Comment on this entry, and I will:

1. Tell you why I friended you.

2. Associate you with something - fandom, a song, a color, a photo, a word etc.

3. Tell you something I like about you.

4. Tell you a memory I have of you.

5. Ask something I've always wanted to know about you.

6. Tell you my favorite user pic of yours.

7. In return, you must post this in your LJ

I woke up this morning and remembered a dream I had last night, and it had jessiesquash in it. I usually don't remember my dreams; I think if you do it's supposed to have some significance / mean something. Anyway here's my bizarre dream:

I had packed my bags and was going off to RMIT. Except that RMIT was in the U.S, not Australia. And jessiesquash happened to live nearby! My trip seemed to happen at a moments notice, because when I was on the plane I remembered saying to myself, "Wow. When I woke up today I had no idea I would be on a plane this evening going to the U.S."

Anyway, I arrived and the next thing I remember from my dream is that I'm at the RMIT campus. And I'm staying at their boarding facility. And it's run by nuns! I can see their black and white habits flying in the wind. (It's a bit nightmarish because I went to a convent school for girls for a few years. It was run by nuns and they were really strict. And pretty weird. My experiences there would fill a book.)

Okay, cut to the next segment and I'm in a car with jessiesquash going to visit her home. It's a Jeep or a Land Rover. Anyway, she's driving and and she says, "It's not too far. It's nothing fancy, but I love it and it's really comfortable." And I'm looking out of the window and all I see are these gorgeous trees and lush scenery, like it's the country side. There are very few buildings, but I do see an amusement park. But it's not crowded at all.
I say, "Isn't America awesome? I love it!"
And she says, "Ofcourse. I knew you would!"

So then we arrive at her home. And it's deep in the woods. There isn't another soul around. It's a very cute little cottage and there are all these strange plants outside. Giant toadstools and mushrooms. It looks like something out of a fairytale. And then the front door opens and two cats come bounding out. They are both tuxedo cats and are both built the same size as a bear. Even their paws are huge. They are enormous. They jump up at me and I am thrilled to see them. One of them gets his paw caught in my hair and when he takes it away, he has also taken away the entire section of hair on the left side. And I am horrified.

"Oh no. Look at me. Just look at me, one side of my hair is so long and one side is short. What on earth am I going to do now? I can't go out like this! I can't go anywhere!"

"Well, I told you didn't I? I told you to wear it up. But you just wouldn't listen. This is why I always wear my hair up." And she turns and shows me the back of her head. And sure enough, she's wearing this elaborate french braid that has been put up.
"Why don't you cut off the other side, then it will all be the same length."

"NO way. It took me years to grow it out to this length! I'm going to have to buy extensions and wear it until it grows out."

And that's where it ends. Well, I'm sure there was more. But that's all I remember. It's funny isn't it? I've no idea what it means. That jessiesquash will end up as a reclusive writer living in the woods with giant cats, not to mention the giant mushrooms?! :)

That's Frodo. We rescued him from outside a tea-shop about 7 months ago. He's the darlingest cat ever. You'd think he didn't have any claws because he hasn't put them out once. Never hisses either. We decided to call him Frodo because he truly is one extraordinary cat, who has been on a very long journey.

He's been living la dolce vita with us ever since! Frodo's big, and as you can see has a big giant head! :) He's such a sweetheart. He gets on with everyone except Wizengamot (our other tuxedo cat) who can't bear him for some strange reason. Anyway this is his case history:

We took him to the vet to be vaccinated after taking him in. They made a huge big deal out of his big head. I always felt it was just his appearance and natural shape, but they said his cheeks were severely swollen on either side and his lymph nodes were swollen and had to be treated immediately. they put him on a very strong antibiotic for a month.

Then we took him in again for a check-up sometime ago, they said it had flared up again and put him on another antibiotic called Bidanzen. They again said to give it to him for a month.

Over the last few weeks he has become thinner and thinner and lost a ton of weight. He has also become very lethargic, hardly moves except to use his litter and has also gradually lost his appetite. Things came to a head two days ago. He couldn't walk. His front legs were okay, but his back legs had gone. he dragged them behind him like he was paralyzed. My G'mother has been saying from day one that it was the medicines that were bothering him. That he was fine before he was put on them.

We even asked our vet this. He said, "How can antibiotics do this? No, no...it has just the opposite effect."

Finally we took Frodo to another veterinary clinic yesterday evening. This one had been recommended to us by one of our friends. Frodo again had a very high temperature of 106. I believe 101 is normal in cats. Anyway imagine our shock and horror when the vet had this to say:

"You put Frodo on antibiotics for two months?! And for what? Because he has a fat face?! Many cats have such an appearance. This is because some cats store their fat there. Just like how some dogs might store their fat in the abdomen. This is NOT a swelling of the lymph nodes or any inflammation. It is just the shape of his face.

You cannot put any animal on antibitotics for such a long time. It's a wonder his kidneys haven't packed up. He's very lucky. Antibiotics put a lot of stress on the kidneys. And in older cats and dogs it is best avoided altogether. And if given, should only be given for a maximum period of five days. No more. "

He referred to the lab reports of Frodo's blood tests which reported his creatinine at 1.4 mg/dl and his BUN (Blood Urea Nitrogen) was 22 mg /dl. Both within the normal range. Thank goodness. he also spent a lot of time checking Frodo's reflexes on the clinical table.

"You should know that Frodo has a condition called Paresis. Not paralysis, but Paresis. He is not able to coordinate his movements in hid hind quarters. His nerves are not able to recognize the sensory commands. His spine has been affected by the prolonged dosage of the antibiotic Bidanzen. This is one of the common side effects of this medicine. Dogs can fight it off, but cats are very susceptible to it."

From Wikipedia: Paresis is a condition typified by partial loss of movement, or impaired movement. Neurologists use the term paresis to describe weakness, and plegia to describe paralysis in which all movement is lost.

At this point, my mother broke down. I should explain that though I rescued Frodo, she stole him from right under my nose! She has always wanted to have her own cat and lost her heart to Frodo. So he is her cat and she is potty about him. I think she was really upset imagining all the times she had fed him his medicine and thinking how she had indirectly done this to him.

Horrifying discovery. But I have always suspected something was wrong, and to all pet owners out there I have this to say: Don't ever accept the doctor's word for it. Doctor's don't always know best and it is in your pets best interests to question everything. Your pets can't because they don't have a voice so you need to speak for them and the minute you suspect something's wrong go and get a second, third and even fourth opinion if you have to. There is no harm with getting a second opinion. If we hadn't gone yesterday we would have still been in the dark.

Oh, and another thing. I asked our previous vet how old he thought Frodo was and he said: "He's 3 years old". without even bothering to check his teeth or anything!!! I asked this vet and he examined Frodo's teeth carefully and showed me how his canines were worn out and he was really old, atleast 12 years old! Again confirming what I'd always believed -- that he was over 10 years old.

I am really furious with how Lucky was euthanized, and how Frodo was misdiagnosed and treated for something that wasn't even an issue to begin with -- a fat face! I mean, if we had continued Frodo wold have suffered complete paralysis and his kidneys would have failed. They would have killed him with those antibiotics. I did not rescue Frodo from the streets in the twilight of his years so that he could be misdiagnosed and mistreated.

He's been put on vitamins and a tonic that should help him recover his movement. The vet said we should see an improvement in a fortnight, if we don't then we have to take him in for an ultrasound. he also said that it was important for Frodo to walk as much as possible or he would suffer from atrophy.

From Wikipedia: Atrophy is the partial or complete wasting away of a part of the body. Causes of atrophy include poor nourishment, poor circulation , loss of hormonal support, loss of nerve supply to the target organ, disuse or lack of exercise or disease intrinsic to the tissue itself.

What kind of vets are they anyway? I don't think they even know what they're talking about half the time. They are also super expensive, and they seem to give pedigrees preferential treatment.

I am so glad we found out what the problem is and have moved on to a better vet. I really hope Frodo will recover. He's had such a hard life on the streets all his life, he deserves a happy and comfortable life in his old age.

Lucky
1995 - Jan. 4th 2008

They say memories are golden
well maybe that is true.
I never wanted memories,
I only wanted you.

A million times I needed you,
a million times I cried.
If love alone could have saved you
you never would have died.

In life I loved you dearly,
In death I love you still.
In my heart you hold a place
no one could ever fill.

If tears could build a stairway
and heartache make a lane,
I'd walk the path to heaven
and bring you back again.

Our family chain is broken,
and nothing seems the same.
But as time calls us one by one,
the chain will link again.

- Author Unknown

( Continued... )

There are no words that can describe the gamut of emotions I've been running through. I have really struggled with this decision.

I spent all day yesterday at the clinic. Lucky was on his second or third bottle of drips, and I sat beside him all the time. I think he knew I was there. He would open his eyes when people walked in with other pets. He wouldn't move, but he seemed to know.

I spoke to Dr. Afzal (our vet) and asked if I could take Lucky home. He said I should make that decision after I heard back from the lab. That didn't sound very promising. I guess he already suspected the very worst. He said we should change Lucky's position and flip him on his other side because it wasn't good for him to keep lying on one side.

Then finally at 2 pm Dr. Afzal came and spoke to me, he said that it as as he feared. He'd just called up the lab where they did the blood test and they said that his creatinin level was 5.4. It had to be within 1.5.

Anyway, he went through a very detailed explanation telling me that in his opinion I should definitely put him down. He said that I could follow two courses of action: aggressive treatment or to put him down. But he warned me not to just take him home and do nothing, and to just let him die. He said that many people would just say, "Okay doctor I'm going to take him home and let him die." He said the end stages of renal failure would be excruciating.

And he said I should put him down because even if I did pursue treatment, the relief would only be temporary before it struck again. I left after speaking with him saying I would return after discussing it with my family.

( Continued... )

I've just returned from The Arc. It's the veterinary clinic we take our pets to. Lucky is a dog I rescued off the streets at the end of last year. He was really old even when I rescued him.

He's been off his food for the last three days. I don't think he drank any water either. The vet said he was severely dehydrated, and put him on a bottle of drips. I wanted to bring him back home, but the vet said it would be more effectual if we gave him the drips slowly rather than quickly giving him a bottle. They're also supposed to change the bottle in the night and give him a second one.

Anyway, the vet had a grim prognosis. He's almost certainly suffering from renal (kidney) failure. They took a blood sample, the results of which will be available tomorrow afternoon. He said that if his Creatinine levels were too high, if it was over 1.5 then we would have to put him down. I asked about treating him with medication but he said that he would be in a lot of pain and it would be more humane to ease his suffering.

I'm really devastated. It's just been one thing after another. Lucky is very dear to me. I wrote about him, his journey and how I found / rescued him -- I kept meaning to post it before, but I never got down to it.

( Pictures + Lucky's incredible story )

These plates are so pretty and classic. Which cat owner wouldn't want them? Here's a description:

Our Parisian felines will charm cat lovers and Francophiles alike. Ivory stoneware plates are just the right size for entertaining, in four fun designs: Mathieu Le Paresseux (the lazy one), Armand Le Gourmand (the greedy one), Hector Le Tenor (the tenor), and Patou Le Filou (the swindler). Dishwasher safe. 8½" diam.

SOURCE: Sur La Table

We went to watch this movie Thursday night. I read a short synopsis of the plot on imdb before going to watch it. This movie is very much in keeping with the feminist theme of her recent movies (Flightplan, The Panic Room). Briefly, Foster plays Erica Bain -- a radio personality who has a great job, a great boyfriend and is living the charmed life. All that changes one day at the park when she and her boyfriend are brutally attacked and beaten. Her boyfriend is killed, while she barely survives. Her life takes on a whole new dimension afterwards. She is consumed by revenge and attempts to track down the three men who killed her boyfriend.

There is a dog in this movie who also plays an important part. He is with Erica and her boyfriend when they are attacked in the park.

I can't say anymore than that without killing the suspense. The movie by itself is riveting. You get caught up in it. The acting is superb as can be expected from someone of the caliber of Jodie Foster. Terrence Howard who plays Detective Mercer is also brilliant in his role. He's smokin' hot! Someone who isn't, is Naveen Andrews who plays Foster's boyfriend. It was an unpleasant shock to see his name on the roster. I have no idea how he lands these roles, and I don't understand what Hollywood sees in him. His acting is mediocre to say the very least and he drips grease. Seriously. He's seedy and sleazy. Thankfully he gets killed off early!

The final scenes of the movie will keep you on the edge of you seat. They're very reminiscent of the final scenes in The Silence of the Lambs. Jodie Foster deserves an Oscar nomination for this role. So if you haven't seen it already, rent it out. It's brilliant, don't miss it.

Firefox is quite simply, the best thing that's ever happened to internet browsers. You'll brook no argument from me on that point. In fact, I love Firefox so much that I put with it malfunctioning every now and then. It does this by erasing all my bookmarks and links and acting like I had just installed it. Or by forcing me to re-install the entire application. And recently, it's gone completely haywire and won't allow me to access it at all.

So, I was forced to return to Internet explorer. And I found I hated it with a passion! It's super slow, everything looks different and it behaves like a small child whom you have to tell what to do all the time. I tried installing Opera next. It has a neat user interface, but is probably even slower than Explorer.

Netscape Navigator was next on my list. I installed it with mounting scepticism, by this time I'd given up hope on finding anything that could compare with Firefox. But I've been pleasantly surprised so far. Netscape has been simply awesome! I love the user interface, it's very fast, the features are great (I especially like the linkpad) and I'd recommend it to anyone who's looking for a browser that compares to Firefox. Netscape comes very close.