You might have noticed my posts have been a bit scarce recently, and you would be absolutely correct. I thought I'd spend a bit of time bringing you up to date before we get back to the topic of knitting.
First there was Mike, the cat. Take a look at the photos and pay particular attention to his front paws. He's had what the veterinarian calls a benign (it was tested) neoplasms. Essentially, he had a growth of skin and muscle, that as you can see from the photos, did grow rather quickly. He was fine up until recently when he started limping on that foot. So off he went to have it removed.
Everything went swell during the surgery. The unnecessary part was removed and since he was under general anesthetic we had his teeth cleaned as well. He came home with one of those collars around his neck to keep him away from the paw. I understand the collar had to be long/deep enough to prevent access to that front paw, but it also didn't allow him access to food or water. At first it was a bit comical to watch him bump around in the house. (Cats must use their peripheral vision a lot. Mike was literally lost.) But after a few minutes it was clear the situation was a total stresser for him. He couldn't find a way to settle in to sleep (he likes to roll up into a little fetal-like ball in his bed, but that wasn't an option). We tried to feed and water him, but he just wasn't interested. After about 24 hours of Mike struggling, he became totally listless. Paul came to the conclusion if the collar wasn't removed, Mike might give up; so he removed it. Immediately Mike started eating and drinking and most importantly sleeping. So poor old Mike had a struggle on his paws for a few days. All is well now and he's back to his feline self without the limp.
Then there's the lovely spring here in the Lower Mainland. We have cherry blossoms in a rolling bloom depending on their species and spring flowers like tulips, daffodils and crocus.
Additionally pine pollen is everywhere there are pine trees and here they are prevalent. I do react to pollen each spring by having some sort of sinus problems. This has happened for years, additionally at a university this is also one of the most busy times of the year. So I get a bit tired, attempt to push my way through it and every other year things eventually go away.
This year's been different. Because we've had lovely weather followed by rain and cooler temperatures off and on for weeks it seems the pollen season has lasted longer than normal. Early Monday morning I woke up because of a sharp pain around my left shoulder blade, with pain also under my arm. I suspected my lymph node were full and didn't think much of it. There was nothing to see on the surface of the skin.
Then Monday night I couldn't find a comfortable place to sleep since the left arm seemed to ache no matter my position. Tuesday morning I groggily got out of bed, showered and noticed a series of red blots on the part of my shoulder blade that hurt most. Paul inspected it and we decided I must have gotten some sort of bug bite. But then at work it was like I had a very low grade electrical volt running down my arm, very unlike any bug bite I'd ever had before.
Searching on the internet wasn't much help either. All it did was help convince me I wasn't having a heart attack, but that was about it. So I decided to see if a professional at the health centre on campus could take a quick look and give me some advice. Within seconds of looking at the spot, I was declared to have shingles. A swab of the red blotched area was taken to make sure, I was given a prescription for an anti-viral drug and told to fill it and take the first set of pills ASAP. If I did so the symptoms wouldn't necessarily be lessened, but they would last a shorter time. So I got the drugs and started them.
I have a light case, but the pain is annoying/weighing. I did some internet searching and I don't know what those who have it wrapping around one side of their body do. Aspirin and cold compresses help, as does rest and a good night's sleep. And the silver lining of all of this is odds are very slim I'll get shingles again in my life. Nothing like creating your own vaccination and it will last the rest of my life, not just 5 years!
And there you have it. Both Mike and I have been off our games. Luckily we have each other for support. Additionally there's all the effort Paul's put in to helping me. He's been a rock. I'm better, looking forward to a restful weekend and getting back into the swing of knitting and writing as the spirit moves me.
First there was Mike, the cat. Take a look at the photos and pay particular attention to his front paws. He's had what the veterinarian calls a benign (it was tested) neoplasms. Essentially, he had a growth of skin and muscle, that as you can see from the photos, did grow rather quickly. He was fine up until recently when he started limping on that foot. So off he went to have it removed.
 |
| See the lump on the left paw June 5, 2012. It had grown to about 3 times that size |
 |
| Lump free and fur clipped on the left |
Everything went swell during the surgery. The unnecessary part was removed and since he was under general anesthetic we had his teeth cleaned as well. He came home with one of those collars around his neck to keep him away from the paw. I understand the collar had to be long/deep enough to prevent access to that front paw, but it also didn't allow him access to food or water. At first it was a bit comical to watch him bump around in the house. (Cats must use their peripheral vision a lot. Mike was literally lost.) But after a few minutes it was clear the situation was a total stresser for him. He couldn't find a way to settle in to sleep (he likes to roll up into a little fetal-like ball in his bed, but that wasn't an option). We tried to feed and water him, but he just wasn't interested. After about 24 hours of Mike struggling, he became totally listless. Paul came to the conclusion if the collar wasn't removed, Mike might give up; so he removed it. Immediately Mike started eating and drinking and most importantly sleeping. So poor old Mike had a struggle on his paws for a few days. All is well now and he's back to his feline self without the limp.
Then there's the lovely spring here in the Lower Mainland. We have cherry blossoms in a rolling bloom depending on their species and spring flowers like tulips, daffodils and crocus.
 |
| Cherry Blossoms on Campus |
 |
| Trees blooming on the way home |
 |
| Cherry Blossom petal snow |
Additionally pine pollen is everywhere there are pine trees and here they are prevalent. I do react to pollen each spring by having some sort of sinus problems. This has happened for years, additionally at a university this is also one of the most busy times of the year. So I get a bit tired, attempt to push my way through it and every other year things eventually go away.
This year's been different. Because we've had lovely weather followed by rain and cooler temperatures off and on for weeks it seems the pollen season has lasted longer than normal. Early Monday morning I woke up because of a sharp pain around my left shoulder blade, with pain also under my arm. I suspected my lymph node were full and didn't think much of it. There was nothing to see on the surface of the skin.
Then Monday night I couldn't find a comfortable place to sleep since the left arm seemed to ache no matter my position. Tuesday morning I groggily got out of bed, showered and noticed a series of red blots on the part of my shoulder blade that hurt most. Paul inspected it and we decided I must have gotten some sort of bug bite. But then at work it was like I had a very low grade electrical volt running down my arm, very unlike any bug bite I'd ever had before.
Searching on the internet wasn't much help either. All it did was help convince me I wasn't having a heart attack, but that was about it. So I decided to see if a professional at the health centre on campus could take a quick look and give me some advice. Within seconds of looking at the spot, I was declared to have shingles. A swab of the red blotched area was taken to make sure, I was given a prescription for an anti-viral drug and told to fill it and take the first set of pills ASAP. If I did so the symptoms wouldn't necessarily be lessened, but they would last a shorter time. So I got the drugs and started them.
I have a light case, but the pain is annoying/weighing. I did some internet searching and I don't know what those who have it wrapping around one side of their body do. Aspirin and cold compresses help, as does rest and a good night's sleep. And the silver lining of all of this is odds are very slim I'll get shingles again in my life. Nothing like creating your own vaccination and it will last the rest of my life, not just 5 years!
And there you have it. Both Mike and I have been off our games. Luckily we have each other for support. Additionally there's all the effort Paul's put in to helping me. He's been a rock. I'm better, looking forward to a restful weekend and getting back into the swing of knitting and writing as the spirit moves me.
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