Happy New Year

The beginning of the year was supposed to be the beginning of better luck ..... or so I thought.

We had big plans to remodel our bathrooms this Spring. I was measuring and determining how much tile would be needed as I recovered from Shingles. Feeling crappy, but optimistic. I convinced myself that I would start to feel lots better and get my energy back in time to start ripping out old stuff and start laying tile. I even found a good price on my tile ........

The well continues to plague our lives. He Who fancies himself a plumber finally admitted he was out of his league and called in an expert. Two men, I am not sure what to call them, came out and looked at the contents of the filter and then walked out to the well and determined the scope of the project. That was last week and we are waiting to hear how much this project will cost.

Even without knowing the estimate, I know that the bathroom remodels are on hold. I know that a trip to the bank to add to the mortgage is in my future. Two steps forward, three steps back. Never gaining ground, just losing. I am finding it hard to remain optimistic.

That energy I have been waiting on seems to also be on hold. A trip to the clinic last week added more prescriptions, took some existing ones away and added a referral to a gastroenterologist to my world. I feel like crap!

Oscar, my beloved old dog, is still confined to his crate, but seems to be feeling better. The episodes of pain have decreased and he looks like he has lost some weight. The pain medication keeps him pretty mellow. But, as he starts to feel better, he wants to be out of the kennel. His kennel is situated right next to my chair and his bed at night is right at the foot of our bed. He prefers to be with the rest of us and his canine siblings have learned to be careful when he is on the loose. Martha, the boy cat, has been the bane of his existence.

Martha loves to lurk in corners and chairs, just waiting for an opportunity to pounce on anyone who may happen by. Poor Oscar is left yelping in pain, his front leg twisted to one side as his muscles spasm. Martha has been outside a lot of late.

This morning as I was having my coffee, trying to talk myself into feeling good, Oscar started yelping inside his kennel. This cry was higher pitch, like a scream. I jumped up and immediately unlocked the door to the kennel to get to him. The door seemed to be stuck and the more I pulled, the louder he screamed. This caused a chain reaction behind me as Toni Louise started barking and growling at me. She thought I was hurting him and the other two joined in with the barking. I stood up and turned around to restore order to barking trio.

They settled down, Oscar was still yelping and I could now see why I could not open the door to the kennel. His mouth was wide open and his teeth were hung in the grid of the door. The poor old guy only has a few teeth left and he managed to get those caught in the door. My attempt to open the door only made the situation worse.

I finally got my fingers in far enough to move his upper jaw and release his teeth. I opened the door and gathered him carefully in my arms and sat down and bawled my eyes out.

Oscar is okay, but this entire day has been non-productive and I am a basket case.