Odd Ends and Another Miraculous Survivor

Stimpy, my ferret, has cancer - two kinds apparently - and the vet thinks he's a bloody miracle for doing as well as he is. Pancreatic tumours causing insulinoma (low blood sugar), and lymphoma causing his enlarged kidneys. He's going on prednisone to bump up his blood sugar, which is also an anti-inflammatory to help his kidneys. Plus, a higher blood sugar will likely help with nausea symptoms.

So, for now it's palliative care to keep him happy for as long as he keeps fighting. I asked about prognosis with regard to how much time he might have left with us, but the vet has no idea how long he's got - 4 months ago she would have said he wouldn't be alive today, but here he is, and he's actually a little bit better than he was! Won't be able to get the meds for a week, but it would have been Tuesday before they came in anyway even if we'd had the money. A few days doesn't really make a difference, thankfully.

We'll have to pick up some vitamin paste for him, so that I can get something into him right away if he starts getting head tremors again (a symptom of low blood sugar, among other things). Now that things are picking up on the financial end again, we're able to take care of a lot of things that were left by the wayside, which includes treats for the boys. Of course, now that it isn't technically just a treat, I could have justified the expense of the vitamin paste anyway.

I have to say it's nice being able to get some additional laundry done even! My daughter washed some of the big items we haven't been doing (to save on laundry money), which included a cat bed, and now I've got both my ferrets sleeping beside me in the cat bed almost constantly. Stimpy couldn't care less about cuddling with Pepper, but Pepper wants to be wherever Stimpy is. I moved all of my office-type stuff into the dining area of the apartment, and partially blocked it off with one of my bookshelves, so I can concentrate better on my work, and it seems whenever I'm in this area I've got the boys with me. It's an awesome feeling to know that they come looking for me and want to be with their 'mama'.

Next week we have to replace some of the furniture that got left behind when we moved last, since my former mother-in-law owned the house and I believe it's been foreclosed on now. I couldn't reach anyone to pick up the few items that were still there, so I have to shrug my shoulders and re-purchase a few things. My office chair was one of them, a bunch of clothes, plus the cushion for one of the Ikea chairs. Never mind all the electronics that failed right after we moved into this apartment. I got the new router the other day, so it's one item off the list.

Thankfully we've never lost everything we owned, the way my daughter's friends did in the fire last week, but we are extremely short on pretty much everything. It's a good thing I know almost nobody in this city, and have no social life whatsoever, because I don't have to worry about people coming over and having nowhere to sit. I feel bad for my daughter, though, who isn't comfortable inviting her friends over with no seating to be had. I've got one fully assembled Ikea chair, and the frame for the second one (but with no cushion). Soon she will be able to bring over her friends for PS3 games. I think she's planning to get Assassin's Creed 3 when she gets her next paycheque. She's certainly been waiting long enough for it!

Okay, I should correct myself. My social life isn't non-existent. I have an online social life, and I'm going to the fundraising party for the victims of last week's fire. That party alone will set me up for the next two years I think. Maybe I'll go crazy and go out for a few drinks or something! Or maybe I'll be the cheapskate I usually am and just drink a few beers at home for the first time in a few years. I'm actually a little shocked I remembered that I needed to pay for another month of my wireless service. I don't get, or make, a lot of calls, so my phone mostly gets used for scheduling purposes these days (it's a BlackBerry), but it's still good to have for emergencies.

People shake their heads at my anti-social nature, completely incapable of comprehending how I can live without constantly being surrounded by people. Meanwhile I don't understand how most people can stand constantly being surrounded by people. There have been very, very few people in my life hat I've been able to spend large amounts of time with. My daughter is one of them. Oddly, my ex was another, but it still was never enough for him. I always thought he should consider himself lucky I was willing to spend more than an hour a day with him, considering my personality type. That and the fact that there were always a million things I had to do back then.

I have to say, I'm feeling really bloody positive these days. Lack of pharmaceutical drugs to turn me into a zombie, regular exercise with weights, getting out of the house on the odd occasion, and buying a few much-needed items will do wonders for anyone's spirit, I guess. I still have to finish my tax forms, and for that I should be smacking myself around plenty. I also have a Wikipedia page to complete, and a new show to brainstorm names and graphics on. Wow! Just by saying that I got a wicked image in my head for graphics for during the actual show. Now I just have to see if I can do it!

I think the thing I'm most grateful for at the moment, aside from Stimpy doing so well for being so sick, is coffee. I have filters, coffee and flavoured whitener. Everything a growing writer needs to keep her from pounding her head on her laptop every time Wikipedia gives a preview error message regarding proper citing formats. I will win, Wikipedia. Oh, yes. I will win.