Crazy Cat Lady Chapter 5 - Trying to recover from the pandemic

kirtsypoos

Hi CCL, I'm delurking to say hello after a very long absence and to thank you again for the beautiful blanket you made for donut when I was expecting back in 2017/2018 - baby number 2 is due in January and the blanket is already waiting to be used again.

I've been keeping up with your goings on and hope you are feeling more positive now. The gin afternoon sounds wonderful!

Buffythedebtslayer

Hey up CCL hope the vets went well. 

Just sending love as I hate visits like that XXXX 

crazy_cat_lady

Morning all

f0xh0les - when you say about shifting all day drinking to Parents Evening - do you mean as a parent or as a teacher? They're both appealing options
Kirstypoos - so lovely to hear from you, and congratulations on baby number 2. Seems like another lifetime ago that I made that.
And welcome to every single crazy cat person/animal lover. It's great to be with like minded people.
I'm still trying to process what happened at the vet yesterday - I can't decide if it's good or bad news. Probably I'm going to decide that it's a bit of both. Our (cat only) vet is still drop and go. Apologies if I'm repeating myself here because I think I am, but I've been using the vet for the whole 9 years that we've had cats in the house again and I know them really well and absolutely adore them all. However, one of the lead vets is a lovely American lady that wants to do every single test and treatment regardless of the cost. This would be fine apart from the fact that NT1 is not insured. So I made sure that I made my appointment with the owner of the practice who is also a lovely lady, local lass and knows me and NT1 as well as the other vet - but she's more realistic about what is essential and what can be left out in terms of tests and treatments. I haven't seen her for months as she's been off work recovering from a really nasty fall from her horse... so I was pleased that she was back.
Anyway - I dropped NT1 in and went to wait in the car. Phone rang after 20 mins and I was asked to go in and talk to the vet. Which has never happened during the pandemic. So I was really on edge before she even opened her mouth. Anyway. The lump has grown, but also ulcerated so it has to come off. Vet is happy to do the surgery because NT1 has always recovered well from previous surgery in spite of her being so tiny and frail - and says it needs doing for her welfare regardless of whether or not it's cancerous. I also have the option of not sending the lump to histology which will save me £100 but then I won't know whether it's malignant or not. Cost is looking around £600 - which of course will have to go on the cc. Much as I don't want it to. 
I'm so annoyed with myself for huffing when her insurance wouldn't pay out the first time and I cancelled it. She has cost me literally thousands since then. And I'm annoyed with people that don't get their cats neutered and then abandon them because the vet has told me that if she'd been neutered as a kitten then she most likely wouldn't have gotten the tumours. And I'm anxious and worried, and upset that my little old lady has to go under the knife again. Mind you - I would trust those vets with my own life - never mind the cats. 
So she is booked in for surgery on Tuesday. This is something beyond my control and I just need to deal with it.
Onto other news. Found a walk in centre for dd to grab-a-jab yesterday and off she went bless her. I'm proud of her for making the decision to do it. After our 15 minute wait to make sure she didn't flake out we went to Icyland to make sure that ds can eat for the next few days, lol.
Also finished up my latest blanket which I think I might raffle to try and raise more money for Refuge (who I did the crochet challenge for in the first place). I have a couple of urgent projects that I need to get on and get finished that I've been putting off and I haven't even started thinking about Christmas gifts yet.
And, inspired by f0xh0les, I have started investigating second hand school uniform and I have found a place that sells it. It's open from 10-12 today and I'm going to go down and take a look at it and see what's what. Fingers crossed I can find a bargain because I need to save even more pennies wherever I can. You never know - and I'm also going to donate his old blazer. It was literally only worn for 3 months and is now too small as puberty decides to change my ds body in all directions. 
Also hoping to catch up with bestie - she was suffering yesterday and had a night out last night planned as well so I wonder how she's getting along today? I dropped dd at work at half seven this morning then have got my first lot of washing done (had to resort to the dryer though as it's raining), changed the litter trays, fed the cats, done the rubbish and recycling and am sitting with a cuppa and some tv.
Take care all, and thanks for listening to me stress about NT1.

slm6002

Fingers crossed NT1 makes a great recovery. Another cat lady here who also visited vet yesterday and will probably have a nice bill in a weeks time, so feel for you.
Although I have purchased all school uniform, getting children try it on is a nightmare, so who knows if it will actually fit. Good luck today

WinterWarrior

That’s so hard, I hope the operation goes well. I don’t insure mine as they are house cats and I don’t get their yearly boosters either (just the first few as kittens or when they come to me, for some protection). I think the money saved more than makes up for the amounts I have paid out. I find with dog that insurance is so tricky to claim from anyway, it’s just there for the big disasters. I know for the cats sometimes it can (and has) been thousands, but over the years insurance might have been dearer. How much would you have paid out in insurance for NT1 between when you stopped and now? I bet there’s a hundred there to go towards it (virtually) and there’s no guarantee they’d have paid out again. 

Good luck with the uniform…it makes no sense to buy new for a few months wear and I’m sure lots of people are in the same boat. 

Honeysucklelou2

Hope the op goes well...can sympathise on the worry . My elderly lurcher had to have an op last year but the vets were very good at monitoring everything during the op as well as keeping him on a drip throughout for fluid levels and he came through 🙂.

beanielou

Paws crossed from here.

crazy_cat_lady

Morning all
I must, must, MUST go out for a walk today. I've stopped sleeping well again and I know that if I'm physically tired that will help. I've gotten out of the habit since I got home and started making excuses again for not going out. I have no problem with walking in the rain, or the cold. It's literally been too much hassle to put my boots on and leave the house. I'm always ok once I get going - it's the getting going that I can't seem to do. I need a good, hard kick up the backside.
So I went to the second hand uniform place yesterday and managed to get ds a 'new' blazer for £2. Thanks f0xh0les... It needs dry cleaning but that's still less than the £29.50 they cost new. Unfortunately they didn't have any trousers in his size, and I couldn't bring myself to entertain the second hand PE kit. I don't know why but I already felt a bit funny about second hand PE kit and then when I saw all of the washed out, red hoodies I just didn't even want to look. Complete role reversal for me and bestie, who bought her ds PE trousers, top and hoodie. Total spend between the 2 of us was a fiver - although I had to scrimp it together as the woman refused to accept my scottish fiver or tenner as she had never seen them before and bestie was so hungover when I picked her up that she came out without her purse. At least I got rid of all the 5p's in my purse
As I was on a roll and it was pittling down I decided I might as well get the terror of the rest of the uniform shop out of the way. So I collected ds and off we went to the horrible, single sports shop (6 miles away) to buy trousers and PE kit. PE kit, no problem and totalling £42 for what we needed. Trousers? The only trousers they had in stock were smaller than a 32" waist or larger than a 42" waist. My son fits into the category in between so I asked and was told they're 'having trouble' getting more trousers from their supplier. Not quite sure what I'm supposed to do there then because they are school regulation trousers and they are the only stockist of the school trousers. Ugh. I hate that school. I hate that it was my only choice if I wanted to keep my kids local to home for comp. I really hate the woman in charge there and their stupid, expensive, regulation uniform. Poor dd is shocked that when she starts 6th form she's going to be able to wear a skirt (not allowed at school) and boots (also not allowed at school). Poor kid - fancy getting to the age of almost 17 and being surprised that you can wear boots to go to your educational setting. Mind you, she's more than made up for it by treating herself to a pair of thigh high boots So I have ordered 2 pairs of trousers in ds size with no guarantee at all that they will arrive before school starts. I can't be the only person in this situation but feel like I might write a whingey email to the school anyway - just to 'make them aware'
Then we went into town on mission 'shoe shop'. We left the big C shoe shop £63 lighter and a pair of shoes heavier. Who knew that their school shoes went up to size 10? Not me. Quick browse round Primarni and home before the football hoardes descended on town (had not thought to check whether they were playing at home yesterday)
So both kids are now ready for school and sixth form. Just need the horrid trousers to arrive, and to enrol dd on Wednesday. She still hasn't decided what her 4th A level is going to be. She's torn between geography and psychology and changes her mind approximately 6 times an hour. I am beyond skint but at least that's the educational essentials done. Just the massive vet bill to come. Good job I don't need any new clothes, shoes or anything else for school.

Blackcats

Fingers crossed for your cat's op.  My cats aren't insured - I'd like to say that I'd been sensible and put money aside each month for vet's bills but that would be a fib.  
One of mine has just come in from the garden complete with mud, bits of twigs and leaves and plonked himself and the garden debris on my pillow.  He was such a scaredy cat when I first got him after being ill treated and then living rough that he gets away with taking liberties as I love seeing him relaxed and affectionate.  Pillow slip will need to go in the wash as soon as it's convenient for the cat to vacate it.

WinterWarrior

Who on earth decided school kids blazers should be dry clean only!! I can’t be doing with that palaver….if I buy in error it just goes in the machine at 30…so far only one thing hasn’t survived in more years than I care to count 😬