Quasi 2002 - 2009

Quasi left us today. Our household will never be the same.
Quasi

Last Wednesday he was diagnosed with severe anemia, on Friday morning he woke us and we rushed him to the emergency vet hospital where they helped him recover (he was placed in an oxygen cage and was given a diuretic) from acute dyspnea, caused by a large amount of fluid in his lungs. They also expressed a concern with potential heart disease, and we spent the weekend on edge trying to encourage him to eat and drink. On Monday we took him to a specialist at OSU, where, due to concerns of dehydration and renal failure (no sign of major heart disease) he was admitted to the ICU for further care. Over the course of the week he responded well to the fluids and was showing signs of improvement. The doctors, having conducted an ultrasound of his heart and then stomach, taken samples from his kidney, liver and spleen and completing numerous blood tests were unable to determine the cause of his anemia (lymphoma-and cancer in general, poisoning, and hemolysis were all ruled out). They began to treat him for potential blood parasites (with doxycyline) and discussed a bone marrow aspiration and/or steroid treatment to stimulate red blood cell production.

I was able to visit him this past Wednesday and he showed definite signs of improvement, he was eating and drinking and was alert and happy and chatted with me when I came into the ICU. After an initial greeting I sat down cross legged beside his cage and he (on a 6 foot IV leash) stepped out and curled up in my lap, for some belly love and then a nap. He looked great and we made arrangements with the vet team to continue his treatment at home while troubleshooting the anemia. Last night, however, he began to take fluid into his lungs again and his red blood cell count was at the lowest it had been yet. He suffered to breathe. Instead of bringing our baby home, we will have to retrieve his empty carrier.
I can't begin to express the helplessness and despair I have felt over the last week. It has been the longest week with no reprieve.

Weather.

Although we are now experiencing beautiful sunny weather, albeit freakishly cold, the Pacific Northwest has had a significant amount of precipitation in the past month or so. Joe's Dad sent these pics from the snow and flooding:
Sitting here now, you can barely see any evidence of the tremendous amount of water, except for the next-door neighbor's collapsed boat shelter.

Winter.

I'm going into hobbit...hermit...hibernation mode.

I wake up in the dark and I come home in the dark.

I get home, we make dinner and the next stop is bed.

Will someone please just feed me enough food so I can sleep through winter?

Next step.

In the first week, of the first month, of the new year...

2009 looks funny. Although, perhaps less so than its immediate predecessor, in my handwriting, that is; the number eight in my script is not a beautiful thing.

Tomorrow I return to campus for the beginning of winter quarter. I am anxious and excited. I spent a relatively lazy break reading on the couch that was punctuated by some travel and a great new year celebration.

Here's to a new quarter and to a new year...among other exciting new things that come to mind (but are not limited to...) a new administration, new books, new recipes, new thoughts and new hopes. The thrill of the passing of one year into the next is starting to fade as I age, but this year portends hope and dreams for me...just a bit...and I'm glad it's here.