Grieving the loss of my uterus

Before my hysterectomy, going on two years ago, I had been suffering from heavy, incapacitating bleeding for a few years. I went home from surgery with a clean bill of health. It was such a relief to know I'd never have to bleed like that again.

Five days later, the gyn called to tell me I had cancer and that whole relief thing flew right out the window. I finished treatment last December and at some point after that - maybe a month ago? - I remembered what a relief it was not to be bleeding all the time.

This morning I had a dream where I was moving out of a house on short notice - there was a grass fire headed toward me - and trying to decide what to take with me. I can't remember many details from the dream, such as what I took. What I do remember is looking back at my maxipads and feeling sad that I couldn't take them with me because I didn't need them anymore.

Possibly the weirdest dream I've had all year.

I'm giddy with delight

This has absolutely no importance in the world and has absolutely nothing to do with me, but I just watched a video of Michael Lohan getting reamed by a judge and it made me smile so big. Check it out. And if you enjoyed that, check out this other video of Michael Lohan getting reamed out by another judge a couple days ago.

Couldn't happen to a stupider guy.

This will disturb but I found it touching

I remember reading somewhere - I'm sure more than one place - that back in the old days, childhood mortality was so common that people didn't really get attached to their children when they were little and didn't grieve as much as parents would today. These photos are from the Victorian era. The parents of these children died more than a hundred years ago but their grief was captured for all eternity.

Auto-refresh pisses me off

Huffington Post really pisses me off. For lots of reasons but right now the biggest one is the way they auto-refresh their front page. They refresh it so often that I can't even skim through to the bottom of the page before it refreshes. I'll spot a headline for a story I want to read and before I can even click on it, the page refreshes and it disappears.

I'm not sure everybody understands why websites auto-refresh like that. It artificially pumps up their page views so they can charge more for ads. Even liberals succumb to corporate greed.

While I was over at Huff Po grumbling, I ran across this story:

A few weeks ago, a feminist blogger tweeted a photo of a TSA notice she found in her suitcase. It was the standard advisory that they had searched her bag but there was a handwritten note added by the screener. It said, "Get your freak on, girl!" apparently referring to a sex toy the blogger had packed. On Friday, TSA announced that the baggage screener will be fired. The blogger thinks the worker is just a scapegoat. She said,

"The problem with the note is that it's representative of the bigger privacy intrusions that the U.S. government, through the TSA and other sources, levels every day."

I agree.

Time to get a new vet

Last week, I made 2 separate trips to the vet. Monday with Megan to get her shots and Friday with Lizzie because of her mouth sores (herpes, ack). They have a big sign saying they give discounts for multi-pet households, so I asked about it. They said the discount is for 3 or more pets.

I've taken 4 cats to see them in the last 12 months. Jasmine was there is December for anal gland infection - I paid for expression and antibiotics, plus an x-ray to confirm that her belly lumps were cancer. Percy was there around February for an exam and to renew his Rx which I also buy from them. Lizzie was there in March for shots, in June for spay and declaw, and in October for mouth sores. Megan's been there in September for respiratory infection and October for shots. She's scheduled to go back next week for shots and later in November for spay and declaw and final shots.

You'd think I'd be eligible for the discount, right? Nope. Because Jasmine and Percy didn't get shots. They didn't get shots because THE VETS didn't want to give them because they were SICK! I spent more money on them than I would have if they were healthy and all they needed was shots. But no, that's not good enough.

I was already pissed off about that. Then today I called to report that Megan was in heat and I asked if she could be spayed sooner. They said she couldn't possibly be in heat and I should bring her in for an exam and lab work.

I've been around cats my entire life. I've seen sick cats, I've seen cats with UT infections, I've seen cats in heat. I can tell the difference. In light of the fact she peed out of the box, I'm willing to concede it's possible she has a bladder infection.

But to tell me she couldn't possibly be in heat? Every vet site I've checked online says they can have their first heat as early as 4 months. It's unusual but it could happen. We don't know her true age. Based on size and development, on Sept 19 the vet estimated her age at 10-11 weeks which would make her about 15-16 weeks now. When I took her back last week, she had grown so much that he said she might be more like 16-18 weeks which would make her 17-19 weeks now. Old enough to possibly be in heat.

Last March when Percy was very sick, I called them to ask if there was anything they could do. They wanted me to bring him in to be put down. I said I wanted to give him another day. They tried to pressure me to bring him in, giving me this big lecture on letting him die with dignity. I don't agree that shoving him in a crate and hauling him there is "dignity" but oh well.

I decided to give him another chance and the next day, he started getting better. Since then, he's had a couple more episodes where I thought he was at death's door and he bounced back. In the 7 months since the vet pressured me to put him to sleep, he's had maybe 3-4 weeks when he was really sick. The rest of the time, he's been happy, active and affectionate and enjoying the company of Lizzie and Megan.

Between the way they pressured me to kill him, the fact that they won't give me the multi-pet discount and now treating me like I'm stupid for thinking Megan was in heat, I'm done.

Here are the kids taking turns in the most coveted nap spot in the house:

Someone peed on my bed

... and this time it wasn't me. Early Wednesday morning, I got up to go to the bathroom. When I went back to bed and lay down, whoop-tee-doo, what do you know, it was wet and very stinky.

Megan has been in heat this week. She's young to be starting that but not too young. The urine had a stronger smell than normal so I was 99% sure she was the one who did it. Tonight I caught her in the act peeing in a box full of flea market merchandise. Now I'm nervous, wondering where else she might be going that I haven't found yet.

She's been wandering around day and night yowling and rubbing herself in everyone's face. She and Lizzie always play fight but the last couple days, Lizzie wasn't playing anymore. She's been way too rough to the point where Megan was crying and whimpering and Lizzie wouldn't let her up. Yelling at Lizzie would just motivate her to pick on Megan some more, so I've been distracting her. She'll come to me when I say "Elizabeth" in just the right tone and I give her a treat for coming.

Between the stress of being in heat and getting beat up by Lizzie, it's no wonder Megan's acting out. Tonight I set up extra litter boxes right next to the places where she's been peeing. Fingers crossed that will solve the problem.

The vet didn't want to spay Megan for at least another month but I'm going to call tomorrow to see if he'll do it sooner.

Quote of the day

If ignorance ever goes to $100 a barrel, you want to get the drilling rights on Perry's head.

- Jim Hightower, while discussing Rick Perry's ties to big oil

This picture makes me happy

Elton John, David Furnish and their son Zachary. The baby looks so much like Elton - he'll probably be bald by the time he's 30.

The Bozos get their comeuppance

Netflix has lost 800,000 subscribers in the last 3 months. I wonder how many more, like me, cut back service. I'm paying them $4 less a month. Multiply that by a couple hundred thousand.

A letter to investors says, "We greatly upset many domestic Netflix members with our significant DVD-related pricing changes, and to a lesser degree, with the proposed-and-now-cancelled rebranding of our DVD service. In doing so, we've hurt our hard-earned reputation and stalled our domestic growth."

Duh.

Their stock price has dropped to 100. It was 324 in June, before they fucked up.

On Saturday, I called customer service because I was still having trouble accessing my account on their website. It would only let me see streaming movie selections even though I only subscribe to DVDs. The customer service guy said they've been having glitches with the site but they'd get it fixed right away. I said it's a strange coincidence that my problem started immediately after I called them a couple days earlier. He said he'd send me an extra DVD for my trouble. My account access was repaired later that night.

Seems like maybe they realize it's time to start kissing customer ass.

Quote of the day

I remember having a similar reaction to images of Saddam Hussein after his capture: how banal the whole situation seems, how reductionist, how one man is ultimately too small and fragile to be the receptacle for all the retributive anger and violence he himself has unleashed.

Ultimately it challenges our sense of what it means to do justice. A summary execution isn't very satisfying, but neither is execution after due process in a case like this. Like the hole he left in the ground in Lockerbie, there is just a chasm of injustice too deep to be filled.

-TPM editor Josh Marshall, on the capture and execution of Qaddafi

Scum of the week

I haven't been keeping up with choosing a SOTW but I've tried to avoid reading about the really shitty things going on in the world. So this week I'm going to name a few:

• Hospital administrators who cut staff back to the point where it creates a dangerous situation for patients. Exhibit A.

• Legislators, primarily Republicans, who cut back funding for hospitals and doctors, which forces hospital administrators to make really bad decisions. Exhibit A. Exhibit B. For Exhibit C, scroll down to my post titled "Insanity."

• Rick Perry, always. This week, for having his head up Donald Trump's ass. Shortly after meeting with Trump, Perry's gone Birther. Plus, have you ever noticed that Perry stands with his legs kind of bowed. It makes me wonder if he's got some kind of problem like this?

• Lindsey Graham and every other Republican who's trying to make political gains off the war in Iraq. This week, Obama announced that American troops will be leaving Iraq by the end of the year, in accordance with previous agreements Bush made with Iraqis. Obama is fulfilling one of his own campaign promises and respecting the will of the American people. Apparently, that counts as a failure.

• Mitch McConnell and every other Republican who thinks millionaires shouldn't pay their fair share of taxes, even if it costs the lives and livelihoods of millions of Americans. He says it's not his job to keep firefighters, paramedics and policemen on the streets. And to hell with all those teachers and the kids won't have the skills necessary to do all those jobs that don't exist anyway.

I have to stop now because I'm getting too pissed off.

Lizzie has herpes

Ever since I adopted Lizzie, she's been getting little swellings on her lower lip. It's happened maybe 4 times in the last 7 months. Usually they only last a few days and don't seem to bother her that much.

She got one this week and it was bigger than the others. Then she started getting another one on her upper lip, and both of them were a little crusty. She seemed to be in pain so I finally called the vet on Friday and took her in. It's herpes.

The vet says she probably had it before she got her first shots, and when they start so young, their bodies accept them as if they're normal. Just like with people, she'll be more likely to develop a sore when she's under stress.

The first one happened right after I got her when she was trying to adjust to a new home, and she got one right after she was spayed. The latest one came along soon after the new kitten joined us and Lizzie caught a respiratory infection from her. I don't foresee any more stresses for her in the next few months, so maybe this will be the last breakout for awhile.

Now she has to take lysine supplements to boost her immune system, a powder to sprinkle on her food. Apparently she likes the taste because she gobbles it right down. The vet said it only works for some cats.

The picture was taken shortly after we came back from the vet. You'd think she wouldn't want to go anywhere near the carrier but it's one of her favorite places to sleep.

I don't know what I'd do without my credit card.

Insanity

I had a really good conversation with my psychiatrist on Thursday. He was telling me about the current state of mental health care in Iowa. I knew it was bad but it's worse than I thought.

Because the budgets have been cut back so severely, most of the hospitals throughout Iowa no longer provide inpatient psychiatric care and those that do have drastically cut back on the number of beds. Sioux City's two hospitals now have the most psychiatric beds anywhere in the state. When mental patients in Des Moines or anywhere else need to be hospitalized, they get sent to Sioux City.

Iowa Medicaid won't pay for psych inpatient treatment out of state. When someone in Dubuque needs to be admitted, instead of going across the river to a hospital in Illinois they get sent to Sioux City. Medicaid pays for an ambulance to transfer them - and it's an 8-hour ride. The patient's not getting any kind of therapy during that time.

Ten years ago when I needed an ambulance, it cost more than $200 to go a few blocks. I can only imagine what it costs to transport someone more than 300 miles. Another problem is that the reimbursement for psychiatrists is so low that there are only two in Sioux City who will see patients at the hospital. So two guys are treating the bulk of the most critically ill mental patients for the entire state.

The bureaucrats and legsilators who are make these funding decisions are crazier than any mental patient I've ever met.

Memo to the bozos running Netflix

You're not doing yourself any favors. Because of your bungling, I cut back on my Netflix subscription - switching to DVD only, which means you're losing money every month. That probably doesn't matter to you but I'm one of thousands who are cutting back or cancelling altogether.

Today, I went to netflix.com looking for a movie I'd like to see. You don't have it on DVD. I want to see it bad enough that I would subscribe to streaming again if I had to. But your website wouldn't allow me to search for what's available on streaming.

I checked the help pages and FAQ. Then I called customer service. The woman who took my call said she was having the same problem and hoped you guys would fix it but she didn't know if that would ever happen.

A couple hours later, I found a list of other movies I'd like to see. I went back to netflix.com to see if you have them on DVD.

This time, the page that came up was for streaming only. My old streaming queue - which you deleted when I cancelled streaming - has been restored. Now my DVD queue is gone and I can no longer search for DVDs.

I thought if I accessed the website anonymously I might have the option of choosing DVD or streaming. When I tried to log out, I got an error page. I even closed my browser and tried the site again. I'm still logged in. Still have access to streaming only even though I don't subscribe to streaming.

I hear Blockbuster has a free 30 day trial for online DVD rentals. They're moving into the streaming business too. Hulu streams movies for free. Then there's Amazon. Hell, I could just go back to watching Turner Classic Movies and AMC.

I used to love you guys so much that I keep giving you another chance. Quit fucking with me, will you?

Percy's not the only cat zombie around

There's a cat in Utah that survived two attempts at euthanasia. The shelter was using a gas chamber. The first time, they saw she was alive and put her in the chamber again. The second time, she appeared dead so they put her in the freezer with all the other dead kitties. Then she started meowing. She's been transferred to another shelter that's trying to find her a home.

Today I took Megan to the vet for shots. He was shocked by how much she's grown in the last 4 weeks. He thinks she's older than he originally estimated. She had spent a couple of weeks in the shelter before I brought her home and who knows what happened to her before that. The vet says her growth must have been stunted but she's doing great now. No fleas, no mites, the virus is cleared up, healthy coat, shiny eyes, a very happy little kitty.

When I first adopted Lizzie, she was so mischievous, climbing and jumping and shredding and spilling and getting into everything. She drove me nuts. I thought it was just because I wasn't used to having a kitten around. Megan is so calm and well-behaved compared to how Lizzie was at that age. Lizzie's settled down a lot, but they both get into trouble sometimes. The two of them together aren't causing half the aggravation that Lizzie caused by herself.

Percy is doing great. The vet was surprised to hear he's still alive.

I don't talk about it much but I've been feeling really scared. Soon after I found out my endo cancer was Stage 3a, I found statistics that said I only have a 50% chance of surviving five years. That was more than a year ago, so now I keep thinking I could be dead in four years.

The other night, Lizzie and Megan were curled up on the couch together and I wondered what will happen to them when I die. I don't think I'm going to live long enough to see them get old.

I also worry a lot about becoming debilitated. My knees and ankles and wrists and fingers are hurting from arthritis, a long-term side effect of chemo. I'm afraid I'll have to move because it's getting painful to go up and down the steps. If the cancer recurs and I get really sick, I don't have anyone to take care of me. I might end up in a nursing home. What happens to my cats then?

All of this anxiety about death - Percy's and my own - is what's been causing me to overeat. I don't know what to do about it, short of taking the Ativan my psychiatrist prescribed. That's a bad habit I don't want to get into.

Schmoozing

The picture is from an awards show that's nothing but another photo op for attention whores. The chick in blue is Nicole Richie and I have no idea who the other two are. Observe the body language. Have you ever seen three people who looked any phonier?

Speaking of Hollywood phonies, an unnamed actress of Asian descent with an Americanized name who lives in Texas (that ought to narrow it down) is suing Amazon.com for publishing her real age on their IMDB site. The filing says:

If one is perceived to be `over-the-hill,' i.e., approaching 40, it is nearly impossible for an up-and-coming actress, such as the plaintiff, to get work as she is thought to have less of an `upside,' therefore, casting directors, producers, directors, agents-manager, etc. do not give her the same opportunities, regardless of her appearance or talent.

Not only is she too old to play an ingenue, the lawsuit claims she's also too pretty and "youthful" to play a 40 year old. She must not have that much faith in her potential earnings since she's only asking for $75,000 in compensatory damages. And $1,000,000 for punitive.

That's right. She wants to punish IMDB because they told the truth.

In other pressing news, I've been watching The Sing Off on Monday nights. It's Glee for grownups, without the drama. Unfortunately, it's not as good as it was last year. But last night NBC ran an episode of Prime Suspect right afterwards. Me likey. It's Maria Bello in an adaptation of the old British series that starred Helen Mirren.

The commercials for the new Prime Suspect were so stupid that I hadn't bothered watching, Plus, I have a policy of not watching any new drama series because they usually get cancelled after a few weeks. (Exactly what happened to The Playboy Club, which was replaced by Prime Suspect.) The commercials did prompt me to order the original series from Netflix though. I loved it way back when but had never seen the first few seasons. Now I'm up to Season 4 and thoroughly enjoying it.

Last night, it shocked the hell out of me to find out that the new American version is actually pretty good. I'll be watching it again.

If Javier Bardem and Joe Cocker had a baby

This is my newest crush, X-Factor contestant Josh Krajcik. I think he's got Javier Bardem's face mixed with Joe Cocker's voice and a touch of Bob Seger thrown in. If he gets cut on Tuesday night, I'll die.

Well, not literally. But I want to see him a little less greasy with a decent shirt and I want to keep hearing him sing.

He's still not dead

Nothing makes me happier than having Percy follow me around in the morning, waiting to be fed. He's rapidly gaining back some of the weight he lost. And everybody's getting along very well.

My apartment is a mess. Bird seed and cat fur scattered everywhere. I've had the windows open the last couple of weeks so dust has been blowing in off the parking lot. My curtains, rugs and bedding are in desperate need of washing. But the bird cages, the litter box get cleaned every day and the garbage gets carried out before it stinks. I don't have quite enough pets or junk or filth to be on Hoarders, but I'm getting there.

They turned the heat on today, which I'm not thrilled about. And this is about as exciting as my life gets.

Quote of the day

when i found out that jamey rodemeyer killed himself - i felt deeply troubled. but when i found out that jamey rodemeyer had made an it gets better video only months before taking his own life - i felt indescribable despair. i also made an it gets better video last year - in the wake of the senseless and tragic gay teen suicides that were sweeping the nation at the time. but in light of jamey's death - it became clear to me in an instant that living a gay life without publicly acknowledging it - is simply not enough to make any significant contribution to the immense work that lies ahead on the road to complete equality.

our society needs to recognize the unstoppable momentum toward unequivocal civil equality for every gay lesbian bisexual and transgendered citizen of this country. gay kids need to stop killing themselves because they are made to feel worthless by cruel and relentless bullying. parents need to teach their children principles of respect and acceptance. we are witnessing an enormous shift of collective consciousness throughout the world. we are at the precipice of great transformation within our culture and government.

i believe in the power of intention to change the landscape of our society - and it is my intention to live an authentic life of compassion and integrity and action. jamey rodemeyer's life changed mine. and while his death only makes me wish that i had done this sooner - i am eternally grateful to him for being the catalyst for change within me.

now i can only hope to serve as the same catalyst for even one other person in this world. that - i believe - is all that we can ask of ourselves and of each other.

- actor Zachary Quinto on his decision to come out

Beck: Cultural Learnings of America

Last week, I was begging Percy to eat. Now he's begging me for treats. He's starting to gain some of the weight back but he's walking kind of funny, like his balance is off. Who knows what tomorrow will bring.

Glenn Beck is starting his own clothing line. You have to check out the promo video below. I never can decide if he's totally psychotic or if he's just pulling a Borat.

Quote of the day

Unfortunately in the Catholic system, someone who's a bishop, who has no medical qualifications whatsoever, can dictate what a hospital does. And bishops have a mindset that's absolutely obsessed with sexual and reproductive health, especially on the issue of abortion, so the Diocese is throwing everything into backing this.

- the president of Catholics for Choice on the Protect Life Act, which will permit hospitals to refuse to do abortions even in cases where the mother will die without one

Wally Cox testified today

I've been watching the Conrad Murray trial for the involuntary manslaughter of Michael Jackson. TMZ has it on a live stream. Sooner or later, I'm going to write a more detailed post about it.

Today Dr. Rogers, the coroner who did MJ's autopsy, is testifying. As soon as he started talking, I had a '60s flashback. Remember Wally Cox? I loved him when he was on Hollywood Squares. Here's a clip. Wally's at about 1:55.

Looks, mannerisms, voice - Dr. Christopher Rogers is Wally Cox.

Here's another detail: Just now when I went to TMZ to find the links I wanted, they've got the autopsy photo plastered right at the top of the page. It breaks my heart to know that picture is going to be on the internet forever. Sooner or later, his kids are going to see it.

It's alive. Still.

The title might sound like I'm not happy about the latest development in Percy's journey to the great beyond. But I am.

Last night, he came to bed with me and stayed there most of the night. It's been years since he's done that. Usually, he only jumps up for a cuddle and leaves as soon as I roll over. He hasn't even come for a cuddle the last several days. But last night, he was Mr. Lovey Dovey.

This morning, he came running when I opened a can of food for the other cats. He hasn't done that for more than a week. I gave him some and he ate it. He had been eating nothing but watered-down baby food.

Today he's running around, jumping up on my desk, licking the other cats. He seriously considered running after the ball Lizzie and Megan were chasing. He's just fur and protruding bones but I'm no longer beating myself up for not having him euthanized. Seeing him happy - even if it's only for today - makes me feel like I did the right thing.

Netflix is being run by monkeys

Not chimpanzees but those little monkeys that scamper and squeal all over the place, flinging poop at the people who feed them. Chimps are smarter than the average Netflix executive, including CEO Reed Hastings.

It all started with the glib way they announced their price increase in July. (Hey, everybody, we're raising our prices because we love you so much and we're so successful we don't care if we piss you off.) I was going to quote the actual post Reed made on his blog but they've deleted it along with the thousands of angry comments from subscribers. Gee, wonder why?

Then in September, the same month the price increase took effect, they announced they were splitting their DVD and streaming services into separate websites. The streaming business would keep the Netflix name and the DVD division would be called Qwikster.

Splitting the service meant customers who used both services (like I did before the price increase) would have to visit separate websites, set up 2 separate accounts, tab back and forth between the sites and search twice to find out which movies were available in which format, and manage separate lists of which movies they've seen and how they rated them (which is how Netflix decides which movies to recommend to individual users).

If I had kept both streaming and DVDs, my Netflix bill would've gone up about $8 a month. Instead, I dropped streaming and my bill went down $5. Not sure how they expected to make a profit on deals like that. As I posted in the comments on Reed's blog, the decision to split the two services made it easier for me to shop around for better prices elsewhere.

Today head-monkey-in-charge Reed announced that Qwikster bit the dust before it even launched. Meanwhile, they've already lost thousands of once-loyal customers and their stock price has plunged.

So how big do you think Reed Hastings' severance package will be? Will it be enough to buy some straws to go with his orange soda?

The cat that would not die

Percy was doing great for several days - eating well, socializing, even playing a little. Then he suddenly stopped eating on Thursday and started hiding in the closet. Overnight, he went from looking like he was gaining weight to being the skinniest he's ever been. I really expected to find him dead Friday morning - or Friday afternoon - or Friday night.

About 5:00 this morning, I got up to go to the bathroom. He was laying on the floor in the middle of my bedroom, loosely curled into a C-shape instead of his normal tight little tucked position. Exactly the way I found Jasmine when she died. Percy didn't seem to be breathing. I walked over to him then stepped around him - no response. So I took care of my personal business then waited a few minutes to prepare myself and make a plan about what I would do with his body.

When I went back to the bedroom, he raised his head a little. Maybe he was too weak to stand. I knelt beside him and petted him. He purred a little then he got up and walked back into the closet.

I love this cat more than I could ever put in words but this process is taking a toll on me. I need to have it over with.

The humane society will euthanize pets but you just have to drop them off - I can't stay with him while it's done, and he'll probably be kept in a cage for awhile before they give him the shot. Is he suffering enough to justify putting him through that? Would he be better off?

If euthanasia is so humane, why won't they let you do it to grandma? People have the ability to express their wishes before they get into that state. Pets can't. Every member of my family has said they don't want to be kept alive when there's no hope. I wouldn't hesitate to have them put to sleep but that's not an option for humans.

I really don't know what to do.

Quote of the day

"You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something -- your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life."

- Steve Jobs

I screwed up my camera settings

I'm not sure how I did it but for the last month or so, most of my pictures have turned out fuzzy.

Megan is fuzzy enough - she doesn't need special effects.

Phucking Phishers

I just got a strange phone call. It was from a restricted number and a recorded voice said it was from my real bank's name. It said that for my own protection my card had been locked out. Then it told me to press 1 if I wanted to fix it. So I pressed 1. It asked me to enter my card number. I entered the first 3 digits then I thought, "WTF? Why would my card be blocked?"

So I hung up, checked my account online - all the money's still there. Then I called the actual customer service line. The "security alert" was fake.

Whew. That could've been a big mess if I hadn't thought twice.

Beef flavored baby food

Percy gobbles it right up. If anyone reading this ever has a sick cat with a poor appetite, baby food is the way to go. Percy prefers beef but he'll eat chicken too. The problem is it's more expensive than Fancy Feast (which he won't eat) and Lizzie and Megan like it too. If I don't give them some, they get jealous and pick on Percy.

The pictures below show bath time for Lizzie and Megan. Lizzie has been attacking Megan's ears with her tongue - and she's managed to get rid of Megan's ear mites.

Life is cheap

I just noticed that I hadn't posted in 5 days. Not like me but I really didn't have that much to say. I'm burned out on politics at the moment. The roofers have been waking me up at 7:30 every morning for the last week - even this weekend. Percy is doing better. He's socializing more and his appetite is coming back. He's hardly more than a skeleton with fur but if he keeps eating he'll put some weight back on.

I spent part of last week watching the Conrad Murray trial live on TMZ. That's the guy who killed Michael Jackson - or helped MJ kill himself.

The testimony on Friday showed just how sad this whole situation was. Murray was giving MJ propofol, which should only be given under close supervision. Resuscitation equipment should be standing by. There wasn't any.

Murray claims he only left the room for 2 minutes, which is 2 minutes longer than he should have left. But if he was only gone 2 minutes then found that MJ had stopped breathing, he would've called 911 right away and might very well have been able to keep him going with CPR until they got there.

But he didn't call 911. By his own statements and by phone records, he waited at least 15-20 minutes before he told someone else to call 911. It only took the paramedics 4 minutes to get there. They said MJ was already cool to the touch.

What Friday's testimony showed is that MJ would still be alive if Murray had purchased a pulse-oximeter with an alarm on it, which only costs $250. If Murray was in the adjacent bathroom as he claims, the alarm would have alerted him that MJ stopped breathing. MJ could have been saved.

$250. Michael Jackson probably spent more than that for the pajamas he died in.

Scum of the week

This week's Scum of the Week is The Koch Brothers. Here's one of many reasons why.