Archive for September, 2009

Sosta had surgery today. Emil is calling her the Thousand Dollar Kitty because that’s about what we’ve spent so far. Ahhhhhh, the price of love….

They took the big lump on her belly and two more smaller ones that had developed in the mean time. The addition of more lumps is a bad sign. It’s probably cancer and not a cyst. But, since she was at the vet just 2-3 weeks before the bigger lump appeared, we know we caught it early. And, a spread down one side of the abdomen is not uncommon.

Except for being groggy from the drugs, she’s doing fine. She isn’t supposed to jump but it’s not like we can keep her from it, and she seems to have no problem getting on the bed or sofa.

Our next step is to wait for the extensive lab work on the masses themselves and hope that the test results show very early stages and indicate that the surgeon found/got it all.

While she sleeps off the anesthesia hangover and wanders in a woozy state, we are playing with our new mobile phones (we both got the Rogue on Verizon) and seeing what the last two years of tech has added to mobile phone technology.

• Patrick Swayze passed away. Thoughts for his family & friends. #
• @annamunoz I also see the cast from Ally McBeal when I hear Barry White. #
• Chooose Austin First and Austing Independent Business Alliance joint meeting. Yay for shopping locally and keeping 3x as much money IN o … #
• RT @ValerieKusler 60,000 people/yr injured by crappy hard plastic packaging. Retailers looking to move away from it: http://bit.ly/1Cr8c #
• Waiting to me a tricky friend for lunch. #
• I think I have been stood up…. #
• At a dive in downtown #austin having some nommy nachos and people watching. #
• RT @Deepak_Chopra Accept what comes to you totally and completely so that you can appreciate it, learn from it, and then let it go. #
• RT @LaniAR if you’re in Miami and looking for a social media job, DM @LaniAR. #
• YAY for the sale! Congrats! RT @annamunoz I no longer own a house in Texas!! YAY!!! #
• @IleenieWeenie Can i bring anything or help in some other way? #
• @annmunoz yesser we did!!! Was on the market from early Nov until Aug28. #
• quoting @IleenieWeenie “I like the trying part, it’s the failing I don’t like so much!” Hang in there, Girlie! #
• Oh, and that new “scent” in the kitchen that permeates the rest of our domicile, is microwave-exploded-canned-cat food. NOM! #

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• Really starting to hate the new firefox. #
• At the Austin Professional Photographers meeting at Dave & Buster’s !! Gotta love that! #

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• Hey Ohio State, What about NCAA’s respect program? Get your band far enough over to let your guests take the field! #
• Must have been a good puub crawl (for cancer) today. They are deeeee-RUNK! #
• Ohio State, it’s called aportsmanship. We know the concept is new to your school, but it’s time to get on board with the rest of the NCAA. #
• I love love love love love @emil285 !! He just did the nicest thing for a complete stranger. Wow! …swoon… #
• RT @funnyoneliners You’d think all you would see in broad daylight is women.
  (via @SamGrittner) #
• @crewt I also hate Ohio State, but also want to see the underdog win for the sake of our alma mater! & I like USC, so it’s a quandry! #
• @annamunoz I wonder that on a daily basis!! He’s such a gentle soul and deserves so much more than I have available to give. #
• Goooooo Gamecocks! #
• Making a pink baby blanket (crocheted) while we enjoy college football, wings, & beer. Nom and fun in one! #
• @annamunoz True DAAAAT! #
• Georgia State Troopers give each other knucks behind Steve Spurrier (after Georgia beats tha Gamecocks…) FTW! #
• @daveiam We’re headed home after a long evening of watching college football… #
• Excited to be on the verge of new mobile phones! #
• @daveiam Your ‘My lady’ is 100% on a lot of things, I’d guess!! #

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• RT @funnyoneliners I’d consider being a farmer. As long as I could live on Pepperidge Farm. And raise Milanos. (via @avi1111) #
• With all the rain in Austin today, #GwoP sighting would be extra special…but I bet there won’t be any/many. #
• Funny thing: saw a child’s name very similar to my mom’s (unusual) name: Annaber #
• @spam aspot4you #
• Making chicken vegetable soup to finish out the rest of this rainy weekend. NOM! #
• goooo Cougar High (aka University of Houston) Way to be the underdog. Keep it up! #
• YAY, Houston!!! Thanks for the upset over Okie State! #

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Sosta’s ultrasound went well…more than just well…better than I could have hoped.

As it turns out, there are no liver problems. The high ranges in her blood can also be the result of tartar/plague entering the bloodstream. It’s been 9 or 10 years since she needed to have her teeth cleaned (and that was a scary time since we were told she’d eventually lose all her teeth.) Thus, I’m hopeful that the tarter and plaque won’t come back quickly. She’s safe to have surgery. While she’s under, they’ll remove the lump on her belly and also clean her teeth. The dental work should get her liver reading back into a normal range. The lump will be sent off to the “super-lab” for full analysis.

While she’s not out of the woods, things are much more hopeful than they were just a few hours ago. We are both so very grateful for that.

• Having tons of fun at the September Social at Submerged! Where are YOU? #
• The September Social was Just Too Much Fun! Thank you @LaniAR @stephensurefire & all who braved the humidity! #
• RT @IleenieWeenie @loriluza Hey camera lady!! Thanks for taking groovy pix @ #atxsocial #
• RT @austintexasgov AFD firefighters honor 9-11 heroes by climbing stairs equaling WTC floors http://budurl.com/afd911 #
• Support the victims of the September 11 terrorist attack. Add a 9/11 tag to your twitter avatar, http://www.wearredon911.com #
• RT @annamunoz Twitter experiment: I put ona white sweater. Will tweet when I have 2 change b/c I spilled something on it #whyineverwearwhite #
• RT @annamunoz White shirt officially dirty! Culprit: jasmine tea! Made it ~2hrs, 1.5 hours longer than expected #whyineverwearwhite #
• Sosta’s ultrasound went well. No liver problems, just tartar/plague skewing the results. Next step: surgery to remove the lump. #

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Sosta is sick.

We had some urination problems since the move and took her to the vet. They did a mini blood panel and didn’t find anything wrong. Dr. Swanze also examined a little lump—barely bigger than her Avid chip—-she’s had for years. There were no problems. We moved the litter box in hopes of re-training her.

Monday, I found a large lump on her belly, so I took her in first thing Tuesday morning and she saw Dr. Bryant. The lump could be a cyst, but it could also be mammary cancer. We ordered a full blood panel in preparation for surgery, but the results were not good. Liver function that was fine just a couple of weeks ago is awful. She can’t have anesthesia without a healthy liver, so today, she’s at the clinic again for an ultrasound of her heart and abdomen to look for causes.

I had a huge event last night for As You Wish, so I was forced to put my emotions on hold for about a day. End result: crying myself to sleep and spending most of today in a teary state as well. All the 9/11 tributes and “wear red” campaigning is not helping. I’m having to ignore what I am sure are some great blog posts from some great writers because I can’t read about that tragedy when I’m already on edge.

I’ll learn more when I pick her up at 5pm today. Emil and I have talked about the “what if” scenarios. We are neither one prepared for—but both expect—-very bad news. I hope we are wrong. I hope that today’s ultrasound finds some little/easy fix that won’t be traumatic for her. …and if we are right, we’ll do our best to keep her comfortable.

As many of you know, she’s the best cat in the world. Even when vets are poking her with needles and violating her for a temperature reading, she’s calm and sweet and gentle. She handles stress better than just about any being I’ve ever witnessed. I know that if the tables were turned, she’d treat me famously during what might be my last moments with her. I hope I can be strong for her like she would for me; I certainly don’t feel strong.

• Beatles Rock Band is pretty cool, especially since it’s free! Thanks @omarg and The Statesman! #
• They’re all singing. They’re not all playing, but they’re all singing…and badly on Don’t Let Me Down. #
• RT @brianboyko @omarg http://bit.ly/Xf0ds – Beatles RockBand photos! #
• RT @ZoopMedia: why oh why should you use the WordPress platform? http://bit.ly/lYGAj #
• RT @univmiami Festival Miami has over 20 concerts & master classes. Classical, music of the Americas, jazz, more! http://www.festivalmiami.com #
• @omarg You throw a good party and have a great group of colleagues, too! We had a “groovy” time. See you at the September Social tonight! #
• RT @hurricanesports No. 20 Miami Turns its Attention to No. 15 Georgia Tech http://bit.ly/3vHD1 #
• Want a list of active twitter users in austin? go follow people RSVPd to tonight’s social: http://tweetvite.com/event/atx @LaniAR #
• Headed to Submerged to start setting up the portrait station for the September Social! #

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What a GREAT way to start the year!

Go’ Canes!!!