soop's kindly kitcheners and pampered pets...

charley I am so sorry to hear the result of your trip to Moorfields. I commend you for being able to put on such a brave front and post cheerful messages to others when you must be worried about the prospect of giving up driving.

Oh soop poor Rory and MacS too. It is awful when you are trying to do your best for cats and they don't understand. Best make both of them their favourite supper for tonight. Hope Rory is ok. I think a restorative drama would be in order.

No snow here but very cold. Went out for a walk but the wind was chilling ( ? This popped up on my iPad. I assume in response to me typing chilling but this ? Would be more appropriate)

Restorative drama!! I think you've probably had enough drama for the day. Have a wee dram instead

Whatever you do, soop and macS, don't let Rory read this. It's telling people to feed their cats five times a day.

I don't suppose Rory would approve of my DD's method which was to leave a bowl of dry cat food that the cat could, and did, go to as many times as it liked.

??

I haven`t been posting much lately, due to being very much under the weather with a terrible pain in the back of my head and neck, which turns out to be arthritis. The tablets are starting to kick in, so fingers crossed. I`ve only read a few posts back so far, but realise there are folk a lot worse off than me, so ignore my moans.
Charleygirl, so sorry about your diagnosis, I hope you`ll be able to keep driving for a while longer.
Soop, poor old Rory, he`ll need a fair bit of creeping around when he gets back, before he decides to forgive you! I hope the vet has some nice thick gloves!
We didn`t get the threatened floods last night, but there`s another warning for tonight. We had a light dusting of snow overnight, but it`s gone now, but it`s been very cold and very windy, still is. Someone on another forum said you`ll be alright if you keep away from the river bank. This photo was taken from outside our front door!

I've just been to look at the thermometer at the back door and it's at exactly zero at the moment. It will be colder further away from the house and an icy morning tomorrow. I had on my cosiest coat today but my poor hands were frozen as I can't find my warmest gloves! Poor old Rory. What indignity to be captured and caged like that. I hope he will be back home and being totally spoilt very soon. callgirl, good luck for tonight. Stay safe.

Thank you Anno.

Ann sixty Which category did your 5- year insurance fall into? I'd feel hugely reassured if JL could guarantee me or DH so easily. Did you need a medical first?

callgirl and Crafting thanks for your concern. I am fine about it- at present I can still drive and for ages I have only been driving locally. I was going to buy another car, my favourite, a Nissan but I will not now, no point wasting money and one never knows, sometimes a miracle cure happens. 200 people a day are diagnosed with this awful disease.

Brave lady charleygirl
Driving with one eye is fine but it can make you ultra cautious about the one you rely on.
I hope you can benefit from all and any gizmos, gadgets, blue parking badge(?) disabled rail card, in short anything out there to help make your life easier.

By gum...what a to-do. We're home again having collected Rory from the very kind and caring Campbeltown vet. He has a nasty scratch above his eye, which is thankfully starting to self-heal. He's been given a long-acting antibiotic to counter the infection. He was treated for other elderly feline problems at the same time. The vet described him as a "feisty alpha-male with a mind of his own..." All in all...the bill was a mere £133. Gulp! Anyway, he's home and strutting around like he owns the joint. Which, of course, he does. MacSporran and I are well pleased.

anno My hands and feet are extremely cold. Even in summer, they remain on the cool side.

bags The very idea of your suggestion could put Rory into a spin. He's eaten 3.5 pouches of gourmet food today. He's very much trimmer than he was when he first moved in and took over our lives. He now weighs...6.4 kilograms. Vet thinks that he's a fine specimen of an elderly cat. We told him the first bit...left out the "elderly". He has his pride.

We'll be opening a new kitchen sometime soon. I need to take a rest before preparing the furnishings and suchlike in readiness.

Thank you for all your support. You lot are special.



callgirl1 Welcome back. We've missed you. The scene outside your front door is picturesque. Water has a mind of it's own (a bit like Rory) it looks placid enough one moment but can easily become a right pain in the backside. Seriously though, I hope that all remains well. Water damage is a devil to put right. Especially inside a property.

I am only guilty of poor English Daphne nobody is going to insure me for anything like 5 years. I am not a good risk

ann sixty

CharlieG I was so sorry to read of your diagnosis but am full of admiration for your stoicism and acceptance of the situation. I also agree there is little point in getting a new car if your driving days are numbered.

If the sight goes completely, might I suggest you adopt a very dashing eye-patch? You could embroider it with all sort of interesting bits. I think it would suit your character!

I am happy to report that I am feeling a bit better and stronger and managing to eat a little more. I saw my GP yesterday and she wants me to have another blood test on Monday to check my liver function again. I am waiting for the ultrasound appointment and the clinic one too. Meanwhile I continue with my medication and eat a bland diet.It seems to be controlling the gastritis.

I am getting a bit of cabin fever now and really want to feel up to picking up my life again - WI and choir. I miss it!

Glad Rory is back home and establishing his rule chez-Soop! What a lucky puss he was to find such a wonderful berth.

for all those feeling under the weather!

Charleygirl I tried to reassure DB when he had to relinquish his licence that taking taxis wherever he wanted to go is probably cheaper than running a car.
I know, it is the loss of independence that is difficult to come to terms with.

I gave up driving in my 60's, I was doing a favour to all other drivers, I was pretty bad, but when my H had to give up it was awful. We still haven't got used to it.All the spontaneity goes out of life and I hate loading my shopping into a taxi.
Sorry Charleygirl I am not being very helpful, just honest and realistic.

Reporting in. The Welsh trip was both non eventful and productive. Exhausting though. I've decided to keep Mr C as he is an exemplary chauffeur. . Some snow on the hills but none on us or the roads so all was well.

I'm amazed Rory is speaking to you, soop, maybe he realised the indignity of the chase and subsequent removal was in his best interests. It truly is horrid when we have to 'encourage' animals to act against their nature.

Hope you stay dry callgirl, we live next to a very small, tiny even, river - nothing like yours - but still feel a pang of anxiety when the flood warnings come. Fortunately there has been extensive flood prevention work here and there is truly nothing to worry about, but I still get that 'oh no' feeling.

Sounds like good and not so good health news. Pleased you are a little stronger gagagran but sad about your eye, charley, I agree you are being very calmly accepting.

You on countdown for your new dishwasher, daphne? Mr C says ours is more important than the washing machine. I disagree. Guess who deals with the laundry and who with the dishes?

Feet up and do nothing time now.

Keep warm, dry and well everyone.

Been in bed now since Tuesday pm. Cough cold severe breathlessness. Today I managed to walk to the loo without stopping. A distance of 12 feet.
I have no idea what I've done to upset Ankers and I've never revgardedymyself as part of a clique.
Can someone enlighten me?.

Galen it would take a very clever person to work out what a certain poster means!

Hope you feel better soon, do you have antibiotics?

Just ignore it, galen. It's too silly to be taken much notice of.

I'm sorry you've been feeling so unwell and hope your health improves over the next day or two. Take care

If you are no better on Monday galen please do consult your doctor. Dont do what I did and ignore it, I'm still coughing six weeks on. I gave up on that thread three pages in, have no understanding what is going on. Agree with bags, best to ignore it. The impossible to understand is impossible to understand. Take care and get well soon.

Galen Hope you get better soon, it's horrible when you can't breathe properly, and exhausting.

Get well soon Galen.
I don`t think there`s cause for us to worry about the river outside. We`ve lived in this house for nearly 32 years, and Boston has had several floods in that time, but we`ve always come out unscathed.
Glad to hear that Rory is back where he belongs, at the centre of his universe!

soop I cannot believe that Rory scoffed so much food yesterday- he was carrying on as though he had been starved for days. He knows that he is back home safe and sound and will be reclining on a sofa today.

Gaga I could not wear an eye patch because with this ghastly disease one has what is called eccentric viewing which means that one can see out of the corner of one'ms eyes. In the worst case scenario there is a blob in the middle of each eye. A bus or part of it can be seen but never the number- not a fat lot of use!

I am lucky, it is only the chart in the ophthalmology dept. I could not read using my left eye without glasses. With glasses I can read 7 lines. There is life in the old dog yet but for months I have been quietly working out which bus goes where.

There is no step free access here re tubes so that is a pain. I can "do" the awful stairs but it is a sight for sore eyes watching me. I have to thank Boris J for that but something is going to be done in this neck of the woods soon.

Thank you all for your concern. There is a way around most things.

There is a way around most things
Attagirl Charleyg, I admire your spirit and it has given me a much needed kick up the you know where as I have woken up feeling very glum and downhearted, tearful even. Why? No actual idea, might be a hangover of the lurgy but just reading the paper has done little to lift my spirits. Now I should be grateful I can read the paper.
There are days like these aren't there? Not bad enough to fall onto Churchill's "black dog" category, but definitely a grey puppy only not as cute and fluffy!
I think I need another
I hope Rory's woes are resolving Soop? It is sometimes simply impossible to convince a fur friend that you are trying to make things better

Galen Have you had a doctor visit? If not...why not. You would rightly be miffed with us lot if we shrugged breathlessness off. It sounds serious. We want you back to being fit and feisty. PLEASE

Gaga Charleyg DaphneB and any one of you who is feeling yuckee or pissed off no matter what the reason, hang on in there. and (((hugs)))

Rory is being a very good boy. He's a bit clingy with MacSporran right now. The cat carrier is back where it belongs...in the loft, well out of sight.