CAT-VALESCENCE IN VICTORIA

POST # 25 Since I began this blog back in October of last year, I have been in the habit of waking up on the day that I am about to write with usually a few ideas of what might spill out of my brain onto the page, and once I begin, the words just seem to flow. This morning however all I could come up with was a play on the word convalescence. So let's go with that, shall we? If there is such a thing as the perfect housesit while one is recovering from a broken leg, then this housesit fits the bill. Tai and Maggie are the perfect companions for me at the moment. When I arrived, Maggie was doing a bit of cat-valescence herself, but we are through that now, and they are both happy to do what cats do best, eat, sleep, and purr a lot. This makes my job very easy indeed. I also might add, that they are indoor only cats which is great as I couldn't imagine having to wander around the neighbourhood looking for a lost cat in my current condition. The funny thing I have noticed about myself when I am taking care of cats only, is that I tend to become more cat like in my own habits. And with spring now here and the sun streaming in the various windows of the house, there have been times when all three of us have found a place on the carpet to stretch out in a sunbeam and just enjoy the moment. CATS REALLY HAVE IT MADE. After just over a week here now, I have settled into a comfortable routine and over that period I have slowly refined my movements in order to minimize any effort to get from a to b and also to help prevent any accidents. Even though I have to be carefull all of the time, one place where I pay extra special attention to is when I am standing at the top of the stairs preparing to go down to the basement where the computer resides. A fall down the stairs would be a very bad event, and I have worked out a specific procedure now which allows me to make the journey safely. Feeding the cats and cleaning their litter boxes was somewhat tricky at first, but by now I have that routine down pat as well and the cats are happy about that I am sure. As everything for them is located on the floor, the safest way for me to accomplish these tasks is to be on the floor as well. Since March 4th I have become quite proficient at propelling myself around using two arms, one leg and my buttocks. It aint pretty, but it works and it's safe which is all that I am really concerned about at this point. One other endeavour I am slowly perfecting is the act of preparing food and then getting the food to a place where I can sit and eat it. Through a combination of backpacks, plastic bags, and index fingers, or a combination of all three, I seem to be managing o.k. and of course as each day passes I get more refined with my transport activities. Also, I am moving around better than before on my crutches. This is certainly an activity that improves over time. The main thing is to consider myself a tripod and concentrate on having my one good leg and the two crutches placed solidly on the ground before I move forward. It sounds logical to do, but all it takes is to be in a rush, or to think I can do two things at once and then I get myself into a potentially bad situation. So far I have been lucky, and in fact I have been doing this now for so long, that crutching around is beginning to feel normal. I will be using this mode of transport for another five weeks, and by then I should be somewhat of an expert. This week has really just flown right on by and I have had the opportunity to catch up with old friends either in person or over the phone which has been one of the benefits of being back here in Victoria. I also had the chance to spend time with my niece Kathryn this past week, and that was fun. She helped her crippled uncle by driving me to a clinic to book an appointment for my follow up leg x-ray and then we headed over to the grocery store to do a big shop, something that I couldn't have done on my own. From now on, the shopping list will have to be whatever will fit in my backpack. Let's call it the backpack diet. The other thing worth mentioning is the continued healing of my leg. When I arrived here, the wound from the operation was still weeping some blood plasma and of course that was a concern, but now it is completely healed, so I have no risk of infection which is a big load off my mind. I am also getting significant movement back in my toes and also in my ankle, however I think it will be the ankle that will be the last to come back to whatever kind of normal I can expect in the future. And finally after almost two straight months, I finally have kicked the pill popping which was mainly to manage the pain but also to keep my digestive track working as it should. So April 30th was the final day for all that, and even though I still have some pain, it's more of an annoyance than anything else. I still have to keep my leg elevated as much as possible, as the swelling is still there, but I have plenty of locations around the house where I can accomplish that task, and I usually have Tai and Maggie close by giving me moral support. All things considered, life is pretty damn cushy at the moment. The cat-valescence continues. Paul The Thoughtful Wanderer