Goodbye, Tuppence, Sweet Kitty

1. Tuppence:  On Monday we had to take our sweet kitty Tuppence to the vet for her final visit. She had lost half her body weight over the past few months and had developed a large tumor on her forehead that pushed against her eye and also affected her sinuses, apparently. I will miss her constant presence, especially at night when she would, every night, lie snuggled up to me, pushing her body against my neck for security or warmth (or just testing to see if I could still breathe.)

Tuppence will be buried in our pet cemetery next to the other pets who have gone before her: Tommy, Lionel, Bridger, and Misty. We have to wait until the ground is no longer frozen. Currently, the ground is frozen about four feet down. So until it thaws, she is waiting, wrapped in a fuzzy blanket, inside a nice tool box, and under some insulation so the sun doesn't shine too fiercely upon her casket. That would not be good.

Fun times with the grandkids

She put up with a lot, did that cat.

Pictured here with her best buddy, Lionel,
who preceded her in 2012.

One of the stones in our pet cemetery

Grandpuppy Jazzie, found visiting Bridger's grave 2013
(I kid you not.)

2: Tuesday: It was a very odd day yesterday. I accomplished absolutely nothing, except for a couple batches of laundry and enjoying the kittens.

Why am I putting this in a blog post?
Because I've mentioned Tuppence many times on my blog

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3. Smokey has a treat in store for her on Thursday morning: I'm taking her to the vet to be spayed. Because she is so small, I assumed that I had lots of time before taking her in for that surgery. The vet told me otherwise. Evidently, I'm pushing my luck with a kitten six months old not developing some bad habits related to sexual maturity. After feeling a slight sense of panic, I decided to get her spayed as soon as possible, which is Thursday, tomorrow morning. So I will be dropping her off at the vet clinic about 7 AM. Poor little Smokey. Then on Friday morning I'll pick her up and bring her home, where she and huge, rambunctious Tommy will be separated until Smokey is feeling better and healed from her surgery. I'm prepared for several days of loud protest from Tommy.

Poor little me

4. I've been following the weather map and I can't tell you how sorry I am, New Englanders, that you are once again getting hammered with a snowstorm. Will spring ever come??

 Our May, 2013 snowstorm

How glad I am that we don't currently have snow on the ground.

We got 18" of snow in that storm. It was so depressing!

5. Some of our family were here over the weekend to celebrate our daughter's birthday. Here is a picture of her when she was a tiny little girl, before I learned about child labor laws. ;-)

Her Dickens-era Life

This is the most recent photo I have of my daughter and me

It was taken nearly a year ago!

P.S. Joyce is taking a little break from the Hodgepodge this week, but will be back next week. Consider joining us!

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and Eileen's Saturday's Critters

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Hodgepodging Mallo Cups and Good Fences

Audrey, getting rest while she can.

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1. Besides your very own house, describe a place where you feel most 'at home'?

Besides our house, I guess I'd have to say I feel most 'at home' here on our farm (creek, woods, hills)  - or Harper's Ferry, WV. or Yorkshire, England or Duluth, MN. It's got to be the hills, trees, and water that attract me to all of these places. Harper's Ferry is at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers; Yorkshire has many rivers; Duluth, MN is at the edge of Lake Superior. Which reminds me, did you know that Duluth is an international port city 1100 miles inland (as the crow flies), ships having to travel 2,340 miles from the Atlantic Ocean to get there?? Nor did I. Until last night. That's farther than Minneapolis to Los Angeles or London to Gibraltar - but not as far as Montreal to Red Deer, Alberta, in case you were wondering.

 Potomac River at Harper's Ferry

 River Swale behind Richmond Castle, Yorkshire

Lake Superior at Duluth

Lift bridge in the distance

2. When did you last 'hit a home run' with something? Explain. 

I think that would have been our family's Early Thanksgiving. Unless they were all lying, I think almost everyone had a good time. In case you missed that long, drawn-out post, you can view it, along with a ton of autumn photos, HERE. 

Grandson, viewing the scenery from the back of the hay wagon

Just a couple of cute weirdos who crashed our Thanksgiving

3. Tell us about something you love in your house or kitchen that is 'homemade'. 

That's easy. That would be natural, vegan soap. And right now I'm having a Fall/Christmas Giveaway. Ends Friday at 10 PM CDT, so hurry and enter on Monday's blog post.

The other homemade thing would be the lavender/blueberry scones I'm going to make this weekend. Find the recipe HERE. 

 I can't help putting mini semi-sweet chocolate chips in my scones

along with the blueberry and lavender.

I'm trying to think if there's anything else around here that's homemade. I guess Audrey's kittens would be the only thing that comes to mind. And we're hoping that she's only going to have 1 or two.  An 'only kitten' would definitely be a blessing.

Audrey, dreaming of her former life as a stray

4. 'A man's home is his castle'...which of the world's ten most captivating castles (according to The Travel Channel) would you most like to visit and why-

Mont Saint-Michel (France), Edinburgh Castle (Scotland), Neuschwanstein Castle (Germany), Glamis Castle (Scotland), Windsor Castle (England), Chateau de Chambord (France), Hampton Court Palace (England), Prague Castle (Prague), St. Michael's Mount (England), Leeds Castle (England), and Swallow's Nest (Ukraine)

I tried Windsor Castle, and that turned out a disaster; I'd love to visit Edinburgh Castle if it weren't so far north from anyplace else I want to visit in the UK; I'd like to visit Prague Castle or just Prague in general, because that part of the world seems fascinating, especially after watching a documentary on what lies beneath Prague - if only I could teleport.

Windsor Castle. Getting off the train. It was all downhill from there.

5. What's a recent or upcoming plan or project that's required you do a little homework before getting started? Did the homework cause you to abandon your plan or adjust it in some way?

Homework? The first thing that comes to mind is the upcoming election. But since I'd like to have some friends after this Hodgepodge is over, I'll skip politics and go to something more pleasing - like travel. I did all the planning for Mr. C. and our son's trip to England. I LOVE the planning stage: Researching points of interest, accommodations, car rental, train travel, airlines, etc. etc. It's so much FUN!

 Victoria Station

6. In your opinion, is homework an unnecessary evil or a valuable practice? Should schools be done with homework? Why or why not? 

I think that homework is a necessary evil. If kids (high school) want to learn something, and have any aspirations for life beyond high school, they will have to work, and that work most likely will not be able to be accomplished within the school day. However, I don't think there should be homework assigned to little kids. Good grief, it's hard enough for them to sit still during the school day, and then go home to more of the same? No. Little kids, especially, should be playing.

Audrey, between a rock and a hard place

7. Share a favorite memory of your childhood hometown. 

We all loved the Treat Shop, across the street from the old Junior High building, where we could go during recess to buy Mallo Cups and eat ourselves into an afternoon sugar coma, just in time for government class.

8. Insert your own random thought here. 

Tuppence, staking her claim.

Lying next to me on the sofa during breakfast coffee.

At least she's no longer hissing or clawing at Audrey.

Linking to Theresa's Good Fences

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Tuppence Visits the Vet

I will miss the Hodgepodge this week. I'm leaving for a couple days and won't be taking my laptop along.

While we were away for a week and a half in March, our kitty was taken care of by our son who visited her every other day and took care of the necessaries. But, when we returned, we noticed that Tuppence has not been eating well. I tried giving her straight tuna from a can, and she seemed to like it, but the excitement didn't last too long. When I gave her a wee can of moist cat food, she lapped up all the broth and I later found the bits of food-like-substance strewn on the floor like a four foot minefield. She obviously was not impressed with it.

She's also been really whiny and scolding.

 'Hurry up and get in bed so I can lie next to your head and sneeze on you!'

'And give me a break! I'm an old cat!!'

I made an appointment for Tuppence to visit the vet. We had her there at 11:30, as scheduled, and met the new vet. It's pretty hard to beat our own James Herriot who is selfishly thinking of retiring, but I'll have to say this new guy made a good impression on both Mr. C. and me. He was kind, thorough, and didn't seem to want to rush the cat out of there to get on with more important things. Evidently he's learning a lot from our usual vet. This was an auspicious beginning, as far as we were concerned.

It's true - Cats struggle to get near the person who least wants them there.

The vet had a hard time trying to hear her lungs, because Tuppence kept purring so loudly. He thought it was possible that she has a slightly enlarged thyroid, but not sure, her temp was normal, her ears good, she wasn't lethargic, and she checked out in every other way. She just isn't eating...much.

Verdict:  Most likely, she was simply missing her people. And, because she's a 15+ year old cat, she's now going to be getting a good quality moist cat food most often and dry cat food (her usual special-diet food), now and then. Basically, she'll be offered a smorgasbord. Let's hope she likes it. (When I'm an old cat, I'm pretty sure I'll still be wanting crunchy food.)

AND, we won't be leaving her alone, even with someone coming in every other day to tend to her. We have to be gone Tuesday through Thursday of this week, but a sweet family will be staying here with her - pals she's known for a long time.

Tuppence's happier days - when Lionel was still with us.

Bonus info: I hadn't known, until the vet told me, that calico cats are ALWAYS female, and are usually more hyper than cats like Lionel. So genetics had everything to do with Lionel being a laid-back, mellow dude, whereas Tuppence is just the opposite.

Linked to Eileen's Saturday's Critters

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How's your kitty doing?

Check Carla's cat, Catsby. She gives us an update each Monday. 

Hodgpodging The Week Before Christmas

'The Kitty was nestled all snug in her bed...'

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1. What's your biggest 'first world' problem?

"I cried because I had no shoes, 

until I met a man who had no feet."  

Right now I actually can't think of one of those silly things I concern myself with from time to time, but I know that I do, and my daughter and I laugh about the ridiculous things we think we need, or the 'problems' we have, contrasted with how MOST OF THE WORLD lives. Anyway, there seems to be some question of the origin of that poem, whose line I quoted above. Some say it's a Persian thing. Since no one knows for sure, I'll vote for G.K. Chesterton. Yes, I am just kidding, BUT, he said so many clever things, that it could easily have been him. :-) To read my blog post on Chesterton's piece entitled, 'A Piece of Chalk,' click HERE. How could anyone not like that man.

A Piece of Chalk

2.  Each year Time Magazine names a 'Person of the Year', someone who has 'for better or worse...done the most to influence the events of the year.' It was recently announced they've named Angela Merkel Person of the Year for 2015. You can read more about this year's selection here. Your thoughts? If you were in charge, who would you declare Person of the Year?

I read about Angela Merkel being chosen Person of the Year. And what do I think about it? Well, she's a woman with many dire problems facing her country...many of which they created themselves. So I'm not sure why we're celebrating her, then again, I guess the choice isn't made on who deserves celebration, but who, for whatever reason, is most notable that year, in their opinion. I don't know why they never ask me.

3. Do you have a nativity set in your home? If so share it's history and how you display the pieces.

YES! We have had a Nativity set in our home for as long as I can remember. My cousin Bobby gave us many of the pieces and I added pieces each year until there was quite a crowd gathered at the manger. I make sure that our kings come from the East, but since they didn't actually arrive to give King Jesus his gifts until he was a bit under 2 years old, I'm considering building a little house and putting it at the west end of the piano and moving the kings along little by little toward the house, having them arrive on January 6, the date we celebrate Epiphany.  That's when we used to have our kids 'open' their Christmas stockings. Don't ask me how stockings relate to that, but...

I heard someone on the radio say that it is a tradition in their family that they give the children each THREE gifts each Christmas because that's how many gifts Jesus received.

 Glory to God in the Highest!

At one point, I was considering getting rid of our old upright piano, created for the Chicago World's Fair in 1893, and I'm thinking that General Longstreet attended that huge event.......... (because it's not fixable and doesn't play in tune, but it is a beautiful piece of furniture). Our daughter was horrified. 'You can't get rid of that piano, Mom. Where would you put the Nativity set??!'    Yes, that's true. Our other piano, the good one, has other things living on it.

4.  Do you make an extra effort to give back in some way during the holiday season? How do you encourage those who need encouragement this time of year?

I don't get the 'giving back' bit, except to say that what Christmas is all about is God giving His Son to come into this world and rescue us from sin, about Christ's obedience unto death, about God raising him from the dead and about the SURE HOPE that we, who trust in him, have of resurrection ourselves because of Him. There's no way I can give back to God...but I can try to share the hope that is within me, the joy that is always present, even in the midst of trouble. What I CAN do in giving, is not to 'give back,' but to give to those who are less fortunate, those other God-image bearers who live on this planet, to share a bit of God's love with them. That is what I try to do. There is no encouragement outside of the message of HOPE that God gives us in his son. As a matter of fact, there is no HOPE apart from God.

5. Who is your favorite person to shop for? Why?

If money were raining from the sky, then anyone who wanted a German Shepherd puppy for Christmas would be my favorite person to shop for. I would, of course, have to hold every single darling GSD puppy I could find before choosing.  Other than that, you're asking the wrong person. I am not a shopper.

'Pick me!'

6. What's the last delicious thing you ate?

Some people go to Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN to get help with a physical problem. I would go to Mayo Clinic to buy those amazing dark chocolate truffles sold on the below-ground floor of the clinic. Good grief. It's times like that, however, that Mr. C. annoys me by taking a tiny bite and declaring that it's too rich. He is definitely an alien sometimes. 

 Mr. C. in his Gene Hackman glasses.

(Did you see the old movie, 'Enemy of the State'?)

I see that someone has taken my place.

7. The best way to spread Christmas cheer is________________.

Show God's love to others.

Be happy. Make eye contact. Smile.

Play Christmas carols from King's College, Cambridge! 

8. Insert your own random thought here.

Our son's family had a new arrival, for which the boys had eagerly been waiting:

 Snow?

'Bring it on!!!'

The grandsons, eager to use their new snowblower!
It may be a few more days, guys.

 The little brother

with his sword.

These photos sent to me by our son.

 This one was labeled,

'Chicken Whisperer.'

He's going to come stay a week with us in January.

Can't wait! He's such a fun kid.

This post is linked to
Eileen's Saturday's Critters

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Saturday's Critters

Tuppence in her favorite pose

As soon as my feet hit the floor in the morning, Tuppence moves into my spot on the bed and spends most of the day there.  During the night, she prefers my pancake-thin pillow and grudgingly gives me only a wee corner of it.

This post is linked to

EILEEN'S SATURDAY CRITTERS

***

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