foot stool. She finds it easier to get out, and refuses the foot stool completely, preferring to use her walker for support.

I’m certainly glad my shoulder is all healed up, because I had to help boost her up into the truck! Something I could not have managed, just a few days ago.

Once in the truck, though, she was happy as a clam! She commented on how nice it looks inside, and how smooth the ride is, compared to her car. I think she finds the seat more comfortable too.

At the doctor, she got the referral she was there for. The doctor was supposed to give her a physical exam, but my mother couldn’t even get up the step to go onto the examination table, so that was skipped. My mother will get either a call or letter about an appointment in the city to see a specialist, and the wait should not be long.

After that, she was up to stopping for lunch before heading home. I didn’t stay long after dropping her off; mass on TV was about to start, and she watches every day. Plus, I wanted to stop at the grocery to pick up an ingredient we were missing for my daughter, who wants to use the last of our winter squash to make a pie, and my husband sent me a message saying we had parcels to pick up at the post office.

Along with the parcels, my seed order from T&T Seeds was in.

It took several tries to get a photo without a cat photo bombing me!! 😄

The potatoes will be shipped in the spring, but they included a pamphlet on how to handle their various types of perishables with the seeds.

Based on what the package says, with our June 2 average last frost date, the tomatoes can be started indoors in the first half of April, and the winter squash can be started indoors at the beginning of May. Both say 80 days, though, and our growing season from last frost in the spring, to first frost in September, is 100 days. Technically, we could direct sow both of them! I don’t think I’d want to take that chance, though.

I must say, it’s very hard not to buy more seeds right now! The McKenzie Seed displays are out, and they are everywhere. Even some gas stations have them! As soon as I walk in somewhere – like the grocery store, today – and see the displays, I just zoom right in and start looking. We have so many different seeds, and for many we also have several varieties, so there’s really not been anything in the displays that I would get, that we don’t already have. About the only thing I really find myself looking for is sugar snap peas. We have lots of seeds for shelling peas. The first year we grew peas, we grew both types, but that was the drought/heat wave year, and the snap peas barely survived.

With everything melting outside right now, and the rest of the winter expected to be mild in our area, who knows. We might be able to get things started earlier than usual! At the very least, we should be able to get to work on the building more trellis tunnel beds and reworking others. early. There are seeds that can be planted as soon as the ground can be worked, even if there are frosts later on, so I’d quite like to have some of those started, nice and early! Things like the peas, which I want to plant in the bed the popcorn was planted in, last year, to get some nitrogen back into that soil, spinach and onions.

I so looking forward to getting outside and back to work again!

The Re-Farmer

A rough night, but much improved

/ Re-Farmer / 12 Comments

We have GOT to get more of the inside cats adopted out.

Last night was a rough one. 

With my arm still giving me grief, I tried going to be early again. While I could move my right arm forward and back as normal, if painfully, I still couldn’t get it move more than a few inches straight outward. 

When I go to bed, I often has several cats that insist they MUST be either right against me, or me, and they don’t often give me a chance to finish getting into bed before they do it! Cheddar is one of several that has decided where I sleep is his spot. He’s a big boy, so moving him with one wonky arm was a challenge! Others will move as I pull the covers back, but not Shadow in the Dark. He’s one that likes to curly up near my face or against the back of my neck, and he won’t move. So lifting the covers usually results in him being rolled over and over, then he lies there, all sprawled out, looking at me like I’ve offended him somehow!

That’s not unusual, though. 

Butterscotch made things unusual.

She’s been doing quite well, and even gotten to the point that she has started to leave my room, if only to go as far as the steps to the dining room, or peak around the corner at the basement door, to look down the hallway, before running back into my room.

Lately, however, she has taken to growling and snarling. 

Sometimes, I can see that there’s a cat nearby that she’s snarling at, but they’re usually just there, and not even looking at her. A couple of times, one of them would go at her, but it seems more a response to her snarling, and not the other way around. Other times, I’ll hear her snarling, and I can’t even see any other cats around her.

Well, it seems that having so many cats in my room, usually covering my bed, sleeping in groups, is stressing her out to the point that she isn’t going to the litter boxes. She’d have to go past the other cats to do that.

The first time I heard the odd noises, I found her squeezed onto one of the boxes I’ve set in front of the wall shelf, under my craft table. I’ve got other boxes inside the bottom shelves; with the table there, they can’t be accessed for us, but when they were empty and I thought the cats were just using them as places to sleep, we discovered they were defecating in them, so we blocked them off with empty boxes. One of those overhangs the edge of the shelf, and she was squeezed between the box on the floor and the overhanging box.

Then I started hearing a very strange sound indeed.

The sound of hard turds dropping onto the box she was on!

I managed to get her out of there, but then she went into a shelf above where I sleep; the shelf I keep my glasses in, as well as where I put my phone on a stand to charge at night, among other things.

I got her out of that, and she squeezed herself into the space of another shelf, in between my cookbooks and the top of the mattress. I tried lying down again, but more noised had me getting up again to investigate, and this time she was digging into the shelf that I use for some of my clothes. I got her out of there and tucked her into the nearby cat cave, and she stayed there.

Not for long.

I was again awakened by strange noises, and this time I found she was making a mess on my bed, between my pillow, and my leaning sheep – a large stuffed sheep I sometimes use to lean against when sitting up in bed, but is normally stored in the shelve under where I keep my glasses. It’s large enough to almost fill the space completely.

Well, this time, it was a very messy mess.

My daughters are still timing things so that one of them is always available to help me with his, so I messaged my older daughter to help me. We wiped up as much as we could, then stripped the bed. The fitted sheet and the leaning sheep had to be washed, along with one pillow case, but the mess was bad enough that we had to strip the waterproof mattress cover for washing, too!

By then it was past 1am – so much for going to bed early! 

While my daughter got the laundry going, I started putting out wet cat food. That lured all but one cat out of my room. I set wet cat food out in the bowls I have there, which allows for Butterscotch and a few of the the shier cats to get some, without being pushed around by the other cats. This time, I was able to close the door and keep the other cats from coming back in during the night.

Of course, that meant frequent interruptions by cats trying to claw the door open.

Eventually, though, I did hear Butterscotch going into a litter box, which should have been a good thing, but… something didn’t sound right. So I used the flashlight on my phone to try and see her.

*sigh*

Yeah, she was using the litter box, finally, but didn’t quite go all the way in. 

She ran off again and hid in her cat cave while I got up and cleaned up the mess.

*sigh*

After that, things did finally quiet down, and I managed to get some sleep, but all this having to get up and check things was quite painful. 

I have discovered on thing, though. While my girth may make it seem otherwise, I’ve got some pretty decent abs! I had to sit myself up many times using just my abs, and not being able to use my arms at all. 

With just Butterscotch in her cave and what turned out to be Susan sleeping somewhere else, I actually was able to get some decent sleep, if only for a few hours.

This morning, I felt good enough that, when my younger daughter went to feed the outside cats, I went along to help out, then do the rest of my rounds and switch out the trail cam memory cards. 

I was very happy to demonstrate to her that I can now lift my right arm straight out again! While there is still some pain, I have almost full mobility of my arm again! The level of improvement since yesterday is amazing. I’m so relieved! There were times I seriously considered getting my daughter to drive me to the hospital, but giving it a couple of days of rest seems to be what I really needed. In fact, while writing this, I just tested my arm again, and I could do a full rotation at the shoulder, with no pain! Not even my left shoulder, which was not strained as badly, still has more pain now than my right shoulder does. I’m so relieved!

While doing the morning feeding, neither of us tried to do a head count. There were clearly fewer cats than usual, but they were also running around a lot, making it hard to keep track. There were these two, though…

The cats still aren’t going into the sunroom as much as usual. Checking it just a short while ago, there was a small pile of maybe three or four cats on the platform, and that’s it. Usually, we’d see about 6 or ten on the platform, and almost as many under the heat lamp or on the cat bed below, plus more in the shelf, at the food bowls or just wandering around. It’s going to take time for them to start feeling safe in there again.

These two are almost always in the sunroom. Syndol can’t get enough attention, but the little one (can you believe they’re only about a month or so apart in age?) is now getting to the point of enjoying pets and being picked up. We’d brought this one into the house a couple of times to give his nethers a thorough washing. He was so patient about it, the girls have named him Patience.

Even his tortie sister has started to allow me to pet her more often, and will tolerate being picked up more. Which is good, because it means we can bring her indoors for overnight fasting at the end of the week, before taking her to get spayed. Oh, how I wish more of the females could be socialized enough to get them done! My daughter was able to pet Broccoli this morning, but she wouldn’t let me near her. I did manage to pet Junk Pile – the first time in ages. She seemed shocked at being pet, and liking the shoulder skritches, but didn’t allow it for long. Even Caramel was around, but I only managed to touch her while she had her back to me while eating. Brussel won’t let us near her, but she will go into the kibble house and even into the sunroom. Sprout keeps her distance. If we’re around, she won’t eat at all, and she prefers to eat from the bowls under the shrine, across the yard. We’ve seen Slick around, I think (aka: Octomom), and there’s another grey tabby that’s more spotted then striped that I think is also female. That one will eat at the kibble house or on the cat house roof, but is even shier than Sprout, so we haven’t been able to confirm, either way. Another one we have not been able to confirm is one more from that late litter of either kittens; a small grey tabby with dense longer fur. It will go into the sunroom to eat, and I’ve been able to sneak a pet on its back, if it can’t see me, but that’s it. Given how it won’t let us near it, I’m going to just assume it’s female. 😕

Anyhow, that’s the current status.

In other things, my daughter was able to help me move a chair out of the living room so I have access to the aquarium greenhouses again. With my arm mobile again, my goal for today is to get the big aquarium ready for seed trays, then hopefully actually get seeds started. We’ve got the red onions, yellow onions and shallots that should have already been started by now, plus some peppers and eggplant. Possibly some oregano and thyme, too, but those can probably wait a couple more weeks. I’ll have to go through our seeds that need to be started the earliest and make some decisions. With having to build or rebuild so many beds, once things are thawed out enough, I’m going to work on the assumption we won’t have room for everything we want to plant. Especially for things that would need to be planted in ground, like corn.

We shall see how things work out. For now, I’m just glad to 1) be pain free and mobile enough to get back at it and 2) not have any unexpected running around to do, but actually be home to get my own stuff done!

Time to grab a stool and get at those aquarium greenhouses!

The Re-Farmer

Still messed up

/ Re-Farmer / 11 Comments

Well, I really did a number on my right rotator cuff yesterday. I can’t raise my arm at all in two directions, with limited mobility in other directions.

During the night, I heard a commotion on my craft table and discovered Ginger peeing on it. Getting up to chase him off was quite difficult, and I ended up having to put weight on the injured arm. By the time I was done getting him off and cleaning the mess, I was in a cold sweat and feeling ready to throw up.

Yes, I did take painkillers. In fact, I went so far as to take one of my husband’s prescription pain meds.

It made no difference at all.

After a couple more hours of attempted sleep, things have improved. I will probably need to see a doctor, but I’m not sure where to go. I don’t really have one, and my interim doctor isn’t in the clinic on Fridays, anyhow. I really don’t want to spend hours waiting in an emergency room, either.

My daughters are taking shifts to be available to help me. My younger daughter has the day shift. She fed and watered the outside cats and tried to do a head count. She counted about 20 or so, which has been typical for our warmer days of late.

My daughter is cooking breakfast for me now, so I will have to de-cat myself and get up. I have been trying to at least lie down, if not sleep. Oddly, lying on my left side has been more painful, and not just because of my arthritic hip. I just can’t find a good position for my right arm that doesn’t strain the joint. Lying on my right side, I can at least find a position that supports the shoulder, rather than strains it.

I really, really don’t want to go to a doctor.

The Re-Farmer

Should be easy, and kitty problems

/ Re-Farmer / 11 Comments

First, the cuteness!

Brussel is such a gorgeous cat! I want to snuggle her!!! Alas, she still won’t allow us to get close.

This afternoon, I was planning to head into town to cancel the insurance on my mother’s car, until we can get it taken in. My husband was going to come with me, to finally get his photo ID. Unfortunately, the change in his medication is still causing intense intestinal distress. He was up almost all night, dealing with it.

Also on the to-do list was a stop at the grocery store for more toilet paper. !!!

Needless to say, he wasn’t up to the outing today.

So I headed out shortly after doing my morning rounds.

We have a problem right now, though.

When I go into the sun room with the kibble, I often get a rush of cats coming through the door. Sometimes, I can close the inner door behind me as I go through and stop it, but other times, they’re just too fast for me.

So I leave the doors open.

Usually, by the time I finish putting out the kibble and warm water, they’ve come out on their own. Sometimes, they need a bit of encouragement. Every once in a while, a cat hides somewhere. We check through the window of the inside door until we see it, and usually, it will run out after we go in and open the door to the sunroom.

Yesterday, when I did the evening feeding, I was stampeded by cats who were more interested in exploring the old kitchen than food. In the end, I left the sun room doors open so they could go out on their own, because they were too excited for me to get them out.

When I opened the door to go into the house, though, several made a run for it!

A couple of hours later, my daughter came up to me, asking if I knew there was a herd of cats in the old kitchen. I’d forgotten to tell her about it! I explained what happened, and she went and got them all out.

Except she wasn’t positive it was all of them. She left the light on, so we could check through the window.

Some time later, my husband opened the door and scared the heck out of a cat.

It hid somewhere, on the opposite side of the room from the doors.

My daughters caught glimpses of it throughout the night, but I never saw it. It was one of the “printer babies” – a white and grey.

When I did the cat stuff this morning, I left the old kitchen door on the sunroom side just a little bit open, hoping it would come out, but others would not go in. I did see a white and grey slink out, but this was a friendly one that loves pets, not the scaredy cat that ran away. The friendly one had snuck through into the sun room after I left the door partly open.

I even set out cat treats and catnip in the sunroom, in hopes of luring it out.

No luck. I did, however, finally catch a quick sighting of it as it disappeared under the plastic couch we have in there.

The other cats, however, were sure happy with the treats and nip

I’ve since gone to town and back, and it’s still in there. I finally put a cat carrier on the freezer, with some food in it. If nothing else, it’ll have a warmer place to curl up in. The door into the old kitchen is so loud, though, there is no way we could sneak up on it if it were asleep in there.

Meanwhile…

My first stop in town was to the auto insurance place. Not the one we usually go to, but the one I went to to insure the truck. It’s just easier to park at.

While going in, I made sure to check and, while they don’t have the automated doors, the place is barrier free, so my husband will be able to get in and out with his walker, with no trouble.

After canceling the insurance (we’ll just redirect the money to savings, to go towards potential repairs), we were chatting and I mentioned that my husband was supposed to come in for his photo ID, and we talked a bit about accessibility. It reminded me to ask what he needed to bring to get his ID.

I’m so glad I did.

I told her about when he tried before, and how since his name on his old file, and his (at the time, still valid) driver’s license did not match the name on his birth certificate, they wouldnt allow a transfer. Never mind that he’d never used any other name, even while in the military. The provincial insurance provider would not accept it and would not allow him to transfer his driver’s license. We were actually told that he would need to legally change his name… to his legal name.

It was surreal.

Unfortunately, all the hassle and waiting to fund this out left him in massive amounts of pain. We later made some calls to an ombudsman, and were told he just needed to bring some mail with his full name and current address on it, and they could work with that. He just never made it back to do it. So that had been what he intended to do, today.

The woman that was helping me was not impressed that this happened to us. I had told her how I’d had to get my marriage license from vital statistics to get mine, and it was months before I could finally get my driver’s license transferred. She told me she had a similar issue. She had a 93 yr old widow who, with changes in the ID laws, had to get a photo ID for the first time in her life. The provider wanted her to get her marriage certificate – many years after the death of her husband – to prove her name change, so she could access her pension money. !!! The woman telling me this said she fought it and got it done, but it took three months!

Bureaucracy is insane.

She gave me a printout of what my husband could bring to prove his ID, and a form for third party identification. That one can be signed by a doctor or pharmacist, or a post master. When I tried to use that form, years ago, the insurance provider would not accept our local post master, saying she wasn’t really a post master. I guess that certificate on the wall at the post office that says she is, is just for decoration? A pharmacist would be better for my husband, anyhow. They know him very well, by now.

That form allows for a physical address only, so he will need his health card as well, as that has the postal address on it. Then, he just needs his birth certificate. All they will need to do is change the name on file to match it to what’s on his birth certificate.

That’s it. One thing to change on his old file. No other hoop jumping.

This is how it should have been, 6 years ago!

Getting the card is only $20, too, since it’s not a drivers license. My husband talks about getting his license again. He shouldn’t drive, with all the meds he’s on, but he would be another emergency back up driver. He’ll have to start from scratch, though, and do the tests all over again. Which he’s willing to do.

Maybe after he gets his new glasses, though!

So it was good news, and I’m glad I remembered to ask about it. It’s just a matter of when he will be physically up for the trip.

So that’s all done.

Now I’m going to go see if there’s a kitty in a carrier!

The Re-Farmer

It may be cold…

/ Re-Farmer / 15 Comments

… but gosh, it’s pretty.

I have 2 weather apps on my phone. One of them changes every time I open it, leaping from -30C to -16C, then back again! There is a new version of that app, but I ended up unistalling it because it sucked so much. The other one cane with my phone. It reads -26C right now.

We will be rescheduling my husband’s eye appointment. Between not being able to plug in the block heater and the highway conditions, it’s not worth it. I thought we could do it just fine, looking at the earlier forecasts, but boy, where they wrong! I hate canceling on the day of an appointment, though, but when it comes to weather conditions, most places are okay with it.

On the plus side: I got some shoveling done around the house, so the sunroom doors were left wide open longer than usual. As I was coming in, I saw the thermometer, which is against an outside wall, was at “only” -15C. Which means it had been even warmer, earlier. Now that the doors are tied off, it should warm up again.

I counted 26 or so cats this morning. Twenty of them were in the sunroom. I was pleased to see all three of the smallest kittens in there, though they are all super fluffy cats. I saw Adam and Driver today, and they are so fluffy, they look like Siberian cats! They look so huge! I didn’t see Brussel this morning, but when I saw her last night, she was looking equally massive and fluffy. Their winter fur is really doing the job!

I had a chance to chat with the Cat Lady today. They are still settling into the new house, of course. I asked about the idea of officially becoming a rescue.

She did not recommend it!

The only benefit, really, is at tax time. They ended up spending more out of pocket for expenses. Dealing with fosters is hard (she had to drop several fosters), and there is the constant drive for donations. The phone is constantly ringing with people having unrealistic expectations.

Then there are the adoptions. To give an example;

One of the sick kittens they took from us never fully recovered. We had not expected it to survive at all, but she saved him. He’s doing great, but his lungs are damaged and week, do he’s prone to respiratory problems.

He has been adopted out, three times.

He is now permanently back with them.

One woman who took him promised she would care for his vet needs, fully informed of his condition.

She brought him back the next day, after he sneezed blood.

Another woman was told by her vet to euthanize him. Rather than do that, she brought him back and requested another kitten.

This particular kitten had bonded with their dog, and they adore him, so they were happy to have him back, but there’s a reason they have 27 permanent cats now.

Actually, I think it’s more than 27 now.

She just spent another $2400 they don’t have on surgery for another cat, who is currently recovering in a bathroom with an open catheter.

They have several other cats that are unadoptable, due to high medical needs. The amount they spend on special cat food and medications, out of pocket, blows me away.

So becoming an official rescue would not actually help our situation.

*sigh*

I’m glad I talked to her about it, first.

Oh, I just heard my husband talking to the eye clinic. Appointment for today is off.

Thank goodness, at least his cell phone works.

Tomorrow, the tech from the phone company will be coming by to check our lines. Hopefully, by the end of the day, the landline will be working again.

The Re-Farmer