When Cats Attack!

3 weeks ago, I was lucky enough to travel to NYC for a 4 day business trip. I went with a co-worker, V, who worked with me in my old position, and seeing the city was a lot of fun.

I stayed that Sunday night with V, who lives really close to the airport. We began the zombie shuffle around her apartment at 4am Monday morning, and we were on the plane by 6:30am.

The only other experience I’ve ever had flying was the cruise I went on almost 3 years ago (WOW, has it really been that long?). I didn’t like it then, and I certainly didn’t like it this time either. Nothing particularly bad about service or long lines or anything like that. It was just the braking, and the dropping, and the sudden acceleration of the plane during the descent for LaGuardia that had me gripping the sides of my seat and panting like I’d been out in the sun all day. Adam could do a better job at piloting that plane, and I cross myself everytime I get in the car with him!

Anyway, V and I landed without any incidents, grabbed a taxi, and proceeded to rubberneck all the way to Manhattan, which is where our NY office and hotel was. We went straight to the office, did some boring old work stuff until about 5pm, then hoofed it 8 blocks to the hotel. WITH OUR LUGGAGE.

It was a nice enough hotel. It was the Quality Inn at Times Square, and it’s going to be changing hands soon, I believe. I say this due to the massive amount of construction going on around it, the large amounts of dust, and the one tiny 3-person elevator that only worked 15% of the time I was there. NINE FLOORS, people.

It’s a good thing the king-size bed was so awesomely comfortable. Or perhaps it was exhuastion from climbing 9 flights of stairs that made it seems so comfortable…

I’ve always wanted to know what it felt like to surround yourself with pillows and be able to stretch flat out on a bed and not be able to touch the edge with your hand anf foot. AWESOMENESS is what it feels like.

Not a good quality flat screen, but a flat screen nonetheless. And compared to stories I’ve heard, this room was huge compared to some NY hotel rooms. The coffee was awful…THAT must be what “evil” tastes like!

No tub to soak in, but a pretty cool shower with decent water pressure, once I let it run for 5 minutes.

We checked in to our hotel, rested a bit, then decided to play tourist our first night and head to Times Square.

First we had to track down some grub. We wandered, a little lost, until we came upon Vivo Pancho, which was a so-so Mexican restaurant. But we were tired, we were hungry, and we were desperate, so it worked just fine

This is where we proceeded to move on to Times Square and gawk open-mouthed for a few minutes. I’m suprised no flies flew in.

Nothing makes a country girl feel more out of place than this.

We were constantly reminded during our stay that A) New Yorkers hate Times Square and B) This used to be a drug den full of hookers and whatnots a few decades ago.

Being the marketing geek that I am, I wonder if I could find statistics on what kind of revenue these billboards generate vs. how much they cost…

Biggest Toys-R-Us EVAR. Indoor Ferris Wheel probably sends kids into vibrating excitement mode and snaps a few of them into an alternate dimension if the moon is parallel with Venus or something like that.

Just one of those touristy, “Hey, just like on TV! kind of moments.”

A lot of these billboards were changed daily. Sadly, we did not see a Broadway show while we were there.

Oooooo……..shiny!

Gigantic Hershey’s store guaranteed to yank your child back into this dimension once the lights turn on.

We called it a fairly early night and headed back to the hotel. Another lesson learned: you need to be ready to walk a LOT when you hit NYC, unless you’ve got money to burn for taxis, subways, bicycle rickshaw dudes, etc. And the nice thing about our hotel? It was just far enough down the block from Times Square that it muffled a lot of the lights and sounds coming from there.

(Click on any picture to go to it’s Flickr page.)

(Continued in next NYC entry…)

I was working on a big post about my first day in NYC on that business trip last week, and WordPress ate it all up and belched at me. I’m more than a little ticked off.

So that will have to wait for another day, when I have more patience.

Until then, the 1st day NYC pictures are up at Flickr for those of you interested.

Winry: I see you there Momma. Now come and pet me!

Night!

So, yeah, I am a day late. Was exhausted when I got home last night and all I wanted to do was watch The Bucket List (REALLY good movie by the way).

So what’s been going on with me since the last update?

The Mysterious Court Date: It was moved to June 16th due to the defendant’s inability to scratch together the money for an attorney by May 19th. She still didn’t have an attorney on that day, but fortunately, they (meaning she and Adam) struck a deal concerning Spidey, and they both confirmed these changes in front of the judge. An official order still needs to be signed by the judge, but we’re praying that everything goes smoothly. This is an excellent compromise that will definitely benefit Spidey, and saves us all the headache and stress of a long trial.

Spidey: He is attending extended school year sessions this summer. It was determined by the school system and his parents that he attend another year of Pre-K within the school system to help him mature and better prepare for kindergarten. Hopefully this will allow him to enter into a regular kindergarten classroom with minimal resource help.

Work: I moved to a new position at work, and so far, I’m enjoying the switch and new challenges that come along with it. I still have a long way to go before I feel comfortable in my role, but I’m definitely digging my job right now. As an awesome side note, I spent 4 days in New York City last week for training at our office there, and seeing the city was GREAT. More details to come in an upcoming post, complete with pictures.

Me: I am a part of a fitness challenge at work and was doing great in the three weeks leading up to NYC, losing about 11 pounds and feeling good. I even went a whole month without soda! NYC blew all that out of the water (I mean, you cannot go to a city like that and not shoot for the best food you can find), and now I’m trying to get back to the “no sodas, plus lots of fruits and veggies” kick I was on.

I’m still on Lexapro, though I’m lucky if I remember to take it 3 days out of 5. The cost of it bothers me, along with our ever-shrinking budget. The court situation being resolved has taken MAJOR anxiety off my shoulders, but I find that these days, I still start getting chest aches when I get even mildy anxious.

Not finding a lot of time for hobbies. Adam and I started doing some hiking on the weekends, which was wonderful, but now he’s back on nights/weekends swing shift House, family, and kitties are first priorities. Sleep is now my newest and greatest hobby I do miss writing and gaming, and I sneak in reading whenever I get a chance.

Adam: He is doing so much better after finally getting his wisdom teeth out. He continues to pursue his photography and has added a Flickr account for the pictures he likes but does not deem good enough for his deviantART account. I’m eager to get the funds together for prints, but we’re not exactly rolling in dough right now.

And, finally, the cats: Well, we just seem to have an odd kind of luck.

My parents got me a rug from Gatlinburg with drawings of cats and the phrase “There’s always room for one more!” The cats love rolling and laying on this rug.

A week later, on FRIDAY THE 13TH, I hear a meowing on the front porch while I’m getting ready for work.

You can guess where this is going:

HEY YA’LL!

Meet Magellan, ahem, “Maggie.” Maggie is male, roughly 12 weeks old and has a stub tail. We have no idea where he came from, and other than an upper respiratory infection that is now gone, he was deemed to be in great health by our vet. We suspect he was dumped on our front porch.

A black cat. On FRIDAY THE 13TH. With that cursed rug only gracing this house for a week.

We’re still not quite sure what we’re going to do with him. He’s currently applying as a padawan for Bagheera, and Baggy is teaching him well. He loves to snuggle and is unbelievably tiny. Everyone is full up with kittens right now, so we may look at the possibility of fostering until space opens up at a local rescue.

And for those of you who do not believe we can give away a cat, this past weekend, Adam found ANOTHER kitten under my cat. She was dirty, starving, and absolutely gorgeous, with medium gray hair with dark gray stripes. I took her to the vet Saturday (with the tentative name Izumi), and my awesome vet decided to KEEP HER for herself. So yes, I can give up cats and even kittens! I know Izumi will have the best home possible

The sudden appearance of kittens is greatly concerning me, however. I don’t know of any new neighborhood felines, but if any new kittens show up, I may have to start asking my neighbors if any of them have new cats.

So, since he’s missing most of his tail, the total only goes to 9.66…right? RIGHT!

At work, so this’ll be short and sweet. Longer post up tonight (and maybe some kitty pictures for once!)

Got this quiz from This, That, & The Other Thing (please keep Cassie and family in your thoughts and prayers, as they are struggling with lots of issues right now):

I’m a Mandarin!

You’re an intellectual, and you’ve worked hard to get where you are now. You’re a strong believer in education, and you think many of the world’s problems could be solved if people were more informed and more rational. You have no tolerance for sloppy or lazy thinking. It frustrates you when people who are ignorant or dishonest rise to positions of power. You believe that people can make a difference in the world, and you’re determined to try.

Talent: 36%
Lifer: 51%
Mandarin: 54%

Take the Talent, Lifer, or Mandarin quiz.

Being a parent can be a thankless job. Being a stepparent is even less so. But to be a stepparent battling with infertility… knowing that not only can you not fully experience your stepchild’s life events as a full “parent”, you’ll probably never get the chance to do so with your own child either?

Ripping your heart out and stomping it into the ground is probably less painful.

As much as you love your spouse, he will never truly understand, because he has his own child. If you’re hurting, you’ve just got to suck it up and don’t attempt to “poke the sleeping bear.”

No matter how much you do…no matter how many weekend bags you pack, or school notes you sign, or meetings and appointments you attend, or messes you clean up, or noses you blow, or meals you prepare, or hugs you give, nothing prepares you for the first time reality slaps you in the face and you figure out that from this day forward, there is dad, there is mom, there is grandma and grandpa, there are great-grandparents, then aunts, then uncles, then cousins, and possible household pets. But right there, rounding out the bottom of the pile, is you, the stepparent.

You KNOW you are not his/her mother and never will be a replacement. You don’t want to be a replacement. You want to be an addition, to make that child’s life happier and better.

But knowing and experiencing that you are, indeed, nothing in the eyes of the world (or the birth mother, who hates every fiber of your being) when it comes to your stepchild, are two very different things.

And GOD, does that experience HURT.

As for the humans in the house, well, it’s chaos as usual.

I’m still suffering from nightmares, insomnia, and extreme fatigue. My doc thinks it’s the Reglan (the medicine for my stomach, and yes, I’m taking the same medicine as Miya…HA), so he’s trying to phase that out since I’ve been doing better concerning the food and nasuea issues. I’m still on 10mg of Lexapro, so I’m happy he didn’t want to up the dosage on that. I think it’s helping, but I’m not sure if it’s enough. We’ll have to see if that changes in the next month or two.

I’m starting a new position at work. I’m excited to be doing something different, and next week is a whole week of training and classes. I just wish there was less drama going on in my life so I could give 100% at work.

My birthday is coming up on May 20th. Wow, I’ll be 27. Don’t really know what else I want to say about that

Adam is having major tooth problems and needs to get his wisdom teeth out like yesterday. He has been positively miserable the past few nights.  I have a hard enough time sleeping at night, but worrying about him does not help matters. He is really diving into his photography and his own personal style, and I am extremely proud of him. I can’t wait to get some money to get some of his work framed for the house. We just celebrated our one-year wedding anniversary on April 30th…unfortunately, we were unable to do too much to celebrate, but we did finally get our wedding bands (pictures to come later), so that makes me happy.

The last week and a half, Spidey has been going to special pre-K within our county school system that is supposed to work with him and his PDD-NOS. It seems to be a great change for him, and it’s been wonderful to get such great notes about him.

His doctor at Vanderbilt’s Center for Child Development is recommending a medication call Risperdal, which is used in children with PDD-NOS. It simultaneously calms the ADHD symptoms while helping with the anger/rage issues that he seems to be struggling with. Medication is a huge thing, and trust me, this is an absolute last resort. He is doing excellent, but he is still struggling with focus and his anger, both at home and at school. So we’re trying the smallest dosage possible to see if it makes a difference.

Something else, though I can’t go into too much detail on here. In a few weeks, we’re going to be in court. All I’m going to say is that it has to do with Spidey and his PDD-NOS/rage problems and what’s best for him right now, and we really need all your thoughts and prayers in this matter. This is an extremely stressful situation that’s been going on for a long time and I just hope it turns out for the best.

A ruling in our favor would be the best birthday present EVER.

The Meowers of Death club, now holding at 9 (I REALLY need to get some “About Me” pages up for these guys), is chugging right along. News on all:

*Miya is about halfway through her month of Clavamox treatment for the E-coli that showed up in her urine culture, and as long as I keep shoving the Forti-Flora down her throat (have been able to back off the Reglan for now), she continues to eat well and is as cranky as ever.

*Sidonia is continuing to worm her way into my heart. While, of course, no cat will ever replace Betsy, I feel like Sid has filled a little of that void that’s been there for almost 6 months now.

*Winry has become rather posessive of me as of late, even getting into my lap. Actually, she has become one of the suspects for “The Mystery Pee Marker.”

*Quixote has started bonding with Bagheera, aka “Spaz Cat” and “The Bulldog” and they are romping and chasing each other through the house. They’re both big bullies, but Bagheera seems to get the upper hand with Quixote, which is probably because Bagheera’s turning into a pot-bellied kitten quick, fast, and in a hurry. Bagheera’s a “Felix in training” when it comes to weight class.

*Pepper seems to be feeling a bit better from the herniated disc in her spine. I caught her up on top of the fridge yesterday, skulking around Sid’s Meow Mix (why is it cats always want the food they are not getting?). She’s following in Miya’s footsteps when it comes to hating the other cats, and will sprawl on me at night and growl at the others if they get too close.

*Felix is as fat as ever. Boy needs some kitty Weight Watchers, I fear. He still likes to play “Chase the Kitty,” but we have to take frequent breaks and he sounds like a small elephant charging through the house. He’s getting the bald patch above his eye again due to the allergies with the C/D food, so I’ve got to figure out how to get him to eat only the Z/D dry

*Tiger has become less punk and more wuss. He’s also become extremely affectionate, laying on me at times and napping with me. He’s not as big as Felix, but he’s close. Pray that he doesn’t see one of the neighborhood cats through the window though, or he takes it out on his nearest brother or sister. He also gets beat up a lot by Quixote, poor baby.

*Scamper is the cutest, softest, little fluffball ever. It serves to be, then, that she hardly ever lets me PET her. She is definitely Adam’s cat and she will ignore me any chance she gets. She seems kind of down these days, but I think it’s more due to the fact that she’s hitting that “1 year” birthday and is slowing down a little bit.

Speaking of the great mystery, I never did buy the Feliway diffusers. I didn’t find any more spots for about a week after finding the initial marked spots on the toaster, a water jug, and the cart the cat food is kept in (I started giving Sid her Meow Mix “snacks” during this time), but then I found another one yesterday morning next to the Cat-It fountain in the kitchen. It had just happened, too, but there were 4 or 5 cats milling around, so I couldn’t tag anyone in particular. The current suspects are Quixote, Scamper, Winry, and Sidonia. I don’t see Quixote get on the counter much, and that’s where the original spots were at. These are also tiny spots, and the only two cats that I know of that don’t pee in massive clumps are Winry and Sid. So I might have to break down and shell out the dough for Feliway, just to see if it helps. I’m finding very few spots, and there is hardly any odor, so I’m thankful for that.

Pacer’s kitty Gabe snuck outside and went missing for a few days. She was found, but now she’s sick and they’re not sure if it’s due to age or her eating something toxic while she was out. Pacer needs some more prayers and good thoughts to be sent Gabriel’s way.

Please keep Gabriel and family in your thoughts.

having a new sister to cuddle with during naptime.

This was in the comments:

Awwww I hope your kitty feels better. 14 is pretty old but my boyfriends mom’s cats all live to be 17-18 and my college professors cat lived to be 23, so hopefully you have a many more years to spend with her.
I have a question about the fortiflora. Are there any side effects and do you know if it can be used on a cat who has diarrhea due to a food change, or too many food changes rather? I just rescued a pregnant stray who has had diarrhea the entire month I’ve had her, with the exception of maybe a week. The vet put her on Science Diet but that barely worked. I just started incorporating the new food into her diet by mixing it but she ate all around the science diet and only ate the purina. She lost weight because she hated the taste of the science diet. Now she has pretty bad diarrhea again. The fecal test was negative and I just want the diarrhea to stop.
Please get back to me!

I emailed a response, but I thought it might be useful for anyone else who is considering using it:

The Forti-Flora doesn’t have any side effects as far as I know. It’s basically a supplement that is supposed to aid in digestion (by providing more bacteria to break down food) and build up the immune system. My vet actually gave it to me to a) help with the diarrhea from the antibiotic Miya was taking and b) to replenish the stomach bacteria because the antibiotic unfortunately takes that out along with the infection.
 
She’s really difficult about taking it though. Normally, you can mix it with wet food or even 2-3 tablespoons of water (sort of like a broth) and they’ll lap it right up, but she’s picky, so I have to mix it in with the water and give it to her bit by bit through a big syringe.
 
I would recommend talking to your vet about it, though, just to be sure. It seems to be helping Miya with the diarrhea a little and her stomach doesn’t seem to be as upset.

The commenter and everyone else can find more information about it here. Once again, I caution that it really only needs to be used as recommended by your vet.