Dec 18: 9:00 pm: updates on both patients

Zerla is doing much better! The post last night was when I didn't think she was going to be alive this morning. But she was looking bright-eyed when I finally got up at 9:30, still moving with a lot of pain. I gave her some of the pain medicine, which is animal ibuprofen, but not approved for usage in cats for any more than a couple days. She hasn't had any for at least five days now, and was clearly having difficulty. My other big concern was that in 72 hours at home she had only peed once and no poo. The only thing that could be done was to try another litter box--she has her choice of two, but one of them seems a little too high and the other one that is lower is pretty small. So late this afternoon I went to K-Mart and found a perfect one. Came in her room, poured the litter into it, left the room for about 10-15 mins and very large deposits of both things were already in the new box! I've just spent about 2 hours with her on the floor, a little computer stuff and a lot of phone stuff, while she groomed with the collar off. But I'm awfully sore now, so collar is back on while I sit at the desk and type, she's lying very near me. Can't do it this way with the collar off, because she is just too fast getting back to those stitches.

That's the good news.

Martha is really going downhill fast. They didn't give her more chemo because of her blood work getting worse and worse, her hemoglobin is down a full gram in two days, the white count continues to climb. She's also in a great deal of pain and taking more and more of the narcotics, something she resisted in the past. John isn't sure how much she understands, although the conversations with the oncologist are held in front of her. With seeing her in so much pain, however, it is allowing John to recognize that things are moving from palliative to comfort measures.

John has efficiently arranged for the local volunteer ambulance service to take her to Emma's Sunday performance, but it's not sounding like that will be physically possible. My plan was to go up tomorrow, Saturday, then be able to contribute and help for all Sunday, coming back Sunday night. But under the circumstances that seems like too little. And now there's this blizzard coming in, which, by the way, is entirely due to the fact that the ballet was moved to this weekend, because there had been snow storms the last several years on earlier weekends the ballet was scheduled for.

Fortunately, there is more than enough coverage at work for both Monday and Tuesday, especially with fewer and fewer in patients in the hospital. So the current thought is to leave early Sunday morning, swinging by to drop Zerla off for medical boarding, then head to NY, barely getting there in time for the ballet. Then stay until Tuesday night. I'm supposed to take my Mom down to Beth & George's in Virginia for Christmas Eve through Saturday. Next week at work two of the full time PAs are off, so that wouldn't work to take off.

No matter what happens this is not going to be a happy holiday.

Thanks for checking in on the sagas, Laurie