Off the grid and goodbye to Millie
This was our side yard after the storm.
We got over a foot of snow last Friday and it’s going to take weeks to clean up the mess. The power went out Friday afternoon and wasn’t restored until Monday night.
We have a kerosene heater and a propane camp stove, battery- and propane-powered lamps, oil lights and candles. But the heater really only heats one room, so we stayed in the living room most of the four days.
Then Millie got sick. We kept her warm until Monday morning and took her to the vet, but she was in renal failure, a common cause of death for cats.
But she was only 12 and this was completely unexpected. She didn’t show any symptoms until late Friday night and even then she wasn’t in pain, just weak.
Millie took ownership of all my projects, usually before they were finished.
Millie was a feral kitten. Her two siblings had been caught by neighbors and taken to the animal shelter, but no one could catch her. She had been alone for three days under our neighbor’s shed in New York when I finally was able to grab her. She scratched me, but then calmed down quickly and started purring. Within a few minutes, she was askeep in my arms.
When I took her inside our old male cat fell in love. I tried to keep them separated, but every time I walked by the room where she was, they were playing pawsies under the door.
Millie was shy and not many people were fortunate enough to get to know her, but those who did loved her.
She loved catnip, laps and my quilting and crocheting projects. She was a great mouser, and until the day she died, she purred like a motorboat when we petted her.
We’ll miss her a lot.
Patient Pals & Family Friends
Life o' Mike has a new peer support program for people newly diagnosed with chronic or serious illness or with a new disability and their caregivers.
Patient Pals are people who have experience with various illnesses and disabilities, who can help someone newly diagnosed or with a new disability work through the fear, frustration, confusion and grief often experienced in the first few months.
Family Friends are there to help caregivers and other family members grow into their new role.
People with new illness or disability fare better when they have a role model -- someone who can help them negotiate their new path in life.
We need volunteers, who are asked to donate a minimum of one hour a week. Training is free and includes information on active listening, ways to help and when to know more help is needed.
And of course, we need funding.
To learn more, call Leslie Boyd at 828-243-6712 or e-mail lifeomike@gmail.com.
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