| June 2008 |
June 1 (Sunday)
A warm and dry weekend. I managed to get everything mowed and nearly everything weed-eated. The humidity is already outta site for
this time of year. I dropped my chain saw off to get sharpened and hopefully can get it back next weekend. If I can get started on
gathering firewood, I'll have a good supply for next winter. I already have around half-dozen trees ready to be cut into sticks.
The animals are all fine: Cathy has recovered nicely; Cougar, Bonnie, and Clyde have all shown improvement since having tooth work
done recently. Oscar and Sam have settled into staying inside the fence; the electric wire is doing its job. I am feeling much more
confident when I leave home for work each day since I started isolating Fred by himself. Lu Lu is healthy. Scamp is growing less and
less cautious and allows me to approach him without him jumping away. Oscar is still very cautious but less so. The two solid black cats
are big, fat, and happy. Pinky is still a b*tch (but a sweet b*tch). Princess ("Lightly") still demands my attention as soon as I walk through
the door after arriving home from work. And Pete -- such an independent kitty. I saw Tiger and Thumper playing together yesterday.
Every day when I arrive home from work I find Thumper in the kennel with Scamp, Oscar, and Sam. He has no fear of them, and they
seem to tolerate him quite well. Tiger is equally as fearless of the dogs.
I still do some grieving over animals lost over the past several months: still grieving over Curiosity, who I lost a couple years ago; still
thinking about Socks who I lost way back in January of 2003; still missing Shadow who I lost right after I bought this place; still wondering
whatever happened to Charcoal and Biscuit (neither of whom I have a photo); still kicking myself over the demise of Goldie and her
brother Yella Fella; still kicking myself over the demise of Sheba and missing her terribly; wondering whatever happened to Pookie and
missing her terribly; so fortunate that Cathy managed to recover from her ordeal, as well as Cleo and Smokey.
Friday morning I visited with Buddy and Prince("Darkly"). Buddy and I spent several minutes rubbing faces. He is such a sweet kitty.
June 5 (Thursday)
Not a lot going on this weekend. It has been unseasonably hot -- in the low 90's -- and very humid. Nonetheless, summer is nearly here.
I invested all that money in a couple of new kennels and the fence in the front yard, and now things have settled down around the house.
Oscar and Sam no longer escape the fence, and I have a better feeling about arriving home and finding everyone in one piece. All of
the cats are doing well, and the dogs are doing well also.
Work has been great. I still have a job! I leave for work every morning around 5:15 am. It is already light enough outside at that time so
that I can see where I am walking when I go to my car. It is great to live in the country! When I arrive home on the evenings there are all
sorts of pleasant smells and I always have a general good sense of things when I get out of my car to open the gate out by the road.
June 9 (Tuesday)
Man, we can't get a break on this heat, and it's not even officially summer yet! At least maybe the rain will slacken and the grass will slow
down. There just isn't enough time to get all of the yard work done. But I did get some firewood cut over the weekend. This next winter
is going to be great fun! Lot's of good hardwood for the fireplace, including white and red oak and cedar!
The animals are doing great. Cathy runs around and plays! She is such a happy dog!
June 11 (Thursday)
Nothing new going on. The animals are all fine. Pete crawled into bed with me during the night. He hasn't done that since he was little.
I went to bed around 8:00 and slept fairly well until the alarm sounded this morning at 4:30. The dogs have been barking at night lately,
and that steals some sleep from me. But I'm not complaining.
June 15 (Sunday)
Nothing much going on. Got some yard work done this weekend. The animals are all doing fine. We got some more rain this weekend,
and with that the grass is growing outta site. I think that last summer I only had to mow a couple of times. We had pretty severe drought
symptoms last summer, but nothing like that so far this year.
I also got some house work done this weekend, including mopping with hot bleach water -- something I do regularly anyway, what with
the animals and all. I cannot resist pretty much letting them have their way in the house, so for that I am relegating to cleaning house a
little more.
Smokey came indoors this weekend, for some reason, and he and I have been spending some time together. He is a sweet kitty, and I
well recall the night I almost lost him. I do miss his mother (Sheba) so.
I am cooking a pot of pinto beans, and along with those I'll carry some Mac N' Cheese along with spinach and cornbread to work next
week. I'll fry up some Salmon patties to go along. I spend very little money on food compared to most folk, and my eating habits are as
frugal as my spending habits. I intend to pay off my mortgage within five years.
LSU is back at Omaha this weekend. This is their 14th (thereabouts) trip to Omaha, Nebraska, for the college world series of baseball.
They've won five, and it would be sweet to see them win another. But I am a realist. I realize that they are a long shot, and since they
have been down a bit for the past couple of years, it is sweet just to get to Omaha.
Boy, gas prices have shot through the roof. Gas is a dollar more a gallon this summer than it was a year ago. When will it end?
June 17 (Tuesday)
Yesterday was not a banner day. Oh, I enjoyed myself at work as usual, and when I arrived home the animals were all there and in one
piece, but ...
The day did not start out well. To start with I read an article about a man who savagely beat his 2-year old son to death. I copied
today's article and pasted it here. I included a link to the article for posterity. The article does not paint a pretty picture.
Besides that I have developed some sort of condition, which I am at a loss of words to explain. I do not know if it is a reaction to the
blood pressure medication I am taking, or if I am just suffering from sodium or potassium depletion, but I had an episode yesterday
morning that was one for the ages. For about 20 minutes I was in excruciating pain, and the thought occurred to me that I was going to
have a stroke. I can't even describe the nature of the pain or the exact symptoms, but the pain eventually subsided, and I continued to
work. I did see the doctor in the afternoon, and he took a blood sample for analysis and made an adjustment to my medication. So we'll
see what's up. So far today, I am better but guarded. I am weak from yesterday's episode.
I was depressed all day yesterday from reading the story about the toddler. Such things ..., I cannot find the words.
June 19 (Thursday)
I have this thing going on in my back. It doesn't feel like any kind of back pain I have ever had. I saw the doctor this morning (regarding
that and my BP), and he scheduled me for more tests tomorrow morning. In the mean time I boarded Bonnie and Cathy at the Vet for
the duration. I truly think that my problem is of the muscle spasm variety. Something along that line.
June 25 (Wednesday)
I found the cause of the excruciating back pain. As of right now I shall be brief, but I intend to go into greater detail later, maybe
tomorrow. The problem turned out to be a 99% blockage of the left anterior descending artery in my heart (referred to as the "widow
maker"). I went for a scheduled stress test on Monday morning, and during the test, analysis revealed the blockage. I was rushed into
surgery where I received a stint via the usual heart catheterization. Evidently I came as close to having a deadly heart attack as it is
possible to come without actually having one.
I would like to say more now, but I just arrived home from the hospital. The surgery was on Monday, and I was kept for observation until
today. Who woulda thunk?
By the way, the surgery took place at St. Francis of Memphis, Tennessee. I received first-class care. I owe those people my life.
June 26 (Thursday)
The best result of this week's activities is the well-being of my animals. When I finally arrived home on yesterday afternoon, I had a
chance to scrutinize the situation here. I was able to account for everybody, and only then was I truly at peace. All are well and happy,
and relieved.
"The widow maker." That is what they call the artery that was the cause of all my problems. How fortunate I am that I was hooked up to a
couple of heart monitors in the presence of a bevy of trained and expert heart specialists at the leading cardiac center in the Mid-South
when my heart attack occurred. Miracle? What miracle?
By the way ..., a special thanks to Vicki McAlpin for coming to the rescue. I managed to call her as I was being wheeled into the
operating room, requesting that she look after my animals. She drove over to my house and retrieved Bonnie and Cathy, boarding them
for the duration until I was in the clear. Basically, Vicki saved my life. I could not have relaxed enough at the hospital for those who
worked on me to do a proper job without the help of Vicki. Thank you Vicki.
June 27 (Friday)
I ended up not working this week at all. I guess not. Most people who have a heart attack don't work forever. I am cleared to return to
work on Monday. I went to town today to do some errands and buy some groceries. I noticed some weakness and faintness, but I made
it through okay. I think I shall be all right.
Boy, here I am. I had a heart attack, and I survived. Life is good.
June 28 (Saturday)
A special thanks to the professionals at the cardiac center at St. Francis Hospital.