Well, it is the end of another year. Every day just seems to blend into another one and the way I know it’s the end of the year is because there is an onslaught of adverts on TV for fitness equipment and weight loss solutions! I always consider attempting to exercise more and eat less, but in order to not cause myself any angst or depression when I fail (and I WILL fail), I prefer to adopt a healthy living lifestyle – at least I will try…
I’m not a big fan of New Year’s Resolutions. I think it’s a plot generated by a very clever marketeer to get people to do or buy things that they really have no interest in. There’s a moment of brief delight when you’re able to stick to your resolution but a more lasting hatred and depression when you cheat or fail to keep it. I don’t have time for that, and why would I add to life’s already difficult issues?
Even though January 1st is the start of a new year, it’s really just the day after December 31st, a Sunday this year! Just another day full of cleaning, clearing up, cooking and routine. On the upside, for me at least, it’s winter, my absolute favourite time of the year. The craziness of Christmas is over, time to reflect and reset my thoughts and time to put aside all the sadness and chaos of 2022. I’m ready!
So, how was 2022?
In January we had quite a big vet bill because we had all 3 cats at the vet for various reasons. Weight check for Bear, dental and calcium checks for Aggie and checks on Sylvester for asthma and kidney disease (Sylvester is stage 3). I had a Covid booster, and we both got back into our routines of attending meetings, some by Zoom and some in-person.
February was Greg’s birthday – the big 60! He handled it very well and is taking 60 in his stride. In fact, I don’t think he’s ever been in such great shape and health! He is obsessed with the Apple Watch which encourages him to exercise and be healthier. He’s doing a great job. I threw him a little party and in order to keep us from any large groups, I’d asked his friends and family to send me an audio message that I could play for him. He was very touched and surprised. It was also Bear’s 14th birthday. He had a little party with us but was too scared to blow out his candle! I’ve been dealing with trying to close my dad’s estate and not getting anywhere. I finally found a great attorney in South Africa and had my first phone call with her while she totally put my mind at ease and promised to do WAY better than the bank I was dealing with. I also celebrated 18 years of being in the USA.
March was “all systems go” with dad’s estate. Our main aim was to get me appointed as executor, fire the bank and get a gazzilion documents signed and notarized and sent back to South Africa. It takes time, but I got it done. It took her a day to have me appointed as executor – considering that the bank had taken over 2 years and done nothing, this was nothing short of a miracle! I also did a lot of cat sitting for a couple of friends. It was potato planting time and I got my spuds in, a little later than normal, but they were in. Then the rain started and they kinda drowned, but sprouted so I left them alone.
April – the cat sitting continued! I had to redo all the paperwork to sell dad’s house and managed to get everything notarized for that and resubmited everything. Greg and I signed up to take part in a local “walk to Jerusalem” during Lent. Together with a bunch of people we aimed to jointly walk the equivalent of the distance to Jerusalem. It was a great incentive to get moving and we’re hoping to do it again in 2023. Sylvester ended up at the emergency vet with gastritis after stealing and partially eating a pork loin that was defrosting in the sink! I also got my hair permed! Yay, curls!! Sylvester celebrated his 13th birthday and had a little party with Bear and Aggie. We were enjoying wonderful Spring weather and the temptation to plant seeds, flowers and plants was nearly overwhelming, but I know better and I’m glad I waited.
May saw some more cat sitting for friends. It was Bear’s turn at the emergency vet due to him limping badly. He has arthritis pretty badly, but I needed to check it out as he was in pain. We had the first of our neighbourhood association’s concerts in the park – Lindenwood Live. We had perfect weather for it and a fantastic turnout. I planted most of my garden.
June: guess what? More cat sitting! Bear and Sylvester had a vet checkup and all was good. We had the house treated for termites. It was interesting to watch, because they had to drill a hole every 18” all the way around the house – difficult for them because we have concrete all the way around the house. We should be good for 10-15 years! Our area is prone to termites and I’d spotted them so we wanted to take care of it right away. We had another concert in the park and again it was well attended with perfect weather.
July, we drove up to Phelps to be with Greg’s mom who celebrated her 82nd birthday and for the 4th of July. Summer is pretty in Phelps, and she got some of her garden growing. Covid is still on our minds, so we didn’t go anywhere or mix with groups. Aggie had a calcium check up and she’s doing pretty well and has no need for any meds at this stage. With LinFest coming up and some issues with people dropping out of the committee, I got involved again. I have some contacts and experience so was able to help quite a bit. LinFest is all consuming for me, so I got stuck in again. We were able to dig up all the potatoes. Didn’t get a great crop this year – not sure why but I’m sure it was weather related. We’ll try again this year!
August was a difficult month with a couple of friends passing away and one f my cousins. All 3 cats were at the vet for various bloodwork and checkups – new medications issued and rechecks done – this will be ongoing as they are getting older (13, 14 and 15). More meetings, funerals and Aggie had her 15th birthday party! Greg and I celebrated 19 years of marriage. Where did that time go…?
September was my birthday month. Stuff always seems to happen around my birthday and this year was no different. We went to our first in-person meeting and in a moment of stupidity, did not wear a mask. BAM! Covid! It’s inevitable that we all get it at some stage. We were fully vaccinated and boosted, wore masks at every opportunity…except ONE time at a neighbourhood association meeting! We knew better but took the risk and I’m still mad at myself for not masking. It won’t happen again! I got it first, and Greg and I immediately distanced ourselves. He stayed off work and rescheduled all his clients and then 5 or 6 days later, as I was recovering, he tested positive so more client cancellations while he recovered. Just like everyone says, Covid is exhausting, and it took us a few weeks to get back to where we were. In between that, Sylvester needed to go to the vet and a friend very kindly stepped in for me and took care of that. We were very careful with the handover of the cat carrier but she didn’t get sick so we must have done it right! The timing of us getting Covid couldn’t have been worse as we were in the last week or 2 of LinFest planning. I had so much to do but couldn’t go anywhere until I was negative and then it was all systems go! I was exhausted, but it was done.
October was the time for LinFest, our neighbourhood association’s Fall Festival. I’m one of the co-chairs (again) and the day started off very early. Vendors, artisans, food and beverage vendors, musicians, kids’ entertainment all arrived mostly on time. We had a dog parade with doggies dressed up, prizes, raffles and so much fun. We had the perfect weather for a change, and it was a great success. Kudos to my co-chair, Emily, who is a fundraising monster! I was so relieved to get home and get some rest. The week after LinFest was a medical week for us. Sylvester’s bloodwork check, my 2nd shingles shot (OMG!) and my first colonoscopy prep and procedure – all went well. We both got our flu shots and Greg got his first shingles shot. Our arms are full! I dug up most of my veggies, although the weather was so good that some of them were still producing fruit. I packed away my fairy/gnome garden too – sleep tight!
November, we packed up the car and headed back up to Phelps to be with Greg’s mom for Thanksgiving. We lucked out with the weather and had a totally uneventful drive there and back. It was the first time since 2019 that we saw most of the family and it was great to reconnect and marvel at how much the nephews had changed. We have a new family baby on the way too! Thanksgiving generally consists of food, food and some more food, and this year was no different! On our last night we had a bit of excitement with the CO2 detector blasting at us, and we discovered that the gas fireplace threw a wobbly and tried to kill us! We called 911 and they sent not one, but two fire trucks to the house and used a detector to find out if there was any issue. There was, so the gas to the fireplace was switched off and we had to air out the house for half an hour. It was late and we needed to be up early to head home so we were pretty tired. New detectors were ordered (thank you Lisa – Greg’s sister) and the house is safe again. The day after we got home was “decorating day” at the Roggemanor! I, unashamedly, have a lot of Christmas decorations, and I’m not afraid to use them. It takes me the whole day and Christmas officially threw up all over the basement. I only decorate in the basement because I’m able to close the door at night and the cats can’t get down there and destroy it all. More cat sitting for a couple of friends. More vet visits!
December! Christmas! My favourite holiday. I like to recreate the Christmas story in my head and while I know that Jesus being born in a manger with the 3 wise men present and everything going according to plan is not a reality. The reality in MY mind is that there might have been a storm, the stable smelled and was filthy, Mary was in chronic pain, Joseph was freaked out by all the fluids, the wise men were late, the animals were in the way, the roof leaked etc. My experience tells me that man plans, and God laughs! Don’t get me wrong, I am a believer and I totally believe in what the Bible tells us about Jesus’ birth, but I’m sure there’s a lot not mentioned. I’d love to write a modern-day rendition of what I think might happen, but I’d be worried it would come across as sacrilegious, which is not my intention at all. We were cautiously optimistic this year and had a couple of very small gatherings at the Cheesehead Saloon at the Roggemanor. We invited a few of our neighbour’s over to help us celebrate and had a few lovely evenings catching up with them and wishing them well. Christmas Eve, we had a couple of friends over for dinner and chilled with them. Christmas Day was a lovely quiet day with just the 2 of us. We opened presents, let the cats play with the wrapping paper and just chilled out at home all day. I cooked and we stuffed ourselves and then dutifully nodded off in front the TV “watching” Christmas movies – like one does! Boxing Day is not celebrated here but since Christmas Day was on a Sunday, Monday was observed as a holiday. We ate leftovers and again, nodded off in front of the TV…! New Year’s Eve was no different. We got some snacky food together and got comfy in the basement by the fireplace and watched a couple of movies. We managed to stay awake (mostly) until midnight, guzzled down a quick glass of champers and went to bed.
And there you have it!
Looking back, it was an interesting year, full of stresses, disappointments, and frustrations, but also a time of joy, fun, laughter and relief. My dad’s house was finally sold and out of his name and my responsibility. The estate is not yet closed, but the house is done – it took over 3 years! This was a huge relief. It is incredibly difficult to try and deal with a late estate from a million miles away. Add African time to that and it’s near impossible! I’m so thankful to my attorney, realtor and most of all, my friend Clancy who is my power of attorney and gave me perfect advice and ran around all over the place to take care of business for me. I’m incredibly blessed to have friends like her and wish that on everyone. “Friendship is a responsibility, not an opportunity”.
Greg had a great year again, hitting some new records, despite having Covid and not working for about a month (quarantine, vacations etc.). He’s pretty much at capacity and still loving what he does. If only his wife could find an open slot for a booking…
Whatever you have planned in 2023 we wish you strength to accomplish it, joy while doing it and prosperity as you reap the rewards from having done it! Be blessed!
Tag: Bear
Cat Sitting
In the last month I’ve had the privilege of looking after a couple of friends’ cats. One cat I know pretty well, and he is familiar and comfortable with me. The other cat I just met for the first time, and she is very timid and skittish and not happy that I’m there instead of her family.
I’m no expert, but I do love cats. We have 3 cats of our own – each very different to the other. Aggie (13) is our diva, the tiny princess with the loudest voice and opinions to match. She hates her brothers! Sylvester (11) is the social charmer, the “southern gentleman”. Everyone loves Sylvester and he loves everyone. Bear (12) is scared of every noise and every sudden movement. He’s the most lovable of the 3 and a big snuggler and by far the loudest purrer!
Dealing with cats is exactly like dealing with children. You love them, entertain them, feed them and give them a loving and warm environment to live in. They will reward you with the occasional lap-sitting experience, fling litter all over the place, shed all over your furniture, throw up immediately after you’ve fed them (but making sure it’s in a camouflaged area so that you step in it first) and destroying your furniture with their claws. Despite all that, they give you just enough love, purrs and entertainment that make it all worthwhile.
We have provided our cats with giant cat trees, houses, windowsill shelves, a bajillion toys, catnip everything, regular vet visits to maintain their health and wellbeing, lots of love and attention, and an array of cozy blankets and throws in every room in the house. They are spoiled rotten! I can’t resist items with cat pictures on them. I believe I would turn into a cat if I wished really hard.
So back to the guest cats: The first one, who I will call “Dollar” is a feisty, all boy cat. He loves to play and hunt and chat. He loves to be brushed, loves his perches and watching birds and squirrels in the trees. I show up to feed him and he greets me with a small “mew” and then weaves himself in and around my legs while I get his bowls ready for food. He likes treats. A lot! He also likes catnip, but it doesn’t rule his day. I have a lot of fun with Dollar, and I know he likes my company because he will jump up on my lap and “make biscuits” on me while purring and we’ll have a little chat about life in general.
The second cat, who I will call “Flower” is very timid and skittish and she made me work hard for her approval. Flower comes from a cat-happy family who dote on her. She likes to hide in quiet, cool and dark spaces. I developed a ton of patience trying to coax her out from under a bed or out of a closet. She is food-motivated and treats and catnip won. She likes to do things in her own time and makes me hunt for her when I arrive at her house. I’m pretty sure she watches where I go and then hides exactly where I’ve already checked. She won’t come out to eat breakfast or dinner while I’m there, but the food is always gone when I go back. I started “marinating” a couple of toys in a catnip bag and used them to buy her affection. It worked! We slowly progressed to her playing with the catnip toy under a bed while I watch, to me laying out a path of treats out from under the bed and finishing with a treat on my knee. She works her way through the treat path and ends with the one on my knee. I get a quick head butt from her, and I’m allowed a quick stroke before a quick hiss and a scramble back under the bed.
Just like us humans, Flower is a morning cat. She doesn’t have a lot of time for me in the evening’s but is ready for me to give her some attention in the morning. I always let her know when I’m leaving and sometimes try to hide for a few minutes to see if she will come out and see if I’ve really left. By the end of the time I was looking after her, she would meet me at the front door when I arrived and flop over onto her back for me to stroke her. I didn’t get a purr out of her, but I got lots of friendly meows. She finally let me brush her and give her full body strokes. She was very happy to have me hang out with her and keep her company. I actually missed spending time with her once her mom and dad returned. I may have to go back for a play date!
My last day with Flower was spent with me oozing myself into a tiny closet where she’d hidden herself because there was a storm brewing, and she was scared of thunder. I feel like I didn’t quite finish off our time together.
If you’re a cat person, you will totally relate to this blog. If not, just insert “dog” where you see “cat” and maybe it will make more sense to you. Either way, we love our pets dearly and they truly are part of our family.
Cats are smart!
Cats are really smart. Whether you like them or don’t like them, they are still smart. Ok, let me expand on “smart” in this context. We have 3 cats: Aggie (12), Sylvester (11) and Bear (12). We’ve had Aggie and Sylvester since they were kittens, and we inherited Bear from a dear neighbour who passed away several years ago.
When we first got Aggie we went to see her at our vet, held her, bonded with her and she purred and nuzzled up to us and we couldn’t wait to get her home. The vet told us that she’d been returned to them twice as she didn’t get on with their other pets (a sign we should have paid attention to!). She was roughly 12 weeks old! She is a grey and white tabby. We got her home, opened the carrier and she shot out of it like a bullet from a gun. She took off at top speed around our apartment, leaping over couches, under couches, over the bed, in and out of every room. I would have loved to have had a radar gun to measure her speed! We were gobsmacked. Where was that loving, purry, nuzzly kitten we’d just held? We hadn’t even sat down yet, we just stood by the door and took it all in. We grew to love her though – a lot. We named her Agatha CATrina because her approximate birthday falls on the day Hurricane Katrina hit – how apt!! We lovingly refer to her as Hurricane Aggie. Aggie has been through everything with us and yes, she is spoiled rotten! We moved into our house in 2009 and after a settling in period, we decided that she needed a friend. It had taken her 2 ½ years to start to calm down!
When we were ready for a 2nd cat I went back to my vet and told them we were ready! The next day I got a call “we have some kittens that you might want to look at” so I hot footed it over there to check them out. The vet is located next door to my office. Sylvester was estimated to be about 7 weeks old. It was the first time I’d heard the term “tuxedo cat” and he was true to form. Big green eyes, long white whiskers, big ears and a tiny black and white body. I fell in love immediately, went home to get Greg, took him to the vet and once again, as soon as he held him, there were purrs and snuggles and Greg was sold. He came home the next day. He was a boundy, playful, social, cute-as-a-button darling. Aggie immediately hated him! We kept him secluded in the spare room for a few days while Aggie hissed and growled outside the door. Sylvester didn’t care. He’s everyone’s best friend. On “meet up day” we opened the door and Sylvester bounded out and leaped down the hallway to investigate his new home while Aggie wailed, hissed, scratched and yelled at him and us. She refused to be near us, went off her food in protest and was determined to make us pay for bringing in another cat. We were mortified but determined to make this work. After several months (ok at least a year) Aggie finally realized that Sylvester was no threat to her great Alpha-ness. He has no desire to be a boss. They are not necessarily friends, but she will tolerate him and doesn’t get all huffy if he’s around her.
Fast forward to 2014: I used to take care of a dear neighbour’s cat when she went on vacation and ultimately when she got sick and was in hospital. After her passing her cat was still alone in her house while her family was sorting it out and I would still go there twice a day and feed him and play with him. After a while of doing this we discussed with the family that we’d take Mr. Bear (as she called him) and keep him with us until we could find a good home for him. Well, it’s 6 years later, so I guess he found a good home! Bear is awesome! At first we had him in the spare room separate from Aggie and Sylvester. Aggie went into defensive mode and hated him immediately. Back to hissing, growling and yelling outside the door (but this time we were on to her antics). Sylvester was so excited. He definitely sensed Bear’s pain and grief and camped outside the door quietly. After several days we opened the door and Sylvester shot inside. He jumped up on the bed and he and Bear started at each other, nose-to-nose for about 10 minutes not moving, and then they both jumped down and disappeared under the bed where they sussed each other out for about half an hour. After that, they came out from under the bed and have been best buddies ever since. At first Bear was definitely grieving the loss of his previous owner and his move from his old house, so Sylvester snuggled up next to him to keep him company. Bear never really learnt to play but now that he is with us, he’s developed an ardent love of the laser dot. He is the most lovable cat ever. He loves to snuggle and just be with you. He has the biggest, deepest purr ever. He’s not big on exercise, but he loves food in any shape or form, so he’s a big cat. Aggie was not at all happy about the addition of another cat. She and Bear are constantly vying for Alpha-ship. Aggie thinks she’s the alpha but in reality, Bear is the alpha. She has never accepted him and still growls and hisses at him. They have agreed to disagree, and we have a fairly calmish family.
Cats are smart! I sometimes feel like I have a school yard of kids. They all want attention, then they all don’t. They all want feeding, but they want what the other one has even though it’s exactly the same. They all want to play with whatever the other one is currently playing with, until they get the toy then they don’t want it anymore! People ask us why we don’t have or want kids. Who needs them when you have cats! They have regular birthday parties and we sing happy birthday to them. There’s cake and candles and presents. They celebrate Christmas with us – yes they get presents under the tree. We have conversations with them and they answer us. They do need jobs though!
Yes, cats are smart, but not so smart as to make us think they need jobs!