Mollie Hunt's Blog, page 68

8 Week Challenge: Update 2

I knew it was coming. The (dreaded) check-in from the Caffeinated Writer for the 8 Week Challenge update. She did pretty well meeting her goals; me, not so much.

My goal was to lose some weight and girth by walking or gardening at least 1/2 hour every day so I can fit in my Star Trek uniform by the beginning of August. When I began going to conventions, my uniform was a small. Then I went to medium; then large! I had to take the large in a bit because it was shaped like a red polyester sack, and now am wishing I hadn’t. It’s supposed to be tight, but not that tight!

As to my challenge, this week has been different because my husband and I went on vacation. I walked for hours one day, then sat in the car all day the next. The garden is still waiting. Having a goal helps.

Rah! Rah!

The Caffeinated Writer writes:

Here we are, at the end of week 2! Ahh! I knew the time before we moved would fly by, but man! To refresh your memory, my eight week challenge involves pushing myself to make some good changes and …

Source: 8 Week Challenge: Update 2

ANXIETY IN PARADISE

 

The ocean pounds the shore, a peaceful noise. The air is warm, perfect. Birds sing, the coor of a dove. I have no place to be, no time constraint, nothing on my agenda, yet I am anxious. It is a disorder, not a choice.  

With anxiety disorder, it’s always a battle. Sometimes I suffer with anxiety-proper, the panic that begins in my gut like a stab wound; sometimes it’s just a spider of restlessness crawling on my skin. It clings to me like a shroud of electric gloom that has nothing to do with what’s going on around. I am scared and irritable, making big deals out of small, because to me, to how I feel, everything is a weight on my shoulders, a pin prick in my flesh. A twisted ankle, hair in my eyes, nose itch: it’s a big deal. Even thinking hurts. Every action is war. To breathe is a fight. 

I will not give in. One deep, slow breath can often clear my head a little. The burst of lemon zing or the zap of a strong mint can bring temporary relief. An ice-cold cloth on my forehead, or exercise, keeping moving. If I can meditate, it helps; if my mind only regurgitates the jumble of thoughts in my head, then not so much. 

I’m sitting on a Mazatlan beach shivering with fear today, but I know – and will keep at the forefront in my mind – this won’t last forever. Like the sea, anxiety ebbs and flows. I await the tide change.

  

 

 

I am joining the Eight Week Challenge with The Caffeinated Writer

Working together is a good idea. I need to lose weight to fit into my costume for the Star Trek convention in August. I’ve already cut down eating, so I will challenge myself to get exercise by walking or gardening at least 1/2 hour every day. Good luck to all!

 

Here’s Danielle’s original challenge:

Greetings and happy (early) Memorial Day! I have eight weeks left to go at my job until my last day, and then we are on the road to Texas just one week later. Before I leave Virginia, I really want…

Source: Eight Week Challenge with The Caffeinated Writer

2 POEMS

 

DREAM

The night dream lies beyond a closing door.

A glimpse as I waken,

Then gone,

Shrouded in the wool of day.

 

 

LISTS

Yesterday’s list:

Meeting

Work

On time

Concentrate

Place dreams in the box on the left as you enter.

 

Today’s List:

Foxglove

Hummingbird

Sea breeze

Breathe

Retrieve dreams from box.

 

Tomorrow’s List:

Dream

 

Art credits:

“Dream Door 3″ ~ jkemeny

“MoreToDo”

“A kitty’s dream moon” ~ Mirsad

 

RANT

Warning: This blog is rated PG-13 for V, L, P (politics), SA (substance abuse). Next blog I’ll say something nice. Promise.

It’s election year. Enough said, except this year is even stupider than usual. It was one thing when we elected a movie star to the position of President of the United States, but now there are a quantity of American people who wish to elect a business buffoon. They’re even willing to fight for him. With all the violence already in the world, do we really need riots at rallies?

Marijuana is legal. Finally. The mellow weed, far less deadly and addictive than alcohol, should have been legal long ago. It’s not the “stepping stone to heroin” any more than cigarettes and booze. But!! The new pot business is totally out of control. Their pot is far more potent than the stuff we smoked back in the day. What I worry about the most are the edibles. With no real legislation, entrepreneurs are making all sorts of marijuana products. Edible pot in pastries and wrapped like candy appeal to children. What’s wrong with that picture? Eating pot isn’t something to fuck around with. The potential high can exacerbate mental issues like anxiety and bipolar disorder. For people trying pot for the first time, the potential for a bad trip is alarming.

Greedy companies are tearing down old Portland homes and building gargantuans. Investors and contractors are slipping in to a changing market under the radar of any legislation. Historic homes are being purchased and torn down. Tiny Victorians now must reside in the shadow of giant blocky condos. Yeah, Portland is growing, but all the more reason to keep some of the Old Portland flavor before we become just another suburb of LA.

Portland is growing. They say within 10 years, 1,000,000 more people will have moved here. I understand that everybody in this overpopulated word deserves a place to live, but as a Portland native, I resent the influx of Portlandia wannabees nearly as much as the influx of street gangs. No, we really don’t have to Keep Portland that Weird.

Speaking of overpopulation, Please stop having babies until you know what to do with them. Once you have them, you love them I know, but overpopulation causes poverty, ignorance, war, social issues, pollution, and disease. Unfortunately the couples who choose to remain childless in hopes of a better future die out, leaving those who breed like bunnies to continue their procreating legacy. It’s a catch 22.

I hate heroin. Heroin use has gotten out of hand. It’s too easily available and too addicting. It’s insidious and unstoppable. Please, say no and save yourself and your family a world of hurt. (As a recovering alcoholic, I don’t much care for the other drugs either. Booze, pot, meth, opioids – they really won’t get you where you want to go.)

Okay, that’s all I’ve got a stomach for right now. I don’t often express my views this bluntly because they are nothing more than my opinion, and people I love and respect may have very different ones. I won’t argue these views, because they are only mine; I won’t try to make anyone else think the same way I do. On the other hand, sometimes I just need to rant.

 

 

LUX – STILL GOOD

This month marked the 2-year anniversary of my experience with Lux, the cat whose family called 911 when he had an aggressive and threatening outburst after the baby pulled his tail. It was May 2, 2014 that I experienced one of Lux’s outbursts firsthand, and yes, it was as scary as the family had described.

Thanks to Jackson Galaxy and Animal Planet, Lux was given a chance, more than most aggressive cats get. There isn’t a long life expectancy in most shelters for cats who are violent. Jackson wanted to turn the tables and show that even a cat with a history of aggression can give and receive love. It didn’t turn out as we’d hoped, for Lux to remain with me, but he is now well established in a fine place where he has all that love and care he deserves. In between naps, walks, and treats, behaviorists are working with him, finding what makes him act out and trying to change it.

Thanks again to Jackson Galaxy for his belief in Lux and his active love of all felines, no matter what. Here are some of my favorite photos of sweet Luxie.

    

    

    

Goodreads Book Giveaway for Cats’ Eyes

I’m running my 1st Goodreads Book Giveaway beginning tomorrow, May 20, and going through June 5th. Enter for a chance to win a signed copy of Cats’ Eyes, a Crazy Cat Lady cozy mystery. In this 1st book of the series, 58-year-old cat shelter volunteer Lynley Cannon takes crazy to a whole new level.

Retiree Lynley Cannon adores her Old Portland home with her clowder of rescue cats, but when elderly Fluffs drags in a dusky brown beach agate that turns out to be a priceless chocolate diamond, things change fast. The uncut stone, one of a pair called the Cats’ Eyes, has been stolen from its wealthy owner, but how it ended up a cat toy, even the robbers cannot guess. Threatened by kidnapping, theft, and murder, Lynley is determined to maintain her serenity, even if it means finding the crooks herself. With the police completely baffled, friends, family, and a hunky humane society investigator come onboard to help. The killer thinks Lynley has the diamonds and will go to any lengths to get them back. Will Lynley live to clean the litter box another day?

Opens for entries on May 20, 2016

Giveaway dates: May 20 – Jun 05, 2016

Availability: 5 copies available

Format: Print Book

Unfortunately I can’t get my widget to work. Such is life. You should be able to get to the giveaway through this link: Cats’ Eyes Goodreads Book Giveaway.

 Comments and reblogging always welcome.

GOOD MORNING – WITH CATS!

 

Tinkerbelle meows around my ankles, telling me it’s time to eat.

“Coffee first,” I say.

“Right meow!” says she, golden eyes blinking eagerly.

Tink is joined by Little, the two black females ganging up on me. Shy Big Red lurks around the perimeter, the male in waiting.

As coffee perks, I pull out the bowls: 2 berry, one vintage restaurantware, and one cereal bowl. In the berry bowls go Friskey’s pate. One I mix into soup with warm water, (Tink); one I chop into slices (Little). The large bowl is for Red’s special IBD food which he takes with a spoonful of pumpkin.

Tink has asthma, so before food, we have a session on the couch where I brush her long brown-black fur, the sleek back, the fluffy tail, the gray downy underbelly; then I give her 2 puffs of Flovent from a fancy cat inhaler. 10 breaths with the apparatus over her little nose. I kiss her head to distract her.

Red gets morning meds as well. I fill the applicator with the cloudy chicken-flavored emulsion. He’s supposed to like the flavor, but he doesn’t.

Closing Little and Tink in the kitchen with their fare, I take Red’s bowl and meds into the living room where he hovers on the couch, nervous and hungry. The bowl goes under the coffee table – I follow him around the room until he lets me give him the meds.

All done? Not quite.

“Uh,” you say – “Isn’t there is still one more bowl?”

Yes, there is. I also have a Foster cat. Depending on why the kitty is here, the foster’s morning regimen can be simple or complex. This sweet girl requires only feeding and cleaning of her space. I fill the remaining bowl with the Chicken Delite that came with her from the shelter and take it in for morning greetings. She is happy to see me after her night alone. I promise her I’ll be back to spend time with her soon.

In the kitchen once again. Little and Tink have eaten lightly, then snubbed their half-empty bowls. I spend a few more minutes of chasing them down to make sure they are finished and not just pouting. Yes, I know. I’m spoiling them. It’s what I do.

Now I’m finished…

Unless it’s Sunday, when Tinkerbelle gets suspension drops of Calcitriol, an activated form of vitamin D to help with her chronic kidney disease.

Or unless it’s one of the days when Big Red has an injection of Adequan for the arthritis in his hips and a shot of B12 for the IBD.

And let’s not forget the cleaning of the five cat boxes, though that can be done a little later.

With love and pets and quiet cats doing their after breakfast wash-up, I can relax at my computer or get a bath.

And yes, finally that coffee!!

LIFE STAGES: WHEN KITTY DIES

 

Guardian Angel #2, by Leslie Cobb

No!! Anything but that! Tears spring to my eyes just writing the title. Yet it is something we must face because death happens, and unfortunate and unfair as it may be, chances are we will outlive our cats.

Unlike us, cats are pragmatic about their deaths. They live in the now, ignoring sickness until it has taken its toll. Left to their own devices, many cats will hide as their time draws near. When there is no quality of life left for kitty, when they no longer eat or drink, no longer visit the window or the favorite chair, and we as their care giver have done all we can, there are a few options for the final step.

~Euthanasia in a veterinary office: Taking your cat to the veterinary office for euthanasia usually means packing her up and driving her to a strange, smelly, unwelcome place. Most vets, however, are extremely compassionate when it comes to these final moments and do their best to make kitty comfortable and calm. You can stay with your cat during the process, or you can leave her with the medical team. That’s okay too. That drive home with the empty carrier may be the saddest thing you ever do.

~Euthanasia at home: Some vets are willing to come to your home to put your kitty to sleep in her own environment, her own bed. With this option there is no travel or upset, but it is often expensive and is not available in all locations. Don’t just choose a vet off the internet; make sure you have a relationship with them before taking this step.

~Natural passing: Sometimes kitty passes on her own. She goes to sleep and never wakens. This is the way we all want to go, but it isn’t always that easy. The shift from the transition period to death, itself, can take a little time. This option may still be preferable to some, because it is the natural progression of things.

When you make your decision, remember that cats are stoic. Death, whether by euthanasia or on its own, is part of the process of life. Whichever alternative you choose, be content that it is the right one, and be honored that you have given your cat a safe and cherished life.

 

A note about the rest of the family: There are different thoughts about letting your other animals see the dead one. Some believe it helps them understand why the one is suddenly missing from the home; others consider the confrontation too traumatic. If you have other animals, you will face this decision.

Memorials: Once kitty has crossed the Rainbow Bridge and you are left with only furry memories, you may need to express your love and loss by memorialization. Even if she passed in a veterinary office, you can take her home to bury in your yard. If she was cremated, you can keep the ashes in a decorative urn, bury them with a marker, or cast them to the wind in a memorial ceremony to help you say goodbye. Ashes can also be made into glass which can then be turned into an art memorial or a wind chime. Some animal groups offer grief workshops in the form of therapy or an exercise. Grief lessens when shared with others.

* * *

Harry, who died naturally in his donut bed, is buried in our garden, covered by a flat river stone. A small wind chime with his name penned on the wood clapper hangs from the plum tree above him. Whenever I visit, I ring the chime to remember.

Special thanks to Cat Artist Leslie Cobb who understood how difficult this blog was to write and allowed me to use her gentle artwork.

 

Mollie Hunt’s Extremely Informal Newsletter #3

Cat Tip of the month: Cats especially like stretching and clawing when they wake up from naps, so if your cat has a bed she likes, put it next to a scratcher instead of on furniture she shouldn’t be scratching. Marci Koski, feline behaviorist

Hello friends! What about this Portland weather? It’s 9:00 and just perfect outside. Cats like it too, sleeping long in the sun. Does this mean we’ll have an sizzling hot summer or a wet and soggy one? I am enjoying retirement, especially being able to do what I want when I want to. The lack of funds is a bit worrisome. It’s time to win the lottery or write that best seller.

The American Association of University Women-sponsored Sisters in Crime Panel in March was fun and illuminating. The 10-author panel discussed villains and “How to love your bad guy”. I learned a lot from my “sisters”.

I’m excited to announce the Cat Writers’ Association accepted my application for professional membership. I’m honored to join the ranks of such great cat writers as Shirley Rousseau Murphy, Carole Nelson Douglas, and Clea Simon.

Cat’s Cradle, a Crazy Cat Lady Mystery short story came out on April 30. For the time being, the cost is .99 for kindle and $3.99 for the cutest little print book ever!

It’s not about cats, but don’t forget to check out my thriller, Placid River Runs Deep which delves into murder, obsession, and the challenge of chronic illness in bucolic southwest Washington.

“…A thrilling combination of menace and pastoral beauty. After reading this book you may want to rethink your summer holiday.”  —Lily Gardner, author of Betting Blind

Upcoming News:

People in the Neighborhood, Spot Magazine’s new personality series will feature an interview with me about – what else? – cats. Tentatively running Monday, May 16.

There will be a Cover Reveal on the 1st of June for Cat’s Paw, a Crazy Cat Lady Mystery #3 with beautiful Cat art by Leslie Cobb. Check out her work at CatCon, June 25 & 26. (I’m so jealous!)

Upcoming events:

The Power of the Pen Series at  Courtyard Fountains Senior Living. I will be reading and signing Crazy Cat mysteries on Wednesday, July 6. Refreshments at 1:30pm – Reading begins at 2:00pm – 1545 SE 223rd, Gresham, Oregon. All welcome.

8th Annual NW Book Festival, July 30, 2016 11:00 am – 5:00 pm in Portland’s Pioneer Courthouse Square. This is a big book festival with something for everyone.

Cat’s Paw, a Crazy Cat Lady Mystery #3 Launch Party, August 18th at Another Read Through Independent bookstore.

When cat shelter volunteer Lynley Cannon attends an exclusive art retreat at the world-famous Cloverleaf Animal Sanctuary, she gets more than a lesson in drawing. Accused by vigilantes of a shocking double homicide, she persuades them of her innocence and heads home to Portland, but murder follows in her wake. It all comes down to cats in this 3rd Crazy Cat Lady cozy mystery.

Conversations with Writers: a Hillsboro, Oregon group that invites writers to read and tell about their work and their writing methods.

Turning real life into mystery:  People say “write what you know”, but what if what you know is boring? My character, Lynley Cannon, is based on myself, and her story, based loosely on my life, but I don’t chase murderers or get beat up in the park, thank goodness. How do I make a good story out of real stuff? Where does Lynley begin and Mollie end?

September 26, 2016 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm at Hillsboro Main Library, 2850 Brookwood Pkwy, Hillsboro, Oregon.

I hope I see you soon.