I went into some detail early in 2024 regarding Irene’s cancer diagnosis and how the treatment had progressed to that point. Back then we were still figuring out our ‘new normal’, and although the outcomes were positive it was still a very uncomfortable situation.
Not much has changed medically since January but I thought it was appropriate to give an update on how our life with cancer is progressing.
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I liked this ‘thankfulness’ post over on Vixiss’ Vicissitudes blog today, and wanted to do my own. So here goes
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Irene and I have moved to Castlegar from our home in Surrey. And as of today, our old home is ‘sold’ (although the possession date is later in June).
Above is a picture of our new place, and the rest of the body of the post explains a bit more about our relocation process.
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It is the end times… the robot apocalypse has begun. My home has been invaded by a horrifying machine that (shudder)… cleans my floors!
I lost a dear friend on Wednesday, November 5. We lived under the same roof for over two decades, and the fact that he wore fur and occasionally killed and ate rodents in his youth did nothing to detract from our bond. I’m talking about my cat, Tuxedo.
The Spring
I first met Tuxedo when he was six months old, and I was thirty. Irene and I had been living on our acreage East of Sherwood Park for a couple of years, and decided it was time to add to our furry family. We went to the SPCA in Edmonton, and Irene had already picked out a funny-looking, emaciated female cat who had recently given birth (Sasha). I was still wandering about, and walked past several cat kennels when I felt a tug on my arm. A small grey and white paw was reaching out between the bars and had caught my shirt: I looked in this child-cat’s eyes and couldn’t walk away. I unlocked the bars of the cage and took him in my arms, and that was that. Tuxedo, née Sylvester, was mine, and I was his.
There is some debate in our household regarding whether we adopted Tuxedo in the October of 1994, or April of 1995. Either way, he was born in 1994, and to say we met 20 years ago is sufficiently accurate at this point.
Today we started on the first dose of immunotherapy injections for our cat, Elcee. She’s had problems with strange acne-like skin eruptions on her face and chin for years, but the last three years (Elcee is ten years old) they’ve gotten progressively worse.
During her last episode, the rash got into her ears and around her neck and shoulders: she licked her hair completely off in those areas, and ended up with secondary (bacterial) skin and ear infections. It took weeks of treatment to get that cleared up, and the vet advised that we consider allergy tests. As it turns out, Elcee is allergic to a lot of things…
We adopted two Abyssinian kittens in July of 2011. Samira is the ruddy (reddish-brown) girl, and Parushta is her blue (grey coloured) half-brother:
I’ve been really enjoying my motorcycle riding this year. So much so that I started planning for my “ultimate” touring motorcycle. I was weighing different features, reading dozens of forums and reviews, and lamenting the several years which I’d likely have to wait in order to save up the cash. As you might imagine, this non-stop motorcycle this, Harley that, whining and complaining started to get on the nerves of my lovely wife Irene. Finally, after hearing one too many “<sigh>I wish I didn’t have to wait another two years” noises from me, she snapped:
“Kelly, if I can have two kittens, you can go buy your Harley on terms”
Obviously, my lovely wife doesn’t snap in a mean way. And that’s how we ended up adding two more kittens to our already cat-crowded home… and it marks the beginning of a stressful period of uncertainty that is still not over.
I have added a cat banner which will appear periodically at the top of this page, along with my various tree and flower images. Here is a teeny tiny version…
I don't particularly recommend the practice described by the following video, but it is rather funny....