It’s been a real doozy of a week here. Such a doozy, in fact, that I should stop wondering why I’ve been so tired.
First, the old air conditioning unit at my house has decided after 26 years of – what I assume to be – faithful service to this old house, she’s over it and so out of here. She spits out a bit of cool air every day, but her effort level is really no match for the humid heat that Kansas serves up. As a single homeowner with no independent wealth to speak of, the thought of having to come up with almost $4,000 quickly enough for us to get relief put me into a panic last week.
After trying to figure out what I could create to sell as a fundraiser, and realizing that would take far longer than I want any of the animals or myself to wait for a new air conditioner, I asked for help. It is a tall order for me to ask for help. And something like this feels like an expense of homeownership for which I should have at least KIND OF a plan. But after shoulding all over myself and getting exactly no closer to a cool house, I asked my people to help me out. AND THEY DID in just the most beautiful outpouring of love. I’m blown away with gratitude.
And I am dedicated to creating items to thank all of my supporters and to sell in The Piperbee Market too. But in the meantime, I was able to put the deposit down on a new air conditioner as a result of my community, and I’m positive I’ve never felt more loved.
If you want to help us with this unexpected expense, please feel free to donate at my ko-fi link here, and we will all be eternally grateful:
With all that air conditioning drama running in the background, and keeping me less than fully comfortable during every hour of my life (because I’m pretty much always at home), the health and wellness of several fosters and residents required my attention too.
I saw a flea on new kitten* (still awaiting the perfect name) on Friday while I was feeding him a bottle, so I sprung into action and gave him a quick dish soap bath. We ended up getting three fleas I could see off of the poor little guy, so that was the first problem this week I have been worried about spreading around the house. Thankfully, all the dogs are on preventatives!
Then on Tuesday, the sibling pair of foster kittens (also still to be named… I have the hardest time settling on what I want to be perfect names for my babes!) were diagnosed with ringworm. Of all the pet health concerns I have experience with, I’ve never dealt with ringworm. They got their first lime sulphur dip of many immediately, and now need to be isolated in the bathroom. I’m so hopeful that no one else has gotten ringworm from them, including the new kitten. At this point, I just need to keep an eye on any symptoms… which means LESIONS, and that breaks my heart. Little brother kitten has a large bald spot on his head, which is what initially drew my suspicion that something wasn’t right. The good news is that they are gaining weight fast, and the little boy looks like a healthy size for his age now. I will do another weigh-in when I can figure out a way to keep contamination down, and in the meantime, they need to stay isolated and it’s just so sad.
Murphy had an appointment this week to have surgery, and I assumed he was going to have a tumor removed. But they ended up removing his right eye that had been giving him trouble. He came home late this afternoon, and is so happy to have his cone off while I’m able to watch him. He’s also played a lot of fetch in the backyard already too. So he is deaf and now has one eye, but he remains the sweetest, most good-natured guy. I’m so lucky to have him as a foster.
And my boys, Sal and Finch, had their annual vet visit on Monday for some vaccinations and wellness check. And you better believe I made sure to stock up on their flea and tick preventatives while we were there!
So it’s been a wild one, and it’s only Wednesday night! Tonight I’m filled with gratitude for such a supportive community, a little bit of overwhelm at juggling the care of all of these precious animals, and that uncomfortable warmth of a summer day without relief that leaves you wanting to lay as still as possible in front of a fan on the highest setting. So I’m going to grab one of my library books and do just that, I think.
