Hi. I’m Mateo.
This has been a busy week at Casa Mother-of-Cats. The shower broke and she had to get a plumber to fix it. Hannah practically teleported into the closet for that! Then the Mother of Cats had to go get some blood work done for her crazy scleroderma and she has been dragging sadly around the house waiting for the doctor to call. Finally, the Mother of Cats pulled herself together and went to the garden center to buy roasted green chiles: Yeow! Those chiles are stinky!! Hannah refused to go into the kitchen while the Mother of Cats was packing them up for freezing. Late in the week the Mother of Cats got some knitting done and early this evening the doctor messaged her, and she has finally perked up.
Through the whole week she took a lot of pictures, so here they come:
I managed to escape from the catio last night and ran wild through the yard under that supermoon for a couple of hours before the Mother of Cats came looking for me. So. Much. Fun. I looked everywhere for that bunny, but I couldn’t find it. There was a garter snake in the yard last week too, and that sounds like a lot of fun, but I couldn’t find it either. Unable to have really outstanding fun or a bunny snack, I just ate a bunch of bugs and threw them up on the bed after I came back in… why does the Mother of Cats get worked up so easily?
Oh, yeah. I almost forgot. There was a lot of knitting that went on this week, too.
The sweater is being knit inside-out, so the Mother of Cats tried to pull the knitted tube open so you could see the part of the sweater that will be on the outside. It is totally a mystery to me, but hopefully you will kind of get the idea. The color is nice, right?
The Mother of Cats really made progress on the new arm warmers. The first one is done, and she has started on the second one; they are so long they go up above her elbow. The next time she had a medical adventure they should help keep her nice and warm!
Well, that’s all for now. I’m going to carry on downstairs for awhile to see if I can get Hannah to come chase me.
Happy Caturday, everyone!
This is Mateo the CoalBear, signing off.
Notes from the Mother of Cats:
The last few weeks have seen the emergence of new symptoms: my hair is falling out, I have more edema, bruises are popping up everywhere, and I get sudden muscle cramps. Itching has become a problem, and cuts are slow to heal. Fatigue is back in a big way. I finally contacted my doctor, and she ordered some testing to make sure I wasn’t going into kidney failure.
Kidney failure!! Cue the panic sirens!!!!
Seriously, one of the things that I fear most is kidney failure. Last year, when my lung disease was so bad, letting my kidneys go to save my lungs was an actual topic of discussion; I was a hard no on that treatment option. Ironically, a low kidney function test was one of the first clues that led to my scleroderma diagnosis, but my kidneys have improved over the last couple of years to a comfortable stage 3 level of disease. Discussion of kidney failure again seemed like a huge blow, and I have been sad this week. I cast on the arm warmers during the afternoons when I’m stuck indoors on oxygen during the heat.
The message from my doctor today was reassuring. My kidney function has maintained, but I am very low on protein levels in my blood. This is kind of a scleroderma thing too, as digested food doesn’t get absorbed well through fibrotic intestinal tissue, but I’m so immunosuppressed, it might be because I can’t make antibodies. More testing is on the horizon, but I’m not losing any sleep over this. I am, however, going to be much more careful about wearing my mask!
I’m making good progress on those arm warmers… if I hurry, I can cast on another project like maybe those pressed flowers socks early next week. 🙂
Have a good Caturday!
Yarn, Books & Roses 
Mateo, how did you cope with summer heat with all that fur ?? – you must look forward to the cold seasons !
You never get much of a break, Marilyn, between the onset of one lot or another of symptoms. Very glad to hear that the kidney function isn’t failing at all !!
Are Andrea’s hands still sporting those rather ugly tats ? – if she’d at least had coloured ones – or even just nice objects .. I see her output is still extremely sophisticated. 🙂 But then, you are a sophisticated knitter, so you’re made for each other. 😀
Mateo: I spend the summer stretched out on cold surfaces in front of the fan.
To be honest, the tats on her fingers were so awful it was hard to watch the video. Green is bad, but they look like the ink has traveled. I’m one of those people who have trouble understanding why anyone would get a tat since I spend so much time struggling with my skin. All those people with healthy skin should be grateful and do everything they can to maintain!!
She’s a good example of gradual deterioration of tats – and on so good-looking a woman !
I TOTALLY agree wit’ yer, Marilyn, seeing as how my skin is now so dry I think I’m basically peeling away !
It is a terrible shame.
I am pleased, Marilyn, that your kidney fears have not materialised, but sorry it has been a difficult week. Mateo, you should be more considerate now you are grown up.
I was grateful for the relatively good news and somewhat validated by her finding something that explains my symptoms (and why I feel so bad). This may something that can’t be fixed as it may be a side effect of of my medications.
Ah. I’d like to see that change – as I’m sure you would.
The mums are stunning, the bunny is adorable, and I’m glad your doctor is keeping close tabs on everything. Hey, I hadn’t noticed before … are Mateo’s eyes different colors? Maybe just the light, but interesting if true.
Mateo’s eyes are the same; it must have been the light. Aren’t the mums nice? Kind of a rose gold color. I’m trying to decide where to plant them in the yard as they should come back.
I’m relieved to hear that your kidneys are ok. It’s awful waiting for test results, especially when so much is at stake. I’m glad you’re finding comfort knitting, and keeping tabs on that naughty cat. They’re adorable!
I can be such a baby sometimes… the hard part was contacting my doctor, and then her reaction kind of freaked me out. Ugh. So glad that the bullet is dodged!!
YOU are anything but a baby. You handle so many significant health issues that would reduce most of us to a puddle on the floor. I’m glad you are doing okay, and I also love the way you surround yourself with interesting and engaging activities to keep depression at bay. Cats are a balm, along with writing, reading, creating, and the garden. xo
Today someone was telling he how upset he was about getting diagnosed with… hypertension. I almost burst out laughing! It sure is a good thing that I have these cats, huh!
It is indeed.
Happy belated Caturday! I’m glad your kidneys are ok and the medical news as not as bad as you feared. I love that fuscia that’s in both your knitting projects!
That color is the best!
Happy belated Caturday! The arm warmers looks great, and they’re the perfect end-of-summer / start-of-fall project. Not too warm to hold and knit, yet very useful in the coming months.
Today is cooler and I’m wearing some long arm warmers I already had in the cupboard. They are so nice, and now I’m on fire to get the new ones done. They really are perfect and so useful.
Yay! I do love cooler weather. Arm warmers are a wonderful wardrobe piece. I’m always in favor of finishing more!
I finished the new arm warmers up and now I’m getting ready to cast on the new pair of Pressed Flowers socks. In the back of my mind I’m thinking… these would also make nice arm warmers…
That’s one good thing about socks: they convert to arm warmers really well!
My goodness such a beautiful cat you are, now take care of that mum of yours…and keep helping with the knitting.
Mateo: Thank you, I am handsome, aren’t I. She should knit out on the catio so I can watch bunnies while she works on her knitting, don’t you think?
So glad that your kidney function is OK, and hoping that the new symptoms can be dealt with quickly. Your armwarmers and new sweater are beautiful!
Mateo, you are such a handsome boy! I’m glad you got some time to run around, but glad you didn’t find a bunny or snake to play with. Try to eat fewer bugs if there is a next time!
It was a huge relief to get the test results. Mateo: … but I love to eat all the grasshoppers!!!