Bye Bye Frisky

My little black & white girl – my Frisky – was put down today. Her liver and kidneys had reached a point of failure where she was no longer eating or drinking and could no longer jump on the couch. The vet clinic I go to is wonderful. The entire staff is full of compassion and understanding. The vet asked if he could give Frisky a sedative to make it easier to insert the IV. I of course agreed. Her veins were old and spidery and with her low blood pressure, it would have been a very painful experience for her without the sedative. Her shoulders and head laid in my hands and I talked to her, and petted her and gave her kisses, and when the IV finally went into her tiny vein, she was gone within 5 seconds.

This picture was taken in early 1998 when Frisky was almost 8 years old. She was such a pretty cat. A friend once said that if Frisky was a woman, she'd be a very pretty one.



Ron was with us for which I was very glad. He’ll miss his nap time buddy. I’ll miss having her around. I know I’ll look for her in the usual spots and will forget for a moment why she’s not there.

If I believed that animals went on to another plane of existence, I would hope that she’s with Patrick and Patches. Patrick, Tony and Frisky and Patches (the girls) and I shared a lot years together, and I know that when Patrick and I divorced, he really missed the kitties.

I imagine that I’ll be wanting another cat in a couple of months. Ron suggested grabbing one of the kittens out of the box. I don’t want a kitten. I want to adopt an older cat, maybe even a senior, for they often have a difficult time finding new homes.

Today’s weather – It’s cold. Temp barely reached 50, and there’s been a breeze. It’s been only partly sunny.

Life changes – What can I say? My animal friend of 18 years has passed on, and I miss her. Wouldn’t it be nice if pets did go on to another plane of existence and she has a life with no illness.

A Different Week

It’s been a different week for me. Tony is on vacation so neither Grandma has Ember care. Well, I don’t have Ember care until Friday when I pick her up and bring her down here for an overnight. I miss her so much.

I bought a turtle sandbox today for Ember to play in when she visits us. I also got sand. The sandbox has a cover that fits on it, which is a good thing or else I’m sure the feral cats would use it as a litter box. Em will be thrilled. She loves to play in the dirt. I’ve got to get more play-in-the-dirt things. I’ll head up to Just A Buck tomorrow and splurge on dollar things.

Today was a busy day. Ron had a doctor appointment with his family doctor. I’ve had concerns about Ron’s blood sugar count. Today’s appointment was to get some information and arrange for testing. The doc gave Ron a glucometer to track his blood count for a couple of weeks.

This afternoon I did May’s grocery shopping. Since I wasn’t going up to the Albany area this week, other than to pick up Ember, I drove to Catskill for groceries. I went to Wal-Mart, a store I do not like at all, to get the sand box, and while there picked up a few groceries because the prices are cheaper than Price Chopper. I got most of my groceries at Chopper. The cost of food is rising almost as quickly as the cost of gas.

Yesterday I painted more of the upstairs hallway. This project should have been done long before now, but between being sick for 5 weeks this winter, then Ron going into the hospital, then my lack of ambition, it’s been sitting here waiting for me. I have the urge to finish what I can – can’t do the part of the dormer where the leak is – and then clean out Ron’s ‘clock’ room. He hasn’t been told yet of my plans. Oh well….

My darling Frisky cat, who is 18 years old, took a turn for the worse over the weekend and tomorrow I’m taking her to the vet for what I assume will be her final ride in the car. Her appetite, which had been decreasing since her liver failure diagnosis months ago, practically stopped last week. Monday she was really showing the deterioration of her health. Today she had a hard time walking in a straight line. She still loves to sit on a warm lap, though, and as always, wants to be pet. It’s time, though it’s breaking my heart, and I’ve cried on and off today. Ron, who gets teary-eyed thinking about her going, will go with me to the vet.

Price of Gas: This is a new topic of my blog which will be updated periodically. Regular gas at Cumberland Farm in Greenville is $3.739 today. Yesterday it was $3.719. Stewart’s in Greenville has gas today for $3.719.

Today’s weather: It started off raining and chilly. The sun came out late morning and the temp rose to the low 50s by late afternoon, but the wind is blowing hard and makes the air seem much colder.

Life changes – Other than my son Tony, Frisky is the last connection to my former life, when I was married to Patrick, living in our sweet house in Schenectady and being mom to Tony. Frisky, as all our pets have been, was a part of the family. She was Tony’s first cat just for him. He was 8-1/2 when we got her 18 years ago. He named her. He loved her. He still does. Frisky loved to go to bed with Tony. He’d start up the stairs to go to bed and give her a call. She’d get up, stretch and follow him up. She’d stay there for a couple of hours or all night. I am going to miss her very much.

Kittens are Growing

Final Weekend of April

I've been busy and tired so haven't posted in a few days.

Thursday Ron had an appointment with the gastroenterologist for a colonoscopy consult. All went well with that, and the procedure is scheduled for June.

After the doc appointment, we went to Crossgates Mall for some shopping and then to Colonie Center. I prefer Colonie Center over Crossgates. It's a quieter, gentler mall -- if there is such a thing. Fewer kids hang out there, which automatically makes it quieter and gentler.

We had dinner at Outback to celebrate our annivesary. We had a $50 gift certificate I got from earning points at mypoints.com. Dinner was OK. I'm not a big fan of steak, but since our dinner came to $48.17, I'm not complaining.

The best part of dinner was dessert at Stone Cold Creamery. I had a mid-size serving in a chocolate dipped waffle cone. It was really really good. It's OK to splurge once in a while and worth the stomach ache I had the next morning.

Friday was an Ember care day. I love her soooooo much, as Em would say. There's nothing like her arms hugging tightly and her saying, "I love you soooooo much, Grama." Of course she also says that to their dog Pudgey and Bear, her favorite comfort toy. Her emotion is sincere for she does love us all.

Em said something Friday that brought tears to my eyes. We were on her front porch after her nap and her next door neighbor, a woman who also happens to be Em's distant cousin and sees Em all the time and knows who I am, came over. Ever-friendly Em said, “Hi, Kewwy (Kelly). How you?” Kelly said she was fine, and Em said, “This is my grama," gesturing at me, as if Kelly didn’t know the relationship. It was a huge WOW moment for me, because it was Em demonstrating that she knew that being grandma meant more than the label. I've decided that being a grandma is pretty heady stuff.

Today's weather - The weather on Thursday and Friday was perfect. Warm and sunny, with the temps in the low 70s and high 60s. Today started off cloudy, but the clouds broke up and by noon, it was sunny. The air temp is about 65, but the heavy breeze makes it a bit chilly.

Life changes - My girlfriend Barbara said something very profound in an email to me the other day. She said, "We're always saying good-bye and hello." It was in reference to the change in weather, with spring flowers, so long waited for, already starting to wane but summer flowers and foliage on the horizon. Good-bye and hello. This applies to everything in life. People, jobs, animals, homes, cars, ideas and ideals. Hello and good-bye. Nothing stays the same or stays forever.

Feral Cats' Home and Kittens: 4/22/08

The plastic bins I set up last fall as shelter for the 5 feral cats. Bins are lined with carpet remnants and baby blankets.

"Spunky" One of 4 kittens born in the past 4 weeks or so. I've named her Spunky because she was the first, and pretty much the only, kitten to crawl out of her home.

Spunky looking for her mommy.

Two of the 4 kittens in the entrance to their shelter.

Terrace and Flowers from Backyard: 4/22/08

The magnolia tree. It is in full bloom -- at peak -- and this morning a few of its leathery petals fell off.

Looking up to terrace from backyard. Daffies are blooming!

Close up of some of our daffies. They are my favorite flower.

Backyard From Terrace: 4/22/08

Last week I took shots of the backyard. They appear in an earlier post. This week the apple tree is looking "fat" with future apple blossoms. The trees are leafing out and general foliage is greening up.

Frisky: 96 Years Old in People Age

This is my Frisky girl, or as Ron calls her, Black Cat. I don't know if she's really 96 years old in people years, but she's damn close. She was born in March 1990, so she's definitely 18 cat years old. She's also sick with kidney failure and is slowly fading away. She spends most of her day on the bed here in the computer room, and though so very sick, still has the strength to jump up on the bed and back down.

Creek: Then and Now

Creek separating our property from the cemetery. Picture taken March 5, 2008, when the water was overflowing.

Same creek from same angle. Picture taken April 23, 2008, when water is very low. The line of stones in the middle is where I cross.

Stone Fences

Part of old stone fence in back of our property. The yellow truck in the background is Ron's bucket truck.

Stone fence that delineates cemetery property from private property.

Another view of fence in back of our property. It's been around for a very long time and is, obviously, showing signs of wear.

Em at Green Island Park: 4/22/08

Climbing up to the Slide

I made it!

Here I come.

Animals of the Woods and Stone Fences

Maybe this could be two posts, but I have such a good feeling inside right now for all the wonderful things in my life that I'm writing about the two things that affected me the most tonight.

First, it was an Ember day. Each week of her life she matures and grows and learns and is more of a pleasure to be with. Her 2-year-oldness is decreasing. She’s learning self-control, slowly but it’s definitely there. I think her parents may say something different, but I see the difference probably because I am with her only two days a week. We had a really good day being together.

Tonight after supper I took a walk across the creek and up into the cemetery. As I made the turn down at the end near Stewart’s, I saw a red fox sitting on the stone fence leading back up to the older part of the cemetery. She was beautiful but looking worriedly at me and then over her shoulder. I made my usual turn to go around the newer section of the cemetery and then back up. She was still on the stone fence, and as I walked up the incline, she jumped down, barked and yapped at me a few times and took off into the woods. When I reached where she had been and took a look over the fence, I saw three kits. They continued to play on top of the dirt pile leading to their hole and looked at me with curiosity but no fear. They cocked their heads when I spoke and were very attentive. I didn't stay long knowing that momma fox was around, and she would be very nervous.

This is the last time I take my walk without a camera. I say that all the time because most times when I walk, I see a couple of deer. They’re used to me now and don’t run away from me.

This part of New York State has lovely stone fences. The type that people associate more with New England. The Catskills has got New England beat threefold. I am still startled to know that I own a few of them. I can walk our land and see these property delineations and touch them, walk over them and sit on them. They’re mystical to me because the ones on our property are back in the woods, staking out property lines from a couple of hundred years ago, and nobody can see them.

When you ride the roads of Greene County, though, they are everywhere and easily seen from the road. The Catskills are rocky mountains. Before anybody could farm, they had to clear future fields of all the rock and stones.. and there were tens of thousands of them.. and they were used for the beautiful stone fences.

Speaking of animals, the feral kittens are very bold. One in particular is always crawling out of the bin. Tonight she was out, crawling around and mewing at the top of her little lungs. Momma cat came bounding over the grass and up on the terrace, picked her up and lugged her back home.. a matter of a few feet, but the kitty, whom I've named Spunky because she certainly is, was protesting and struggling, so it was not an easy task. The boldest one is pictured immediately below. She and the second most bold kitten are at the second picture down.

One-year Anniversary

Today is our one-year wedding anniversary. I can remember this day like it was.. ohh….just one year ago! It was a really pretty day, much like today is, for which I was grateful and surprised because the week leading up to April 21 had been horrible, including snow and then heavy rain that caused major flooding.

We’re not doing anything special today. Since we’re going to Albany Thursday for yet another of Ron’s doc appointments, we’ll go to dinner to The Outback. I’ve got a $50 gift certificate that's begging to be used.

Ron's been working most of the day. Problems seem to crop up in people’s houses when spring comes. I took a morning walk through the cemetery and then ran a bunch of errands to: recycling, bank, post office, Bryant’s, library. Just before lunch I washed my pretty little red car. It gets so dusty from the driveway and Ron driving the trucks in and out to the back garage. After I dried it off, I put it away in the garage so it would stay as dust free as possible for a day or two.

This afternoon I’ve been a slug and loving every minute. I read and then dozed in the swing. The sun is hot and it warms up the air which is a tad bit cool because of the breeze. I love that swing. When I’m done posting, I’m going to take another walk and then rest up in the swing. LOL

I’m making a chicken stir fry for supper. Chicken is not one of Ron’s favorite things to eat – he’s a red meat guy – but in this house we tend to eat what the cook likes and since I’m the cook…..

The four feral kittens are giving their mom a run for her money. All eyes are open and all legs and feet are moving just fine.. and moving them right out of their house. One was wandering around outside the back door this morning when I went out. I gave momma cat lots of room to nab it by its neck and half drag/half carry it back to the plastic bin. I’m taking pictures and will post them in a day or two.

Today’s weather – It is another beautiful day in Upstate New York. The temp is in the mid-70s and there is a slight breeze. The sun is hot and the flowers and all things green are soaking up its beneficial rays and thriving.

Life changes – I’m a person who pretty much lives in today or even the future. Today, though, I’m looking back because it is my wedding anniversary. As much as I thought I knew my life would change by marrying again, it has changed even more than I imagined, but I am still me, only a happier, more content me.

A Great Day!

I had a great day. The temp reached 81 degrees. The sun was brilliant and hot. The sky bright blue. It was a typical Saturday for us in the country. I ran a couple of errands. Washed some windows. Did laundry. Went through my spring clothes and tossed a couple of things. Ron, after a typical Ron morning of eating a slow breakfast, reading the paper slowly and then getting the mail and visiting his brother and a friend or two, settled down to do some yard work – but not before having lunch! This man does nothing if not methodically and slowly and it was close to noon by the time he got home and decided what yard work he was going to do.

I, on the other hand, am a bumble bee to his sloth. I hustle. I bustle. I work best in the morning and like to have most of my chores done by lunch. I didn’t quite make the lunch deadline, but I still had most of the afternoon to read and swing on the swing. I’ve said it before and am saying it again: Purchasing the swing was the best thing we’ve bought since we got married.

The fire house siren is going off for the second time today. Small towns operate via volunteer firefighters and paramedics. Earlier today there was an accident about 50 feet from our driveway. Occupants of both vehicles were taken away in ambulances, but we were told there were no serious injuries. I heard the crash, turned my head and could see both vehicles still in motion. Since I always have a portable phone with me when outside on the swing, I immediately called 911. The State troopers arrived in just a few minutes. Now I wonder what else has happened for the siren to call the volunteers to service.

That’s it for us in Greenville. Right now, all is well with our world.

Today’s weather – It was gorgeous. Perfect weather. Temp reached 80; sun shone all day; sky was blue.

Life changes – I am so aware of being happy and content, unlike some of the years in my life where I was just the opposite. Fifty-two weeks ago today (a year on the 21st), Ron and I married. I feel just as good now as I did then.

Days with Ember

Ember visited us in Greenville overnight, Thursday into Friday. She is so much fun, even when she gets her 2-year-old attitude going. I've included in this post some of the pictures I took during her stay. Em loves being in the country. She has no problem getting dirty, playing in the leaves, laying down on the ground or digging in the dirt with her fingers. Grandma, on the other hand says "yuck" inside but smiles and encourages Em because I will do nothing to discourage her toddler personality.

Though she's given up a crib at home, Em never blinked an eye at sleeping in the crib here. I'm glad. It made the sleeping part of her overnight easier for me. And she does sleep well. She took good naps and slept all night, from 7:30 PM to 7 AM the next morning. What more could a grandma ask for?

Sometime during her visit, she stopped calling me "Dama" or "Gama" and always used "Grama," the G and R intact and obvious. I'm glad, though it represents a big step in her maturing.

Ron loves this granddaugher of mine. It brings tears to my eyes seeing his delight when she gives him hugs. He goes out of his way to be at home when she visits so he can play and just be around her.

Ember runs all the time. Her toddler arms and fisted hands pumping as she tries to keep ahead of whoever is chasing her or tries to catch up with whoever is ahead of her. She loves to blow bubbles, or have me blow them. She loves to kick the ball or have me toss it "High in the sky, Grama." She loves to run through the leaves or help pick them up and put in the wheelbarrow. She generally enjoys so much being here, with the big backyard, and lots of woods and having the freedom to run and play without an adult's worrisome attitude of city traffic and constraints that go with that.

But the little stinker will not swing on the bucket swing I bought and Ron hung in a tree. When she saw Ron carrying it from the house, she said, "Oh wowwwwwwwwwww a whee!!" Those were the first and last words of enthusiasm she had for the swing. She gladly put the ball in it. She happily put sticks and stones in it. She would not allow herself to be put in it, and any time she was asked if she wanted to swing, she responded, "Nope," or "No way," or even "No tank you." I know Ron was disappointed, moreso than I.

After her nap today and post-nap juice and snack, Ember got weepy. She wanted to go home and said so. She wanted to be cuddled and she wanted to suck on bear. She wanted daddy and mommy. But she also wanted to feed "Da fishies, Grama," one more time or lay down in the dusty driveway flat on her belly one more time. When daddy came, her face lit up like a Christmas tree. "Daddy!" That also brings tears to my eyes because the man who is her daddy is my son.

Today's weather - It was a gorgeous day!!! The sun was hot. The temp reached 80. The sky was shocking blue. I was in sandals. Em was in shorts and a little top. It was very good.

Life changes - The circle of life is never more apparent than when one's child becomes a parent, sending us spiraling into the older generation.

The Swing is Assembled: Spring is Official!

My daring husband, with some help from me, assembled the swing on the terrace today. Spring is officially here! I love the swing. There are very few material things that delight me and make me happy. The swing is one of those things.

Last May when we bought it, I know Ron could not understand why I wanted it. I know he thought it was a silly thing to desire. He got over those feelings the very first time he sat in it. It is so comfy, and its location, on the upper terrace facing directly east to the backyard and the woods, is ideal.

We take our morning coffee and paper out there when we can. When a break comes up in the day, we sit out there, together or alone. From the swing, we’ll see the magnolia tree bloom and then the leathery petals fall. We’ll see the apple tree bloom and then the tiny apples form. We’ll watch the deer come to the apple tree and eat the hard, unripe fruit off the ground or, standing on their hind legs, from the bottom branches.

Ron naps sitting in it. I love to sit and read, or rest my head back on the frame and watch the birds and clouds. It is a place of peace and quiet for me. The movement to and fro is smooth and perfect.

Em loves it, and she’ll be pleased to see it when she comes tomorrow.

The pictures below were taken today. I want to create a pictorial account of how the backyard changes as spring moves into summer. The trees are still bare. The daffodils are green and the buds will soon open. The magnolia tree has a ton of buds on it, and they will soon open. The two garages can still be seen. Once the foliage fills in and the trees leaf out, the back garage will vanish, as though it never existed.

Today’s weather: Spring has definitely arrived. It was a perfect day today – sunny and warm. It was ideal weather for raking and poking among the plants that are starting to bloom.

Life changes – Spring is a huge change. Spring is a reincarnation of life and this reincarnation that occurs every year is why I believe that people also experience reincarnation.

Backyard on April 16, 2008 - #1

From the yard looking up at back of house. The daffodils are ready to bloom.

From back yard up to house. I think those are jonquils blooming.

The "lily pond." The four gold fish lived in it through the winter, without food or additional oxygen. They are prime examples of a species growing to the size of their environment. I think I could cook 'em for supper!

Close up of the apple tree. Soon it will be white with blossoms. The building on the left will be invisible once the trees leaf out and the foliage fills in.

Backyard on April 16, 2008 - #2

From upper terrace toward the apple tree.

From the upper terrace toward the southeast corner of yard.