The Minnie Diaries

Thursday was a day every pet owner dreads. It was the day I had to make an end of life decision for my 13-year-old cat Minnie. And so, my precious girl is gone.

Minnie

 I got Minnie when she was six weeks old. Her mother was part Siamese and her daddy was a traveling salesman. I used to say Minnie was part Siamese and all Diva.
When I got her, she was so small and had only recently started eating solid food. In fact, she wouldn't eat very well, so I had to hand feed her some wet food. She took a little lick of the food and then with those sharp milk teeth bit in, puncturing my finger. It really was love at first bite.
I don't think she stopped eating after that. Initially I called her Skinny Minnie, or Minnie the Mouth (because she was so vocal), but Minnie would never pass the food bowl without putting her face in it, so I also called her Minnie the Moocher.
She got her name because at the time I adopted her, I adopted another cat, a tomcat named Max. Max and Minnie. They were a pair.
I lost Max in 2006 when he was attacked and killed by dogs. That was a horrible, horrible day, for many reasons.
Minnie always seemed to know when I was feeling down. She'd come and snuggle with me. But she could also be really annoying.
I think this is the first time I can go to the bathroom without her being in there with me. If I was headed to the powder room she would RUN to beat me there. She would wait outside of the shower and as soon as I was finished she'd poke her head in and start licking water from the shower stall. She'd stand on the kitchen vanity and drink out of the sink. She'd sit on the vanity while I tried to apply makeup, sometimes deciding THAT was when she wanted to be petted.
And then, there was this:

How a cat keeps herself occupied

I never caught Minnie in the act, but I know it was she who unwound the toilet roll. She has unwound entire new rolls. It would make me so mad!

She would also race for the bed when she heard the dryer finish. She knew there would be some warm, clean laundry to snooze on.

 

Warm and cozy

 Other cats have come to live in the house, and Minnie hated all of them. In her mind, I'm sure, they were the interlopers. She'd hiss and growl at them and there was only ever a tentative detente in the house.

In a perfect world, Minnie would have wanted to be the only cat. She was the diva, after all. She demanded attention. She would meow and put her paw on you arm to let you know she wanted to be petted. She would jump up and sit in the kitchen chair just before you'd get there. In fact, it feels strange not to have her sharing my seat this morning as I write this. She would have been right there.

I would often tell her she was a pill, but I would also tell her how much I loved her, despite being a pill.

Minnie was really very healthy, which is why her becoming very ill so quickly was such a shock to me.

She got an abscessed tooth right before Christmas and her kidneys shut down, but she recovered. The vet, and I, thought perhaps the infection from the tooth got into her kidneys, rather than her having kidney disease. But a return to what I thought was the bad tooth again turned out to be her kidneys shutting down again.

The vet waited for me to get there before he put her down. I told her over and over again how much I loved her as she left this world.

My beloved Minnie will have a special place in my heart.



A personal best, sort of

Now here's a mistake I can live with.
I ran the Hearts & Soles 5K this morning. This is the third year I've run this race, sponsored by the Atlanta Track Club. But what a memorable race this one will be.
I "ran" the race in 24:34, a new personal best.
Well, actually, the woman who accidentally picked up my race number this morning ran the 24:34, but it is funny to see my name on the race results web site with that race time. Whoo hoo! Can she pick up my number at every race? ha!
The "real" me ran the race in 37 minutes. Not my best time, but not horrible.
I ran it with my friends Erin and Angela.

Me, Erin and Angela

While waiting at the finish for Angela, my friend Julie came through the line. I love it when I run into friends at races!
I also found a dime on the race course when Erin and I took a short walk break.
So, today saw a personal best and personal gain. Can't beat that!

Bracing for change

Oh Lord.
I seem to be reliving my high school years.
And not on purpose.
I had braces put on my teeth for the SECOND time in my life this week.
See, I had them as a teen-ager in high school, when you are supposed to have braces.
It was awful then, but at least there were several of my peers who were wearing them too, so misery loves company.
Fast forward 30 years later, and here I am again. And there are no peers. Misery has no company.
I had honestly forgotten how awful braces are.
First, I'm on a forced liquid/soft diet. At least this go 'round, wine is a liquid I can have. I really might have tolerated braces in high school if I could have had wine. :)
On the plus side, I've lost two pounds this week.
On the down side, I'm really beginning to hate soup, and I love soup.
Second, I forgot that the braces will make the inside of my mouth feel like raw meat.
This is particularly uncomfortable and hateful.
Third, I really, really forgot about the drool.
Drool, you ask?
Yes. Because there are brackets on my teeth, my body thinks "there is something in the mouth, so start the saliva!" It's pretty much non-stop salivating. And not in a good way.
The first night with braces I laid down to sleep and could feel the drool pooling in my mouth. Then I remembered. That pool will leak out. So, now I sleep on a hand towel.
Finally, I'm realizing this is going to be a long18 to 24 months. I'm trying to keep the long-term benefits in mind.
I wish I could go back to my 20-year-old self and say "wear your retainer!" and when that retainer broke, I wish I had gone to a new orthodontist and had it replaced. Maybe then I would not have a horrible overbite and bottom teeth that are crookedly chatting with their neighbors one over.
And so, I am bracing for change. It's not easy.