Our European Vacation

At last! We've been home from Europe for a month, and I'm finally finding time to tell you about it.

We arrived in Paris the morning of May 13 and were greeted at the gate by my dear friend Alexia. She and I met in high school through an exchange program and had stayed friends ever since. We've both visited each other's homes several times, and the last time David and I had seen her was at our wedding five years ago. The last time I had seen her family was in 1998, the last time I was in Paris. So it was a delight to go out to lunch with Alexia and her mother at a very nice restaurant just down the street from Alexia's parents' apartment.

Later in the afternoon Alexia gave us a walking tour of her neighborhood, Republique, and the surrounding neighborhoods. We walked through the Place de Volges, where we saw Victor Hugo's house and listened to a string quintet playing on the street. We stopped for an espresso at a cafe next to the Pompidou Centre and saw the World's Fattest Pigeon (the photo doesn't really do it justice, but if you look closely you can see David standing at its feet).

That evening we dined with Alexia's mother, brother Laurent and sister-in-law Augustina (pictured at left) at one of the oldest restaurants in Paris: Procop. It features museum-quality decor, such as Voltaire's writing desk (conveniently positioned right outside the kitchen door so waiters can stack dirty dishes there); china from the Revolution; and Napoleon's hat. One of the featured dishes was Braised Calf's Head - just like grandmere used to make in the 1600s - but none of us was brave enough to order it. The meal lasted about three and a half hours, and Alexia's family was great company. Her father, unfortunately, was away on a business trip, but we did end up getting to see him later in the week.

Afterward David and I got to enjoy one of the greatest benefits of having your own personal French tour guides - a driving tour of Paris at night. Alexia sped around the city of lights from one major landmark to another while her mother, a history buff, explained the history of each. I enjoyed it, but David must have been in HEAVEN. We saw Notre Dame, the Louvre, the Opera House, to name a few. The most impressive, however, was the Eiffel Tower. I don't mean to sound cliche - in fact I've seen the Eiffel Tower in person many times. But since my last trip to Paris they added a new feature. For the first 15 minutes at the top of each hour after dark, the tower SPARKLES (some of you already know how I LOVE sparkly things). It was pretty amazing. Like pixie dust!

Needless to say we were exhausted when we got back to Alexia's apartment sometime after midnight. We fell asleep, and David and I slept until 2 p.m. the next day.

To be continued...

Happy Birthday, Ruby!

She's here! My newest niece Ruby was born Wednesday, June 14, 2007 at 5:42 pm. She was 7 pounds, 5 ounces and 20 inches long. She's surprisingly very lively for a newborn - not like I've seen many newborns, but I guess I just expected her to not do much her first few hours. The doctor commented on how she's a very strong kicker (my sister-in-law Stacy can attest to that!), and she was very interested in looking around with her big blue eyes. Stacy's tired but otherwise well, and Jamey was obviously a very proud papa. He's already developing little daddy-mannerisms, like saying "all done" every time Ruby finishes a round of crying. The new family comes home Saturday. Congrats, guys!

Callie update - Conclusion

I just wanted to thank all my friends and family for their support and condolences through this difficult time. This will be my last post about Callie before I move on to brighter, happier things, like our trip to Prague and the upcoming birth of my niece and goddaughter, Ruby.

We got the word on Wednesday morning that not only had Callie's condition not improved but it was actually getting worse. Soon she would be entering a phase of discomfort. So just before noon we went in to say goodbye and put her to sleep. We got to sit with her for a few minutes, and she purred up until the end. We decided to stay in the room with her, which I am glad we did. It was very peaceful and quick, and the doctor said Callie felt euphoric in her final moments. The vet cried with us afterward.

We spent the rest of the day at home, crying periodically but somehow feeling a bit of relief. At least we didn't have to worry about her anymore. A sadness lingers but the tears come less frequently now. And we are appreciating the hell out of the health and vigor of our other animals, and they are loving the attention.

Yesterday a friend of mine at work, who is a cat lover herself, gave me a very sweet card with the following poem inside. And even though at least one of my dear friends and loyal readers may think it describes the gateway to Hell, I found it very sweet and consoling. So I thought I'd share it with all of you.

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge. When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable. All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind. They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster. You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart. Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

Thanks for everything, Cal. I love ya.

Callie Griner
1999-2007

Callie update - Part III

She's gone. We were with her. It was peaceful.

Callie update - Part II

David and I visited with Callie for nearly an hour tonight. The vet took her out of her cage and put her in an exam room where we could sit with her. It was nice. She was in good spirits and purred the whole time. The vet stayed in the room with us for awhile and answered a lot of our questions. Turns out the numbers I originally threw out in my last blog entry weren't exactly accurate (I've since edited that post to reflect what the doc told us tonight). But Callie's creatinine count is definitely higher than it should be. They will be doing another blood test tomorrow morning and call us sometime before 8:30 am. If her numbers go down to a level the vet is happy with, Callie will still have a lot more obstacles to overcome. But one step at a time.

Our friend Valerie, whose father is a vet, told David today that animals can actually enjoy being at a vet's office when they're sick. She said it's a comfort to them to be alone and safe in a quiet room with room service (I'm editorializing a little). I think that's true with Callie. She seems very content and comfortable. The staff lets her out of her kennel once in awhile to explore the room, which she seems to like. It made us feel better to see her like that.

I took advantage of our relatively high spirits to ask the vet some of the tough questions. I know that if we have to make the big decision then we will not physically be capable of asking those questions then. She explained what it would be like for Callie and what we could expect if we decided to be there with her. I'm glad we talked about it. I feel it prepared us a little.

On a brighter note, Mazzy is fine. Her blood work showed no sign of health issues. So that's a relief.

Callie update - Part I

Callie's condition has not improved - or worsened - since we transferred her yesterday from the emergency vet to her regular doctor. But we do know more about her condition and possibly the cause. It seems a type of treat we had been feeding her might have been contaminated with melamine.

The treats themselves - Nutra brand Max Cat Gourmet Kitty Treats - Albacore Tuna flavor - were not on the recall list. In fact, the company insists that none of its dry food was contaminated. Yet Callie's symptoms match up with those of cats who ate the contaminated food. As a precaution, I brought my other cat, Mazzy, into the vet this morning to get blood work done. Had I realized the company was even on the list...well, you know.

Right now the vet continues to pump Callie with more fluids and is hoping that will lower her creatinine count. From what we understood from our vet, who threw out lots of numbers, a healthy cat's creatinine count should be around 2. A level of 4 is considered dangerous. Callie's is somewhere in the double digits.

So if that number is going to go down it will take some time. The vet plans to do another blood test tomorrow instead of today to allow the fluids and Callie's body more time to work. Again, we've been told that tomorrow we'll know more.

Emotionally I think David and I are doing as well as could be expected. We were able to sleep better last night than the night before because we had a little more to hope for. But I think it will get harder and harder the more nights that pass when she's not at home with us, curled up on one of our pillows and purring next to our heads.

In the meantime, I urge all of you to check your cat and dog treats and foods against the recall list - even if you already have, check it again. I thought I had been closely guarding my pets against the contaminated food but it seems some of it slipped past even my watchful eye. Be suspicious if you see a brand name you use, even if the company claims that the exact food you're using is fine. It appears the list may not yet be complete.

Our weekend emergency

You know those dreams where someone close to you dies, and it's just so hard to believe and the pain is so acute that it feels real, but then you wake up and realize with great relief that it was all just a dream? Well David and I had that feeling last night - only at the time there was no waking up.

But this morning we have renewed hope that maybe we still can.

We got up this morning fully expecting to have to put our 7-year-old cat Callie to sleep. It all happened so suddenly. She's always been a small cat, but this past week she has been getting thinner and thinner. She's now down to 5 pounds. She's had virtually no appetite, and the past few days hasn't been drinking water. Not that she hasn't wanted to - she spent all of Saturday night stooped over her water bowl. But didn't swallow a drop.

I set up a doctor's appointment on Saturday for Monday morning, but by Sunday afternoon she looked like she had aged 10 years. She could barely walk. We thought she might have an abscess, which she has had before. The symptoms were very similar. Finally, we called our good friend Brett the Vet. He came over, took one look at her, and said we needed to take her to the emergency vet immediately. We're so glad he gave us that advice.

The prognosis was not good. Callie's blood work indicated she was suffering from complete kidney failure. We had two choices: leave her overnight and let them observe her and give her fluids or call it quits. We were told we'd know in 12-24 hours if she had any hope. We elected to leave her, although we were told she did not have very good odds.

So last night was rough. We watched lots of TV to take our minds off of reality. But after each show ended we just went right back to crying. David called his sister to tell her the news about 10 pm, and she and her husband came right over, bearing tissues and blueberry muffins. It helped to talk to them about it. They lost a pet a few years ago who was about the same age as Callie.

Needless to say it was a pretty sleepless night. We mentally prepared ourselves this morning - as best as we could - to put her down.

But when we got to the clinic the doctor said her chances had improved. Callie had produced some urine, meaning the kidneys aren't completely shot. The doctor said it looked like she might have a kidney infection and they had started her on antibiotics. She could still pull through and completely recover. So there is still hope. Callie's spirits have even improved - she was her old whiny self during the car ride to her regular vet.

So that's where she is now. We expect a call from the vet any minute. We're cautiously optimistic - we'd love to take her home tonight but we need to still be prepared for the worst. But at least David and I are now emotionally stable enough to be at work today.

We'll keep you posted. Please keep her in your thoughts.