Have you ever had one of those moments where something just hits you? Kind of like "wow...I really live in Washington, its not just a vacation." Well, I already had my "I really live in Washington" moment and today I had my second reality check moment. An earthquake. Yes, thats right - an earthquake. In all fairness, I didn't know it was an earthquake at the time, but suddenly the fact that I live in a place that has several fault lines running underneath it, and is surrounded by 5 active volcanoes, seems a little scary.
Mr. V woke up this morning around 4:30 to get ready for work. Around 5:30ish, I woke up and felt the bed shaking. At the time I didn't think much about it. Whenever one of our cats stands up and stretches it makes whatever piece of furniture he/she is sitting on vibrate. In the past, whenever a cat has done that, we've joked around and said "Was that an earthquake? Nope, just a cat." Well, this morning I felt the bed shake and when I looked up to see which cat was stretching, I was a little surprised to see a bed free of cats. Again though, I didn't think much about it. I was annoyed that I had woken up and chalked it up to Mr. V making noise as he got ready for work.
It wasn't until a few hours later that I heard a news report that there was a 4.6 magnitude earthquake in Seattle at 5:30 this morning. The first shock I had was that I had no idea you could feel a 4.6 earthquake (sometimes I love the fact that I grew up in a bubble). The second shock was that not only can you feel a 4.6 magnitude earthquake, but Seattle isn't just right down the road from us. Its close, but at the same time, not really. Which means that if the epicenter was directly below Seattle, and it could be felt here on Whidbey Island, then I better learn something about earthquakes!
I have to admit that I have a mixture of shock and denial about the whole thing. Part of me thinks its pretty cool that I felt it. Mr. V claims that he didn't feel anything, but he was rushing around getting ready for work at the time and not in a still position anywhere. He originally told me that I was imagining things and there is no way I felt anything. He ate his words though when he pulled up a map of the area. The map was various different areas surrounding Seattle and it was colored in to show how much of the quake was felt by people. Whidbey Island was entirely colored in, with most of it showing that people felt mild vibrations, while a few on the south end felt moderate movement.
Soooo yeah...this was a wakeup call. I don't do well with natural disasters. I grew up in a place that rarely had any type of natural disaster. Maybe a blizzard here and there or a small hurricane, but thats all. Earthquakes are a new thing to me.
Add this to the fact that I just finished watching the news where they reported on today's earthquake and compared it to the earthquake Seattle experienced in 2001. Apparently they occured along the same fault line and they were nice enough to show me some scary pictures of the damage from 2001. They went on to talk about a volcano that's about to erupt in Alaska, and how that is not connected to today's earthquake here (at least, not that they know of). However, they did point out that this area is surrounded by 5 active volcanoes, one of which erupted 28 years ago (Mt. St. Helens) and has been recently rebuilding itself. A news reporter cheerfully pointed out that a severe earthquake in this area could possibly trigger volcanic activity. Awesome.
So that was my wakeup call. Earthquakes and volcanoes. Not exactly something I have prior experience in, and not something that I hope to gain experience in. I can handle a faint rumbling, but anything more than that is going to send me packing back to the east coast!
Friday, January 30, 2009
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
25 Random Things
This is a survey type thing that has been floating around Facebook recently. Its one of those "tag a person and then they fill out the survey next" things. 4 people tagged me for it on Facebook, so I just finished wasting time away by doing it on there, so I thought I'd bring it over here for anyone who doesn't have a Facebook addiction to read :-). (Also, I'm tagging anyone who reads this - I want to know 25 things about you too! [Mainly, so I know I'm not the only one wasting time away])
25 Random Things
Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.
1. I miss living next to Alice (I thought I'd get this one in first, even though I was close to the end of her list :-))
2. I'm a Northerner with a Southern heart. I'm from New Jersey, but I consider North Carolina as my 2nd home. 4 years of college there and 1 year living there afterwards made me quite attached to the place.
3. I'm a horrible cook. Spaghetti is my specialty, nothing else. I am however, a wonderful baker and can make great cookies, pies, and cakes from scratch.
4. I recently discovered quilting as a hobby and have become addicted to it.
5. I used to be a certified Red Cross canoe instructor.
6. I want to open my own non-profit animal rescue one day.
7. My dream job is a Civil War historian.
8. I want to own and renovate a pre-Civil War farmhouse.
9. I don't like the west because I'm a Civil War history nerd and that history doesn't extend this far out in the country.
10. I think South Dakota is one of the most beautiful and interesting places I have ever seen (this was a huge shock to me so I had to add this fact).
11. My goal is to visit all 50 states before I turn 30.(I only have 2 years left so this probably won't happen :-()
12. I've had at least one pet rabbit in my house since I was 4 years old.
13. I'm terrified of falling (I am not terrified of heights, just of falling. If I'm up high and secure in the fact that I won't fall, then I'm fine.)
14. I'm terrified of flying (see #13) but I married a pilot.
15. I'm very attached to my maiden name and haven't been able to bring myself to change it for anything except legal stuff at the moment (hence, why my Facebook name still isn't changed).
16. I started kindergarten when I was just under 4 1/2, which made me the youngest person in my grade all throughout school, and I was even younger than most people in the grade behind me.
17. I'm a lifetime member of the Girl Scouts.
18. Love terrifies me (yes my husband is aware of that :-)).
19. I don't really like living in Washington. However, I've met more people and made more friends here than I ever did in Jacksonville, or Corpus Christi. So I guess small towns in the middle of nowhere have good points :-).
20.I'm VERY OCD about pictures. Any pictures that I have printed have to be labeled as to what is going on in the picture and what date it was taken. Then they have to be placed into photo albums in the exact same order they were taken.
21. I like to crochet. Occasionally I crochet with a cat or 2 on my lap, making me well aware of the fact that I am becoming a crazy, old cat lady.
22. I have 9 cats.
23. My biggest pet peeve is when people have burnt out Christmas lights on their house. Seriously, I can't stand it. When I was little I begged my parents to let me go to the neighbors and offer to change out their dead light bulbs, but I was told that was rude. I have to be the one to inspect my own Christmas lights and put them up.
24.I've recently accepted the fact that being a Navy wife means I will probably never have a career. A job maybe, but not a career.
25. I should be doing something productive right now instead of telling everyone 25 random things about me!
25 Random Things
Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.
1. I miss living next to Alice (I thought I'd get this one in first, even though I was close to the end of her list :-))
2. I'm a Northerner with a Southern heart. I'm from New Jersey, but I consider North Carolina as my 2nd home. 4 years of college there and 1 year living there afterwards made me quite attached to the place.
3. I'm a horrible cook. Spaghetti is my specialty, nothing else. I am however, a wonderful baker and can make great cookies, pies, and cakes from scratch.
4. I recently discovered quilting as a hobby and have become addicted to it.
5. I used to be a certified Red Cross canoe instructor.
6. I want to open my own non-profit animal rescue one day.
7. My dream job is a Civil War historian.
8. I want to own and renovate a pre-Civil War farmhouse.
9. I don't like the west because I'm a Civil War history nerd and that history doesn't extend this far out in the country.
10. I think South Dakota is one of the most beautiful and interesting places I have ever seen (this was a huge shock to me so I had to add this fact).
11. My goal is to visit all 50 states before I turn 30.(I only have 2 years left so this probably won't happen :-()
12. I've had at least one pet rabbit in my house since I was 4 years old.
13. I'm terrified of falling (I am not terrified of heights, just of falling. If I'm up high and secure in the fact that I won't fall, then I'm fine.)
14. I'm terrified of flying (see #13) but I married a pilot.
15. I'm very attached to my maiden name and haven't been able to bring myself to change it for anything except legal stuff at the moment (hence, why my Facebook name still isn't changed).
16. I started kindergarten when I was just under 4 1/2, which made me the youngest person in my grade all throughout school, and I was even younger than most people in the grade behind me.
17. I'm a lifetime member of the Girl Scouts.
18. Love terrifies me (yes my husband is aware of that :-)).
19. I don't really like living in Washington. However, I've met more people and made more friends here than I ever did in Jacksonville, or Corpus Christi. So I guess small towns in the middle of nowhere have good points :-).
20.I'm VERY OCD about pictures. Any pictures that I have printed have to be labeled as to what is going on in the picture and what date it was taken. Then they have to be placed into photo albums in the exact same order they were taken.
21. I like to crochet. Occasionally I crochet with a cat or 2 on my lap, making me well aware of the fact that I am becoming a crazy, old cat lady.
22. I have 9 cats.
23. My biggest pet peeve is when people have burnt out Christmas lights on their house. Seriously, I can't stand it. When I was little I begged my parents to let me go to the neighbors and offer to change out their dead light bulbs, but I was told that was rude. I have to be the one to inspect my own Christmas lights and put them up.
24.I've recently accepted the fact that being a Navy wife means I will probably never have a career. A job maybe, but not a career.
25. I should be doing something productive right now instead of telling everyone 25 random things about me!
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Vindicated!!
Mr. V was watching the news tonight while I was being an old lady working on a cross stitch project. I was barely paying attention to the news when I overheard the reporter talking about the top 5 jobs in the area to make extra money from. Since I currently have no job, that got my attention for a bit. They listed the jobs and the annual salary you would make if you worked 40 hours a week. It was an average, not an exact amount, of course, but what was on the list? Childcare!!! Apparently, childcare in this area can earn you almost $20,000 a year. It didn't specify if that was from working at a preschool or day care or working from home, but it DID specify that a childcare provider has an average hourly wage of about $9.46. I wonder if Crazy Woman was watching the news tonight. I just love that after all my ranting about my babysitting job, they actually said, on the local news, that a childcare provider in this area makes $9.46 an hour. $9.46 an hour! Take THAT Crazy Woman! :-)
(no...I am not going to get over this whole situation easily...)
(no...I am not going to get over this whole situation easily...)
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Don't Litter! Spay and Neuter!
I'm starting to really lose my patience with people and their ability to care for animals. First, let me say that I consider myself an animal rights activist in a "normal" way. Years ago I would have told you that I was not an activist because I thought an animal rights activist was some psycho who joined PETA and spent their life protesting stupid things. My aunt is one of those people. I remember hearing about how she drove for 7 hours, to go protest a pigeon shoot that was being done because the pigeons were bringing disease and filth into New York City years ago (the shoot was going to be in Central Park). At the time, I thought my aunt was nuts. I still think she's nuts. She goes above and beyond what I consider to be normal animal rights activism. So let me clarify by saying that I am not a vegetarian and never will be one. I love meat, but I am one of those people that vegetarians hate because I choose to ignore the fact that I'm eating an animal. I don't want to think of the poor cow that had to die just so I could eat a good steak. So I simply don't think about it. Psychotic animal rights people hate people like me.
So what do I consider NORMAL animal rights activism? To put it simply, its common sense. Its treating your pets the way they deserve to be treated. Its treating animals like they are living things, not objects. I will never tell someone to put an animal above a human (yet another thing that the "crazy" people hate about people like me).
However, in general, I am getting really sick of people and their excuses for treating animals the way they do. Right now I have a house full of 9 cats. Every single one of them is a rescue.
Lots of people who fall into the crazy animal rights category believe that no one should ever give up a pet that they have taken into their home. I agree to a point. I do believe that some people have very valid reasons for re-homing an animal. However, I think that these people with valid reasons are overshadowed by the people with utterly ridiculous reasons. In the past year, these are excuses that I have seen on Craigslist and Freecycle, both here and back in Jacksonville, for getting rid of an animal or asking for a new animal.
"I'm moving to California and I have to get rid of my cat. We are moving into base housing and I don't know if they allow animals so we have to get rid of him." (seriously? You don't even know if they allow animals, but you have to get rid of the cat? First of all, don't even get me started on the phrase "get rid of" and second, why are you getting rid of the cat if you may still be able to keep it? And moving shouldn't be an issue. I moved with 6 cats and a rabbit from Florida to Washington and everyone was just fine.)
"We got new carpet in our house and my orange cat clashes with it. We have to get rid of him. However, I'm now looking for an all black cat because he will fit in better with the decor of my house." (I wish I was joking about this one but sadly, I'm not.)
"I'm looking for a FREE cat. Must have all shots and be spayed or neutered. I can't afford to take a cat to the vet so it MUST be free. We just moved here and I had to get rid of my son's cat before the move. He's devastated so I need to find him a new cat. Please help." (Why should anyone help? Why should anyone give you a new cat when you'll just get rid of it when you move again? And by the way, no animals are free. If you get a free cat now, what happens when you have to take it to the vet later?)
"I have to get rid of my dog TODAY. If no one wants him then I will have to take him to the pound and I really don't want to do that because he's such a great pet. I really hope that someone will help me." (This is a common one that I see often. The person uses guilt trips to pawn their animal off on someone. I hate to break it to you, but it is not MY fault if you have to take your dog to the pound. I'm not happy that you have to do it either, but take the blame yourself. Its no one's fault but your own that you took in an animal that you weren't prepared to care for.)
"We're a military family and we are moving. We need to find new homes for our 2 dogs and 3 cats."(This one makes me really angry too. This is also a common posting, especially in Jacksonville. It always appears that the poster is trying to get sympathy about being a military family. Unfortunately, what that person doesn't know is that ads like these are what prevent responsible military families from adopting animals from shelters. Many shelters around the whole country and also in Europe will not allow a military family to adopt any animal, no matter how much you prove to them that you will care for it. (I frequent a military wives forum and there is currently a girl on there who lives in England right now with other rescued animals. She recently begged and pleaded to adopt a shelter animal and was denied because her husband was in the military.)The reasoning behind this is that too many military families abandon animals when they move. So thanks, irresponsible military families. You've ruined it for the rest of us.)
Moving beyond excuses to get rid of animals, comes my second biggest issue with people. And that is losing pets. I will be the first one to tell you that one of my cats ran away last year. He was gone for 3 months and I never thought I would see him again. But, it was an accident. I opened the door and he ran out and into the night, into a swamp and I lost sight of him. I completely understand that accidents happen. I know dogs will dig under fences, cats will push window screens out, etc...However, I have no sympathy for you, when your own stupidity is what causes you to lose your pet.
For example, there is a person on Craigslist right now who is missing 3 kittens. She wrote a very heart felt ad and seems genuinely upset that her kittens are missing. HOWEVER, she goes on to explain how they got lost. Kitten #1 was let outside a month ago and never came home. 2 weeks ago, kitten #2 was let outside and never came home. Now this week kitten #3 was let out and didn't come home. She goes on to plead with people to return her cats. You know what though? I don't have sympathy for her. I'm not going to get into a huge debate about indoor vs outdoor animals. I prefer to keep mine indoors. I also understand that some people have large amounts of land where their animals live carefree outdoors. However, does it really take more than common sense to realize that this woman is missing 3 cats because she LETS THEM OUTSIDE??? Wouldn't you think that after the first one disappeared, she'd be more careful with the other 2? And lets give her the benefit of the doubt. Maybe it didn't sink in the first time, but after the second one went missing, wouldn't you think to keep an eye on the 3rd one? I really do hope those kittens are ok, but I hope that someone else found them and took them inside to give them a good home.
My third issue is spaying and neutering. The reason I started on this rant today is because I read an interesting article about a bill that is trying to get passed here in Washington. Many states have low cost or free spay and neuter programs for low income families. Jacksonville had several of these programs and they were very successful. Here's a link to what Washington is trying to accomplish and I urge you to support this cause whether you love animals or not. In my mind, it benefits the people that love animals AND the people that hate them. If you hate animals, and more people start spaying and neutering their pets, then you will have less strays wandering around :-). Therefore, everyone can win in the end! Save Washington Pets
Rhode Island recently became a state that makes spaying and neutering pets a law. I don't completely agree with that though. I do agree with spaying and neutering for various other reasons though. One reason obviously being that they can't reproduce more homeless animals. The 2nd being because it has shown to negate the chances of certain health problems (i.e. ovarian cancer). I think people should have a choice as to what they want to do with their pet. If you want to have an intact male dog or cat. Fine. But do the rest of the world a favor and keep him away from other dogs and cats!! Another recent Craigslist posting is from a woman in this area who lost her male cat. He was an outdoor cat and not fixed. She may not even think about it, but I find myself wondering how many stray female cats that male impregnated already. Its the same with females. Another common Freecyle and Craigslist posting goes something like this:
"Oops...lol...my cat accidently got pregnant for a 3rd time. Now I have kittens and if I can't get rid of them by the end of the week then I will be forced to take them to the pound." (And here we go with the common sense thing again. How does your cat ACCIDENTLY get pregnant 3 times? I'm willing to let one time slip. But 3?? Take your cat inside idiot. OR if you insist on having an outdoor cat, get her spayed! This is really not that complicated, and I, along with many others, don't find it funny the way you do.)
Look at it this way. For every cat or dog that gets adopted outside of a shelter, a shelter animal will die. There are horrendous numbers of animals put to sleep every single year because shelters don't have the room for them. I'm not going to debate real breeders, because I actually don't mind responsible breeders. But people who accidently let their animals reproduce are doing nothing but making the overall problem worse. Think about this. If you want to adopt a stray cat and you see someone outside of Walmart giving away free ones, then you might take one home. However, if that person with their accidental litter wasn't there, you probably would have gone to a shelter and rescued a cat from there. Now I'm not saying that the non shelter animals should be ignored. None of my cats came from a shelter. Mine were all found wandering around stray or trapped as ferals. I'm a person who would take home a kitten that was being giving away outside of Walmart, but thats not the point. The point is, there shouldn't be someone giving those kittens away in the first place if you were just a responsible pet owner!! So please everyone - Don't Litter...Spay and Neuter :-).
I don't mean to offend anyone who may disagree with this post. Its just amazing to me that now that I have started my own form of rescue (no abandoned animal goes unwelcomed in this house) that I can see the irresponsibility of others out there. Its no wonder why shelter workers are always stressed and unhappy. When all you see is stupidity around you all day long, how can it NOT bring you down?
So what do I consider NORMAL animal rights activism? To put it simply, its common sense. Its treating your pets the way they deserve to be treated. Its treating animals like they are living things, not objects. I will never tell someone to put an animal above a human (yet another thing that the "crazy" people hate about people like me).
However, in general, I am getting really sick of people and their excuses for treating animals the way they do. Right now I have a house full of 9 cats. Every single one of them is a rescue.
Lots of people who fall into the crazy animal rights category believe that no one should ever give up a pet that they have taken into their home. I agree to a point. I do believe that some people have very valid reasons for re-homing an animal. However, I think that these people with valid reasons are overshadowed by the people with utterly ridiculous reasons. In the past year, these are excuses that I have seen on Craigslist and Freecycle, both here and back in Jacksonville, for getting rid of an animal or asking for a new animal.
"I'm moving to California and I have to get rid of my cat. We are moving into base housing and I don't know if they allow animals so we have to get rid of him." (seriously? You don't even know if they allow animals, but you have to get rid of the cat? First of all, don't even get me started on the phrase "get rid of" and second, why are you getting rid of the cat if you may still be able to keep it? And moving shouldn't be an issue. I moved with 6 cats and a rabbit from Florida to Washington and everyone was just fine.)
"We got new carpet in our house and my orange cat clashes with it. We have to get rid of him. However, I'm now looking for an all black cat because he will fit in better with the decor of my house." (I wish I was joking about this one but sadly, I'm not.)
"I'm looking for a FREE cat. Must have all shots and be spayed or neutered. I can't afford to take a cat to the vet so it MUST be free. We just moved here and I had to get rid of my son's cat before the move. He's devastated so I need to find him a new cat. Please help." (Why should anyone help? Why should anyone give you a new cat when you'll just get rid of it when you move again? And by the way, no animals are free. If you get a free cat now, what happens when you have to take it to the vet later?)
"I have to get rid of my dog TODAY. If no one wants him then I will have to take him to the pound and I really don't want to do that because he's such a great pet. I really hope that someone will help me." (This is a common one that I see often. The person uses guilt trips to pawn their animal off on someone. I hate to break it to you, but it is not MY fault if you have to take your dog to the pound. I'm not happy that you have to do it either, but take the blame yourself. Its no one's fault but your own that you took in an animal that you weren't prepared to care for.)
"We're a military family and we are moving. We need to find new homes for our 2 dogs and 3 cats."(This one makes me really angry too. This is also a common posting, especially in Jacksonville. It always appears that the poster is trying to get sympathy about being a military family. Unfortunately, what that person doesn't know is that ads like these are what prevent responsible military families from adopting animals from shelters. Many shelters around the whole country and also in Europe will not allow a military family to adopt any animal, no matter how much you prove to them that you will care for it. (I frequent a military wives forum and there is currently a girl on there who lives in England right now with other rescued animals. She recently begged and pleaded to adopt a shelter animal and was denied because her husband was in the military.)The reasoning behind this is that too many military families abandon animals when they move. So thanks, irresponsible military families. You've ruined it for the rest of us.)
Moving beyond excuses to get rid of animals, comes my second biggest issue with people. And that is losing pets. I will be the first one to tell you that one of my cats ran away last year. He was gone for 3 months and I never thought I would see him again. But, it was an accident. I opened the door and he ran out and into the night, into a swamp and I lost sight of him. I completely understand that accidents happen. I know dogs will dig under fences, cats will push window screens out, etc...However, I have no sympathy for you, when your own stupidity is what causes you to lose your pet.
For example, there is a person on Craigslist right now who is missing 3 kittens. She wrote a very heart felt ad and seems genuinely upset that her kittens are missing. HOWEVER, she goes on to explain how they got lost. Kitten #1 was let outside a month ago and never came home. 2 weeks ago, kitten #2 was let outside and never came home. Now this week kitten #3 was let out and didn't come home. She goes on to plead with people to return her cats. You know what though? I don't have sympathy for her. I'm not going to get into a huge debate about indoor vs outdoor animals. I prefer to keep mine indoors. I also understand that some people have large amounts of land where their animals live carefree outdoors. However, does it really take more than common sense to realize that this woman is missing 3 cats because she LETS THEM OUTSIDE??? Wouldn't you think that after the first one disappeared, she'd be more careful with the other 2? And lets give her the benefit of the doubt. Maybe it didn't sink in the first time, but after the second one went missing, wouldn't you think to keep an eye on the 3rd one? I really do hope those kittens are ok, but I hope that someone else found them and took them inside to give them a good home.
My third issue is spaying and neutering. The reason I started on this rant today is because I read an interesting article about a bill that is trying to get passed here in Washington. Many states have low cost or free spay and neuter programs for low income families. Jacksonville had several of these programs and they were very successful. Here's a link to what Washington is trying to accomplish and I urge you to support this cause whether you love animals or not. In my mind, it benefits the people that love animals AND the people that hate them. If you hate animals, and more people start spaying and neutering their pets, then you will have less strays wandering around :-). Therefore, everyone can win in the end! Save Washington Pets
Rhode Island recently became a state that makes spaying and neutering pets a law. I don't completely agree with that though. I do agree with spaying and neutering for various other reasons though. One reason obviously being that they can't reproduce more homeless animals. The 2nd being because it has shown to negate the chances of certain health problems (i.e. ovarian cancer). I think people should have a choice as to what they want to do with their pet. If you want to have an intact male dog or cat. Fine. But do the rest of the world a favor and keep him away from other dogs and cats!! Another recent Craigslist posting is from a woman in this area who lost her male cat. He was an outdoor cat and not fixed. She may not even think about it, but I find myself wondering how many stray female cats that male impregnated already. Its the same with females. Another common Freecyle and Craigslist posting goes something like this:
"Oops...lol...my cat accidently got pregnant for a 3rd time. Now I have kittens and if I can't get rid of them by the end of the week then I will be forced to take them to the pound." (And here we go with the common sense thing again. How does your cat ACCIDENTLY get pregnant 3 times? I'm willing to let one time slip. But 3?? Take your cat inside idiot. OR if you insist on having an outdoor cat, get her spayed! This is really not that complicated, and I, along with many others, don't find it funny the way you do.)
Look at it this way. For every cat or dog that gets adopted outside of a shelter, a shelter animal will die. There are horrendous numbers of animals put to sleep every single year because shelters don't have the room for them. I'm not going to debate real breeders, because I actually don't mind responsible breeders. But people who accidently let their animals reproduce are doing nothing but making the overall problem worse. Think about this. If you want to adopt a stray cat and you see someone outside of Walmart giving away free ones, then you might take one home. However, if that person with their accidental litter wasn't there, you probably would have gone to a shelter and rescued a cat from there. Now I'm not saying that the non shelter animals should be ignored. None of my cats came from a shelter. Mine were all found wandering around stray or trapped as ferals. I'm a person who would take home a kitten that was being giving away outside of Walmart, but thats not the point. The point is, there shouldn't be someone giving those kittens away in the first place if you were just a responsible pet owner!! So please everyone - Don't Litter...Spay and Neuter :-).
I don't mean to offend anyone who may disagree with this post. Its just amazing to me that now that I have started my own form of rescue (no abandoned animal goes unwelcomed in this house) that I can see the irresponsibility of others out there. Its no wonder why shelter workers are always stressed and unhappy. When all you see is stupidity around you all day long, how can it NOT bring you down?
Friday, January 23, 2009
Cosmetic Surgery Addictions
Warning: This is going to be completely pointless rambling, but I'm bored :-).
I've seen random TV talk shows about people who are addicted to cosmetic surgery. The point is usually that something is psychologically wrong with these people because many of them have had so many surgeries that they don't even look "right" anymore. I never gave these shows much thought until last night. I now find myself wondering how its possible for ANYONE to get addicted to cosmetic surgery!
I know I've mentioned several times in my postings that I just had sinus surgery, but for a little more background, this is what I had done:
~2003: Years of sinus infections landed me at an Ear, Nose and Throat doctor when antibiotics simply stopped working for me. A CT Scan was done and it was shown that I had a deviated septum. Surgery was scheduled and my septum was straightened. I also had some tubes shrunk down at the same time. I honestly have no idea what these tubes are called, but they are in your sinuses and when they shrink down, they don't get inflamed and swollen, lessening your chance of infection (at least this is my non-medical understanding of it). Once my septum was fixed, I was able to breath better and my sinuses drained better. I have always had problems breathing out of the right side of my nose, and it was because my septum was so deviated that it was actually blocking my nasal passage on the right side of my head.
~2004: My septum re-deviated. How? I was teaching preschool and a little boy was sitting on my lap. He threw his head back, hit me in the nose, and I experienced pain like I've never felt before. (so just in case Crazy Woman needs me to remind her again why I won't babysit for her immediately after this surgery, excluding the money issue, my painful re-deviated septum is the reason). The pain did subside within about an hour and I forgot about the incident. Within a few weeks though, I started having breathing problems again, and I started getting frequent sinus infections, just like before my first surgery. Another CT Scan was done and I was told that I had a re-deviated septum. The doctor explained to me how a septum can re-deviate, one way being if you get hit in the nose pretty hard. I traced that back to the little boy hitting my face, and the doctor agreed that was probably the reason. A second surgery was done, just to fix my septum again.
~2005-2009: The frequency of my sinus infections decreased but the headaches that I had been getting for years didn't decrease at all. In fact, they got much worse as time went on to the point where I was getting debilitating sinus induced migraines, that would immobilize me for the entire day. This is what led to my visit to an ENT here in Washington and the surgery that I'm recovering from now.
On a side note, I have always had a very large nose. I used to joke around and call it my Italian nose, because everyone on my mom's side of the family (which is 100% Italian) has the exact same, identical nose as me. I always said that if I had the money, I would get plastic surgery done on my nose to make it smaller. Its something that I always wanted, but at the same time I couldn't ever bring myself to do it. My first ENT who did my first surgery gave me a cosmetic consultation and it was just way too expensive. As much as I hated my nose, I really couldn't bring myself to spend thousands of dollars on a new one.
So fast forward to now. My ENT here is amazing. He is also a cosmetic surgeon and when I first met with him to discuss my problems, he went above and beyond what my last ENT did. My septum was still not perfectly straight. Also, the right side of my nose, which had always given me problems, was much smaller than the left. This doctor said he would reconstruct my entire nasal passage to open up that ride side so I can get air into it. He also planned on drilling holes into my sinuses to release the pressure that was causing my frequent headaches. He also removed my ethmoid sinus (which looks like a honeycomb, so basically he removed the honeycomb structure and made it one big opening), and he wanted to reconstruct my nasal passage and nose in general. Of course that got my attention! After a few visits to this doctor, he told me that he could actually give me the smaller nose that I always wanted, because by doing that, he'd actually be fixing the problem itself (i.e. a complete reconstruction of my nasal passage). I actually thought I was dreaming when I found out that I could get my sinus problems taken care of, AND a smaller nose, all paid for by insurance! It never really occured to me that reshaping my entire nose might solve more problems than just my issue with it being too big.
So thats what was done on Wednesday. I had a bunch of sinus work and a reconstructed nose/nasal passage. In reality, everything that I had done was for a medical purpose. BUT the inner work was called a septioplasty and the outer nose work was called a rhinoplasty. A rhinoplasty is what people who get "normal" nose jobs get. So basically I had cosmetic surgery on top of medical surgery, but for a medical reason.
Which brings me to what I have been pondering all day today. I am in PAIN! I am miserable. I am brusied. I look like a victim of domestic violence. I can't wash my face because there is a cast on my nose. I have naturally very oily skin, so the fact that I can't get my face wet is driving me crazy and making me feel disgusting. Taking a shower is also an adventure because I can't get the stupid cast wet. My entire head hurts with a dull throbbing ache PLUS the pain I can feel from where all of the cutting and reshaping was done.
So why in the world do people get addicted to this?? Or a better way to ask that might be - HOW do they get addicted to cosmetic sugery?Maybe just a plain old nose job wouldn't be as painful as what I am feeling right now since a plain old nose job wouldn't also involve drilling holes into sinuses, but I can't imagine that its something that would feel GOOD on its own!
I am obviously pretty bored to even be pondering this thought in the first place. I traded my Vicodin this morning for regular old Tylenol so I'm not feeling quite as loopy as I was for the past few days. Now that my mind isn't high on narcotic pain killers, it leaves plenty of time for me to lay around, focus on my pain, and wonder why in the world some people chose to do this over and over and over and over. (Can you tell I've also been watching daytime talk shows for the past 2 days?) Clearly there has to be something mentally wrong with those people. I completely understand wanting cosmetic surgery. If I could have afforded it a few years ago, I probably would have done it instantly. Even though I'm experiencing a lot of pain and discomfort right now, I can see that my nose IS smaller and I am liking that (of course, I can't really see what its going to look like until the cast and bandages come off though). I would probably go through this again - ONCE. I just can't imagine going through this over and over. I am simply miserable right now. I couldn't imagine dedicating my life life to reshaping my entire body. If I never have to have anything done to my sinuses or head ever again, I will be the happiest person in the world. I want to tear this stupid cast off of my nose. I want to sleep laying down (I've been propped straight up on the couch for the past few days). I want to wash my face. I want to breath normally again (at this point I'd settle for the way I was breathing before this surgery, because all the blood and crap in my nose right now makes for uncomfortable and painful breathing). I have woken up nauseous for the past 2 nights because of all the crap from my head that I am swallowing in my sleep, so it would be nice to wake up feeling healthy.
Bottom line. I think people are crazy who chose to do this again and again. I wouldn't wish this on anyone. I guess some may argue that the healing process sucks but the end result is good and I could agree with that. I'm already looking forward to Tuesday when I can see what my nose actually looks like now. But thats all I can agree with. Cosmetic surgery addictions are just not normal. Thats the conclusion I've reached. And now that I've babbled endlessly about something completely insignificant and unimportant, I am going to go back to my couch and watch some more day time drama :-).
I've seen random TV talk shows about people who are addicted to cosmetic surgery. The point is usually that something is psychologically wrong with these people because many of them have had so many surgeries that they don't even look "right" anymore. I never gave these shows much thought until last night. I now find myself wondering how its possible for ANYONE to get addicted to cosmetic surgery!
I know I've mentioned several times in my postings that I just had sinus surgery, but for a little more background, this is what I had done:
~2003: Years of sinus infections landed me at an Ear, Nose and Throat doctor when antibiotics simply stopped working for me. A CT Scan was done and it was shown that I had a deviated septum. Surgery was scheduled and my septum was straightened. I also had some tubes shrunk down at the same time. I honestly have no idea what these tubes are called, but they are in your sinuses and when they shrink down, they don't get inflamed and swollen, lessening your chance of infection (at least this is my non-medical understanding of it). Once my septum was fixed, I was able to breath better and my sinuses drained better. I have always had problems breathing out of the right side of my nose, and it was because my septum was so deviated that it was actually blocking my nasal passage on the right side of my head.
~2004: My septum re-deviated. How? I was teaching preschool and a little boy was sitting on my lap. He threw his head back, hit me in the nose, and I experienced pain like I've never felt before. (so just in case Crazy Woman needs me to remind her again why I won't babysit for her immediately after this surgery, excluding the money issue, my painful re-deviated septum is the reason). The pain did subside within about an hour and I forgot about the incident. Within a few weeks though, I started having breathing problems again, and I started getting frequent sinus infections, just like before my first surgery. Another CT Scan was done and I was told that I had a re-deviated septum. The doctor explained to me how a septum can re-deviate, one way being if you get hit in the nose pretty hard. I traced that back to the little boy hitting my face, and the doctor agreed that was probably the reason. A second surgery was done, just to fix my septum again.
~2005-2009: The frequency of my sinus infections decreased but the headaches that I had been getting for years didn't decrease at all. In fact, they got much worse as time went on to the point where I was getting debilitating sinus induced migraines, that would immobilize me for the entire day. This is what led to my visit to an ENT here in Washington and the surgery that I'm recovering from now.
On a side note, I have always had a very large nose. I used to joke around and call it my Italian nose, because everyone on my mom's side of the family (which is 100% Italian) has the exact same, identical nose as me. I always said that if I had the money, I would get plastic surgery done on my nose to make it smaller. Its something that I always wanted, but at the same time I couldn't ever bring myself to do it. My first ENT who did my first surgery gave me a cosmetic consultation and it was just way too expensive. As much as I hated my nose, I really couldn't bring myself to spend thousands of dollars on a new one.
So fast forward to now. My ENT here is amazing. He is also a cosmetic surgeon and when I first met with him to discuss my problems, he went above and beyond what my last ENT did. My septum was still not perfectly straight. Also, the right side of my nose, which had always given me problems, was much smaller than the left. This doctor said he would reconstruct my entire nasal passage to open up that ride side so I can get air into it. He also planned on drilling holes into my sinuses to release the pressure that was causing my frequent headaches. He also removed my ethmoid sinus (which looks like a honeycomb, so basically he removed the honeycomb structure and made it one big opening), and he wanted to reconstruct my nasal passage and nose in general. Of course that got my attention! After a few visits to this doctor, he told me that he could actually give me the smaller nose that I always wanted, because by doing that, he'd actually be fixing the problem itself (i.e. a complete reconstruction of my nasal passage). I actually thought I was dreaming when I found out that I could get my sinus problems taken care of, AND a smaller nose, all paid for by insurance! It never really occured to me that reshaping my entire nose might solve more problems than just my issue with it being too big.
So thats what was done on Wednesday. I had a bunch of sinus work and a reconstructed nose/nasal passage. In reality, everything that I had done was for a medical purpose. BUT the inner work was called a septioplasty and the outer nose work was called a rhinoplasty. A rhinoplasty is what people who get "normal" nose jobs get. So basically I had cosmetic surgery on top of medical surgery, but for a medical reason.
Which brings me to what I have been pondering all day today. I am in PAIN! I am miserable. I am brusied. I look like a victim of domestic violence. I can't wash my face because there is a cast on my nose. I have naturally very oily skin, so the fact that I can't get my face wet is driving me crazy and making me feel disgusting. Taking a shower is also an adventure because I can't get the stupid cast wet. My entire head hurts with a dull throbbing ache PLUS the pain I can feel from where all of the cutting and reshaping was done.
So why in the world do people get addicted to this?? Or a better way to ask that might be - HOW do they get addicted to cosmetic sugery?Maybe just a plain old nose job wouldn't be as painful as what I am feeling right now since a plain old nose job wouldn't also involve drilling holes into sinuses, but I can't imagine that its something that would feel GOOD on its own!
I am obviously pretty bored to even be pondering this thought in the first place. I traded my Vicodin this morning for regular old Tylenol so I'm not feeling quite as loopy as I was for the past few days. Now that my mind isn't high on narcotic pain killers, it leaves plenty of time for me to lay around, focus on my pain, and wonder why in the world some people chose to do this over and over and over and over. (Can you tell I've also been watching daytime talk shows for the past 2 days?) Clearly there has to be something mentally wrong with those people. I completely understand wanting cosmetic surgery. If I could have afforded it a few years ago, I probably would have done it instantly. Even though I'm experiencing a lot of pain and discomfort right now, I can see that my nose IS smaller and I am liking that (of course, I can't really see what its going to look like until the cast and bandages come off though). I would probably go through this again - ONCE. I just can't imagine going through this over and over. I am simply miserable right now. I couldn't imagine dedicating my life life to reshaping my entire body. If I never have to have anything done to my sinuses or head ever again, I will be the happiest person in the world. I want to tear this stupid cast off of my nose. I want to sleep laying down (I've been propped straight up on the couch for the past few days). I want to wash my face. I want to breath normally again (at this point I'd settle for the way I was breathing before this surgery, because all the blood and crap in my nose right now makes for uncomfortable and painful breathing). I have woken up nauseous for the past 2 nights because of all the crap from my head that I am swallowing in my sleep, so it would be nice to wake up feeling healthy.
Bottom line. I think people are crazy who chose to do this again and again. I wouldn't wish this on anyone. I guess some may argue that the healing process sucks but the end result is good and I could agree with that. I'm already looking forward to Tuesday when I can see what my nose actually looks like now. But thats all I can agree with. Cosmetic surgery addictions are just not normal. Thats the conclusion I've reached. And now that I've babbled endlessly about something completely insignificant and unimportant, I am going to go back to my couch and watch some more day time drama :-).
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
No More Sinus Problems....hopefully...
I wanted to write this as an update since I got a few emails today asking about my surgery. I'm going to apologize right now if this isn't completely coherent (thank you Firefox for underlining words that I spell wrong). I've got a lot of pain medicine in my system and while I feel like I'm coherent right now, I'll probably reread this tomorrow and realize that I wasn't.
So I am alive and well after surgery. This morning wasn't fun at all. My surgery was scheduled for 10:00am, which means thats when I checked in, not when I had the surgery. So I had had no food since midnight last night and was starving by this point. I don't think I was actually put under until about 11:45.
I made it through the morning without any major anxiety attacks which I'm happy for. The worst part of the morning was the part that I would think wouldn't be bad. When they got me into the operating room, the anesthesiologist put an oxygen mask on my face before giving me anesthesia. Obviously oxygen is needed to breathe, but I felt like I was suffocating when he put the mask on my face. It was really strange because I would think it would have been easier for me to breathe at that point. I guess it didn't matter much though because the last thing I remember about the morning was feeling like I was suffocating, and the nurse telling me that the medicine in my IV was going to make my arm ache. I felt an achy arm and the next thing I knew, I was awake and the surgery was over.
I'm currently pretty uncomfortable and in a lot of pain. More work was done on my nose this time so the pain feels different than the last time. I have a cast on my nose this time around, and I was too out of it to even think to ask about how I'm supposed to take a shower with a cast on my nose. That will be a phone call first thing in the morning.My face is badly bruised to the point where I look like Mr. V punched me in the face a few times. The bruised areas also keep swelling so that hasn't exactly been fun. And for added fun, I have a huge gauze mustache (yes they actually call it that) to catch all the spare blood that is draining from my nose. I hate medical stuff, so that is probably the most disturbing thing to me right now.
The good thing is that the day is almost over, which means that each day should only get better. I keep telling myself that each time I start to really feel the pain again. I have to sleep sitting up for the next 72 hours so this will be an adventure. I remember that from my previous surgeries and its really hard to do. I am making myself sleep on the couch because I know that I will probably roll around and lay down in my bed in the middle of the night, out of habit.
So thats that. I'll update more when I am not drugged up. I just reread this and it makes sense to me, but we'll see how it sounds when I'm off the meds. Thanks to everyone who sent me concerned emails and messages today. I'm alive :-) and I really appreciate everyone's concern!
So I am alive and well after surgery. This morning wasn't fun at all. My surgery was scheduled for 10:00am, which means thats when I checked in, not when I had the surgery. So I had had no food since midnight last night and was starving by this point. I don't think I was actually put under until about 11:45.
I made it through the morning without any major anxiety attacks which I'm happy for. The worst part of the morning was the part that I would think wouldn't be bad. When they got me into the operating room, the anesthesiologist put an oxygen mask on my face before giving me anesthesia. Obviously oxygen is needed to breathe, but I felt like I was suffocating when he put the mask on my face. It was really strange because I would think it would have been easier for me to breathe at that point. I guess it didn't matter much though because the last thing I remember about the morning was feeling like I was suffocating, and the nurse telling me that the medicine in my IV was going to make my arm ache. I felt an achy arm and the next thing I knew, I was awake and the surgery was over.
I'm currently pretty uncomfortable and in a lot of pain. More work was done on my nose this time so the pain feels different than the last time. I have a cast on my nose this time around, and I was too out of it to even think to ask about how I'm supposed to take a shower with a cast on my nose. That will be a phone call first thing in the morning.My face is badly bruised to the point where I look like Mr. V punched me in the face a few times. The bruised areas also keep swelling so that hasn't exactly been fun. And for added fun, I have a huge gauze mustache (yes they actually call it that) to catch all the spare blood that is draining from my nose. I hate medical stuff, so that is probably the most disturbing thing to me right now.
The good thing is that the day is almost over, which means that each day should only get better. I keep telling myself that each time I start to really feel the pain again. I have to sleep sitting up for the next 72 hours so this will be an adventure. I remember that from my previous surgeries and its really hard to do. I am making myself sleep on the couch because I know that I will probably roll around and lay down in my bed in the middle of the night, out of habit.
So thats that. I'll update more when I am not drugged up. I just reread this and it makes sense to me, but we'll see how it sounds when I'm off the meds. Thanks to everyone who sent me concerned emails and messages today. I'm alive :-) and I really appreciate everyone's concern!
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Babysitting Excuses
I went to lunch with some friends today and we started coming up with some excuses for me to get out of this babysitting job.
Just as an update, my surgery is tomorrow. Crazy woman found someone to cover for me for the 3 weeks I will be recovering. However, this new person has no intention of helping her out beyond those 3 weeks. Crazy woman still thinks that I plan to come back in exactly 3 weeks. I've never actually told her that, so she is just assuming. All I have told her is that I will talk to her after my surgery and let her know how I feel.
Now here's the problem. This is a woman that I will most likely see around town. I absolutely do not want to keep babysitting for her. Mr. V and I had a long discussion about this, and even he agrees that I need to get out of this situation NOW. In his mind, I'm doing this lady a favor, but its a permanent favor. (I'd also like to note, once again, that I'm not greedy. I have no problem helping people out. I have no problem taking jobs that don't pay a lot. I have a problem with the reality that this woman lives in, and her attitude towards Ms. A about asking for more money, and her attitude in general.)
I need an excuse that will make sense, but not make me look like a horrible person. I don't want to have to lie, but clearly, telling her that I can't work for just $3 an hour isn't something that I can say without her freaking out again. I'm hoping to come up with an excuse that is as truthful as possible, but at the same time I have no problem lying if it will get me out of this situation.
So here is what we've come up with:
1. I'm having surgery (obviously this one will only last for about 3 weeks)
2. My surgery didn't go as planned. My recovery is taking longer than I thought and the doctor said he can't give me a time frame right now as to when I'll be 100% better.
3. My husband is deploying soon and I might go home to New Jersey or North Carolina for a few months (This is half true. Mr. V really is deploying soon and I do plan on going to New Jersey and North Carolina, but only for a vacation, not for the entire length of the deployment.) When she sees me around town and wonders why I'm still here, I would say "Well I didn't say I WAS going home for his deployment. I just said that I MIGHT go home and plans are still up in the air."
4. I started a new quilt and its taking up too much of my time.
5. I have mono. Who knows when it will go away?
6. My arms are getting amputated. Therefore I clearly can't pick up your child, change her diaper, or feed her.
Clearly, by this point, we were running out of excuses. I'm curious to see if anyone else has a good excuse, or just some good advice. I really don't want to come off as mean, because I will definitely see this woman around. I'm not a very good confrontational person, so this whole situation makes me feel really awkward and anxious. So....any ideas/advice?
Just as an update, my surgery is tomorrow. Crazy woman found someone to cover for me for the 3 weeks I will be recovering. However, this new person has no intention of helping her out beyond those 3 weeks. Crazy woman still thinks that I plan to come back in exactly 3 weeks. I've never actually told her that, so she is just assuming. All I have told her is that I will talk to her after my surgery and let her know how I feel.
Now here's the problem. This is a woman that I will most likely see around town. I absolutely do not want to keep babysitting for her. Mr. V and I had a long discussion about this, and even he agrees that I need to get out of this situation NOW. In his mind, I'm doing this lady a favor, but its a permanent favor. (I'd also like to note, once again, that I'm not greedy. I have no problem helping people out. I have no problem taking jobs that don't pay a lot. I have a problem with the reality that this woman lives in, and her attitude towards Ms. A about asking for more money, and her attitude in general.)
I need an excuse that will make sense, but not make me look like a horrible person. I don't want to have to lie, but clearly, telling her that I can't work for just $3 an hour isn't something that I can say without her freaking out again. I'm hoping to come up with an excuse that is as truthful as possible, but at the same time I have no problem lying if it will get me out of this situation.
So here is what we've come up with:
1. I'm having surgery (obviously this one will only last for about 3 weeks)
2. My surgery didn't go as planned. My recovery is taking longer than I thought and the doctor said he can't give me a time frame right now as to when I'll be 100% better.
3. My husband is deploying soon and I might go home to New Jersey or North Carolina for a few months (This is half true. Mr. V really is deploying soon and I do plan on going to New Jersey and North Carolina, but only for a vacation, not for the entire length of the deployment.) When she sees me around town and wonders why I'm still here, I would say "Well I didn't say I WAS going home for his deployment. I just said that I MIGHT go home and plans are still up in the air."
4. I started a new quilt and its taking up too much of my time.
5. I have mono. Who knows when it will go away?
6. My arms are getting amputated. Therefore I clearly can't pick up your child, change her diaper, or feed her.
Clearly, by this point, we were running out of excuses. I'm curious to see if anyone else has a good excuse, or just some good advice. I really don't want to come off as mean, because I will definitely see this woman around. I'm not a very good confrontational person, so this whole situation makes me feel really awkward and anxious. So....any ideas/advice?
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