My house my rules, a key component of my Dad Hammer (aka War Gavel of Parental Authority)
NEW and IMPROVED, A continuation of my oft lamented interactions with Vaderling, Now With More Smile
Sometimes I think mom and I raised Vaderling to be a little too questioning of Authority, mainly when it comes to our own authority. However, today, as frustrating as it was to descend into yet another exercise of “test Dad’s cardiovascular health”, he did make me smile (secretly) and earned praise for a job well done arguing his position.
No, he didn’t get his way. No, his arguements weren’t particularly good. The fact that he had reasoned arguements and stated them instead of going directly to “I don’t wanna and I ain’t gonna” makes me happy and gives me hope and fills me with fear. All of that because he now has the idea that this could be a winning strategy and he will work on improving.
Looking forward to your post, years from now, announcing Vaderling’s completion of the bar.
Up for my mid-sleep bio break. Monkey the adolescent cat has the zoomies & is busy annoying Nikki, who just wants to be left to her grumpy old self.
Oh, cats. My Tigger now hates me.
He’s been losing weight, and scratching at his ears a lot, so I took him to the vet. It turned out that he needs a few blood tests to explain the weight loss (from 20 lbs to maybe 14 lbs), and I can book an appointment for those, which I will this week. More immediately, he needs ear drops to get rid of some fungus that has taken root in his ears, and the vet gave me some ear drops. The idea is to drip a few drops in his ears, then scrunch them. Not really any different from when he likes a head rub.
Only, Tigger hates it. I don’t blame him. But he won’t have anything to do with me now if he can help it. I gave him his drops tonight, and a scrunch, followed by his favorite kitty treats. He turned his nose up at the treats (unprecedented), and went and hid. He wants nothing to do with me.
The treats didn’t go to waste. They were eagerly consumed by Hope, who still likes me.
Ear drops in a cat, ugh!
They shake their heads HARD after you medicate their ears, and then you find out the medication is oil-based, from the slings of greasy dribbles up the walls!
~VOW
Yeah, medicating cats is no fun at the best of times. One of my past felines had ear mites. He was a biter when it came to ear drops.
@purplehorseshoe, maybe I can get him into politics😈
I had to give kitty ear drops. My method was to sit/crouch over the cat (kitty is between your calves/thighs and of course you’re supporting your own weight on your heels) and move fast with the ear drips & squinchies, then corral kitty with your elbows and torso like you’re throwing yourself on a grenade.
Gives the drops a few precious seconds to drip down to where they need to go, before all furry hell breaks loose.
And don’t wear any clothes you want to leave the house in ever again while you’re doing it.
The bathroom with its washable walls is a room of choice. The ear drops will fly everywhere, four times the volume will come out and go great distances than went in.
Boo
Like any self-respecting cat, Allie responded to a brand-new litter pan by jumping right in as soon as it was on the floor and filled.
Today was otherwise quite irritating (see my MMP posts for today), except for an actual sit-down dining room meal at the sandwich place near irk. A slight bit of civilization has inched closer to what used to be normal, and I approve.
Ahhh, an insomniac thread. This I can get behind.
Spoons, good luck with your kitty. I remember those days with my dear beloved late cat, Merlin. They’re not the most cooperative creatures and for some reason they don’t listen when you explain it’s for their own good.
Today we had some nanny drama which messed up my plans with Sr Weasel… We were supposed to have our first “date” since Spice Kit was born seven months ago. It was kind of lame for a date due to COVID… He was going to drive me to my doctor’s appointment and then we’d have curbside pickup at some restaurant… But the day did not go according to plan and goodness knows when we’ll get another chance.
So I drove myself to the appointment and got some potentially worrying news. I have medical anxiety (among other anxieties) so it took a lot just to get me in the door. I survived the appointment but I have a follow up and possible biopsy in two weeks. So… more anxiety. I am way more anxious about the biopsy itself than anything being cancerous. Brains are weird.
And I drank too much caffeine so now I’m wide awake thinking about everything! All of the things!
Thanks, everyone, for the good wishes for Tigger. I’ll pass them along to Tig.
Yes, that’s what I’ve been doing. I feel like a pro wrestler doing that, but it works. Tigger has his claws, so my hands and arms have a few scratches.
It’s about time for him to get his evening ear drops, but he is happily napping in one of his favourite places (the top of the cat tree), and I haven’t the heart to wake him for such an awful procedure. He’ll get up at some point, and I’ll get him while he’s still a little dozy.
I sneak up on Allie while she’s napping for such tasks as claw clipping. Can usually get one paw done before she wakes up enough to be difficult about it.
Okay, Tigger just got his ear drops. Lots of head shaking.
I managed to avoid any scratches (hey, I know pro wrestling holds), but he did give me a look that said, “You’re dead, human.” I’m wondering if I should sleep tonight.
It took me a lot longer than it should have to realize that sneaking up on sleeping kitties was not the optimal way to give them their flea medication. Now I just grab them, plop them down and sit on them. Done in seconds.
Wow, I had almost forgotten about this thread.
@Spice_Weasel … I hadn’t realized you were back! Now I’ve got the warm fuzziness, and goddamit I think there’s something in my eye. Damn dusty house…
(S_W helped me through a particularly bad depressive episode some years back, and I will forever be grateful).
I have, amazingly, been sleeping somewhat better this week. I’m not “back to normal” but at least I’m not sitting in the living room at 0400 watching The Simpsons on Disney+ and posting obscure history trivia to Facebook.
A former student of mine who was expelled from my school has been in contact. I actually started a thread about it some months ago, but I’m still getting used to this new board format and have no idea how to find it. She helped me realize that I’m not just a two-bit bureaucrat in a seemingly behemoth government machine but someone who has a chance to actually reach someone and be a positive influence for a kid that has never had that. And then Covid hit, we shut down, and I’ve been doing my damndest to keep our remaining students engaged in distance learning. What I loved doing for a long time now feels like busy-work and make-work. While I’m incredibly grateful I still have a job, online learning is doing my students no favors.
Anyway, this former student reached out to me and I learned she’s doing well, she’s safe and not in any danger (which I was really worried she was) and joy upon joys, wants to actually continue to pursue her GED. I hope she not only follows through but keeps on reaching: she wants to be a teacher but has been told her entire life she’s too stupid to go to college, hopefully she proves the haters wrong. She’s smart and she has spunk and the fact that she reached out to me tells me she’s still considering her education seriously. Perhaps that’s one reason I’m sleeping marginally better.
I dont have anything to add about cats I’m afraid. We don’t have any cats – rental agreement forbids them – but my parents have 12 (13?)* and apparently my lap is the “go-to” seat when I visit. When I visit I usually have 3 cats trying to find space on my lap while meowing for scritches, to hell with what I want. Assholes. My parents are looking for a new puppy to add to their menagerie, so soon there will be yet another 4-legged overlord demanding my attention whenever I visit.
*My folks live next to a public park some miles out in the country and a lot of people drop off unwanted cats at the park. Jerks. The cats, naturally, wander to the closest house they can find. So every few months or so my parents will wake up in the morning to a new, strange kitten or 3 meowing at the door. My folks take the newly acquired kittens to the vet for spay / neuter and shots, then bring them home and advertise them on Facebook or Craigslist. Usually they find good homes… sometimes they don’t. The number of dickweeds dropping kittens off at the public park has gradually outpaced the people looking for cats, so…
yeah. 12 I think is the current number. But they’re all outdoor cats, they have the run of 12 acres, they’re fed twice a day, they’re fixed, healthy, and of course very tame – the weekly fight over who gets to sit in my lap is testament to that.
Bingo.
Well wishes for your student Lancia.
Yerg! 0730 GMT as I type.
I got nothing new to add about cats at the mo’.
Up because I’m worrying about how things are going to go in the current legal bout with Vaderling’s mom. That’s my frosting on the shit cake of things to worry about for this year, the one that pushes me over the edge into sleeplessness.
On the plus side, my absentee ballot came yesterday. Went over to my folks house to mull over the various candidates and issues and do a little research on some of the ones that have been rather over shadowed by everything else. Filled it out and sealed it up in the various envelopes according to the instructions that came with it and dropped it off at the elections office collection box. Not trusting the mail with this one.
Yanno, I wish my state would switch to mail in voting. As one of the people tasked with distributing and collecting the polling equipment every single election our county has, it would be a ton easier and cheaper, even with postage paid return envelopes for the ballots. When covid first hit, we actually did have an election that the state said no in person voting for. Voting “turn out” for that one election was record breaking, as I remember it. (Probably just wishful thinking distorting the memories though).
Oh well, someday, perhaps many many moons from now, Vaderling, or one of the other begotten sons of mine will be telling their grandchildren “whelp, yep, yer Great Grandaddy Dork useta have to drive all over the damn county droppin off votin boothes and ballot boxes and all kinda none such. An’ two day later do alla that runnin ‘round agin to collec’ it back up an’ take it back to the 'lections office. Why it took damn near the whole comp’ny he worked at to do the job. Yassir, things is shore a site better today what with just fillin the thing out and droppin it in the mail”
Anyway, I think I’m gonna go have another try at sleeping. Probably just torture myself with the pillow most likely, maybe I’ll get lucky and sleep anyway
Looks like I can sleep. Somehow, Tigger got it through his walnut-sized brain that this stuff actually helps him feel more comfortable. He’s scratching his ears a lot less, and he actually got up on the arm of my easy chair (from where I’m posting this) to purr.
I mentioned pro wrestling. Accordingly, my thanks go to “Bulldog” McBain, and “Cougar Meat” Kyle Sebastian for teaching me the necessary pro wrestling holds. Thanks, guys, and if you ever meet Tigger in the ring–you’ll need to know what you taught me.
Another night. Tigger is asleep, and he will get his ear drops when he awakens. Hope is on the arm of my chair purring.
Anybody heard from Beck lately?
I haven’t talked to her directly for a while, but I’ve seen her posting around the boards. She’s been active, just maybe not as active as usual. I couldn’t tell you what or where her most recent post was that I saw.
I do remember seeing something in a pit thread, which always surprises me to see her posting there. Ummm, I think one of the IMHO threads maybe?
Hope on the arm of my chair purring, I like that, it’s poetic and charming and sweet.
@beckdawrek pop in please and say hi?