We Lost Our Dear Daisy

We lost Daisy Monday afternoon.

She'd gotten into the trash and evidentally ate something very deadly and fast acting. She was sick all night Sunday. Monday morning I took her to the vet. At that point we thought it was just an upset tummy and she would be fine. About 2:30 Monday afternoon, the vet tracked me down at the Orthopedic surgeon's office where I was having a followup appointment and told me Daisy had taken a bad turn for the worse and lapsed into a coma. Jenn & I left almost immediately and by the time we reached the vet she was gone.

He said when he went to draw blood he found clumps of red blood cells but no serum or white blood cells. Her temp dropped from a fever of 103.4 (normal = 102) to 90 in a matter of minutes before she went into the coma. He said he'd never seen anything like it and he has been practicing for 46 years. A preliminary autopsy showed the worst spleen damage he has also ever seen. It's been a nightmare.

She was fine 24 hours before. It's hard to even think much less talk about it. The family is devastated. We've all been crying for the last two days. I'm heartbroken.

Good News / Bad News

I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind.
Some come from ahead and some come from behind.
But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see.
Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!
Dr. Seuss

Bad News: Today my physical therapist concurred with my orthopedic surgon -- no more walking for exercise.

Good News: The therapy has gone very well. The pain in the tendon is greatly diminished and as long as I don't over use it my foot and ankle should be okay. The tendon is damaged and will never fully recover, but for now the surgery to fuse bones together doesn't appear to be necessary. YEA!!!

Everyone is saying I should switch to bicycling, which would take the pressure off of the tendon. The way my PT explained it. A deteriorating tendon only has so much life left in it, sort of like a gun with a limited number of bullets. I need to pick and choose how I spend those bullets. Our goal now is to extend the life of the tendon for as long as possible. The exercises I have learned will need to be done for the rest of my life. That's not too bad because they aren't very difficult and they seem to work well. And, he taught me how to properly use a cane. (You hold it in the OPPOSITE hand to the injured foot or ankle.) I've been doing it wrong all my life.

I've hated being dependent upon my daughter and others for transportation. I'm hoping that the Orthopedist will release me to take off the big black boot and to drive when I see him on Monday. I've been a "very" good girl these last several weeks and I'm hoping it is going to pay off.

Happy St. Patty's Day

May the road rise to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face.
And rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.

May you live as long as you want,
And never want as long as you live.

Always remember to forget
The things that made you sad.
But never forget to remember
The things that made you glad.

Always remember to forget
The friends that proved untrue.
But never forget to remember
Those that have stuck by you.

Always remember to forget
The troubles that passed away.
But never forget to remember
The blessings that come each day.

May the saddest day of your future be no worse
Than the happiest day of your past.

May the roof above us never fall in.
And may the friends gathered below it never fall out.

May you have warm words on a cold evening,
A full moon on a dark night,
And the road downhill all the way to your door.

May there be a generation of children
On the children of your children.

May you live to be a hundred years,
With one extra year to repent!

May the Lord keep you in His hand
And never close His fist too tight.

May your neighbors respect you,
Trouble neglect you,
The angels protect you,
And heaven accept you.

May the Irish hills caress you.
May her lakes and rivers bless you.
May the luck of the Irish enfold you.
May the blessings of Saint Patrick behold you.

May your pockets be heavy and your heart be light,
May good luck pursue you each morning and night.

Walls for the wind,
And a roof for the rain,
And drinks beside the fire -
Laughter to cheer you
And those you love near you,
And all that your heart may desire!

May God be with you and bless you,
May you see your children's children,
May you be poor in misfortune, rich in blessings.
May you know nothing but happiness
From this day forward.

May God grant you many years to live,
For sure He must be knowing
The earth has angels all too few
And heaven is overflowing.

May peace and plenty be the first
To lift the latch to your door,
And happiness be guided to your home
By the candle of Christmas.

May you always have work for your hands to do.
May your pockets hold always a coin or two.
May the sun shine bright on your windowpane.
May the rainbow be certain to follow each rain.
May the hand of a friend always be near you.
And may God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.