The Vent and Rant Thread

[DixieGal]

I have those at work and in every room at home. Life saver!!

[RickyMaveety]

I am so incredibly angry right now, I could happily strangle the girl who used to work as my live-in pet sitter.

When she quit (owing me $3000 in prospective pay that she just thought she'd walk away from), she also abandoned her cat, Cici.

I had long since paid (as part of the compensation to this idiot) for Cici to have thyroid surgery. She was as thin as a stick before she had the operation. The thing was, she never did get much bigger, although she ate enough for three cats. So, I chalked it up to old age (she was about 17 years old).

Today, she didn't show up for breakfast. That was extremely unusual, so I went looking for her. I found her dead at the base of a scratching post. She looked like she had died in her sleep.

I took her body to the vet, so she could be cremated and the ashes returned to me. However, before I left there, I asked to discuss her medical records with the vet. It turns out the idiot former pet-sitter just didn't think it was at all important to tell me that this poor cat needed to be on daily cardiac, thyroid and blood pressure medication. That they had told her Cici needed to have a second thyroid operation.

Further, while I came down on this moron like a ton of bricks, to the end that she has been paying me back for the money she just sort of thought I wouldn't miss, she has never once ... not ONCE ... asked about how "her" cat was doing.

And, all this time, I could have been giving Cici the medicine she needed. I was planning on calling the vet's this week because it didn't seem right that, for all she was eating, she was still so thin. But she didn't seem to be in any pain, and she was purring and acting fine. Still .... I spent this morning hammering nails into wood ... and envisioning this idiot's head every time I smashed that hammer in.

There are times I really wonder about people.

[desertgrandma]

oh, rm, thats so sad. People like this will get what they deserve........if not in this life, then in the next. Poor kitty. Rest well and easy....

[nekokami]

Wow. Some people really shouldn't be allowed to have cats. (Or other pets. Possibly kids, either.)

On the other hand, some people shouldn't be allowed to keep other people from having cats. I spent the day Saturday helping my brother, who was visiting from Vermont, get a kitten from a shelter here in NH, because where he lives, it's only possible to adopt cats through an organization run by a control-freak, who wants to see financial statements, a letter from one's vet, the home the cat will go to, and who knows what-all else, before allowing anyone to so much as see the poor animals waiting for homes. In order to adopt, one must agree to have animals neutered through the animal hospital of the organization's choice (which my brother loathes-- he'd rather drive an hour to a better vet). As I understand it, this organization also scours Craig's list, newspaper ads, etc. looking for people who have kittens or cats they are giving away, to make sure they get there first.

Needless to say, they're charging for this "service."

I may have mentioned having to drive out to Vermont a couple of months ago to help my brother deal with the death of his previous cat. She was 18, unable to drink or eat, and he was administering subcutaneous fluids, fixing special little snacks, and sitting up with her all night. This is not a guy anyone should worry about allowing to have a pet.

Anyway, my brother now has a very cute little female black shorthair, picked out with the help of his younger son and approved by his older son as well, and all are happy with the new arrangement (based on the sound of the purring). I hasten to point out that had the shelter not had kittens (and they nearly managed to get him to take two-- they had plenty), he was also open to adopting an older cat, including one considered "difficult." It just happened that as we walked in the front door, there was this cage, and there were these kittens... well, you know how it is.

In any case, all I can say about poor Cici is that she probably didn't know she was supposed to be on all those medications, either, and I'm sure she thought you were doing a wonderful job taking care of her.

[slayda]

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

Here ya go: the key to increasing the font size.

You're BAD badgooddeb!

[ShortNCuddlyAm]

Oh Ricky, sorry to hear that *hugs*

[RickyMaveety]

Originally Posted by nekokami

Wow. Some people really shouldn't be allowed to have cats. (Or other pets. Possibly kids, either.)

On the other hand, some people shouldn't be allowed to keep other people from having cats. I spent the day Saturday helping my brother, who was visiting from Vermont, get a kitten from a shelter here in NH, because where he lives, it's only possible to adopt cats through an organization run by a control-freak, who wants to see financial statements, a letter from one's vet, the home the cat will go to, and who knows what-all else, before allowing anyone to so much as see the poor animals waiting for homes. In order to adopt, one must agree to have animals neutered through the animal hospital of the organization's choice (which my brother loathes-- he'd rather drive an hour to a better vet). As I understand it, this organization also scours Craig's list, newspaper ads, etc. looking for people who have kittens or cats they are giving away, to make sure they get there first.

Needless to say, they're charging for this "service."

I may have mentioned having to drive out to Vermont a couple of months ago to help my brother deal with the death of his previous cat. She was 18, unable to drink or eat, and he was administering subcutaneous fluids, fixing special little snacks, and sitting up with her all night. This is not a guy anyone should worry about allowing to have a pet.

Anyway, my brother now has a very cute little female black shorthair, picked out with the help of his younger son and approved by his older son as well, and all are happy with the new arrangement (based on the sound of the purring). I hasten to point out that had the shelter not had kittens (and they nearly managed to get him to take two-- they had plenty), he was also open to adopting an older cat, including one considered "difficult." It just happened that as we walked in the front door, there was this cage, and there were these kittens... well, you know how it is.

In any case, all I can say about poor Cici is that she probably didn't know she was supposed to be on all those medications, either, and I'm sure she thought you were doing a wonderful job taking care of her.

I'm one of the ones who should never (ever) be allowed to have kids. But cats .... cats I'm good with.

Cici was the one I was building the special cat condo for so that she could have some time away from the other cats, but up high where she could see out the window. It had three floors and ramps to get from one floor to the next. I'll finish it anyway because eventually one of the other cats will probably need it as a retirement home of sorts.

I am still really angry at the idiot-woman. The thing is, she is swearing to me that she knew nothing about meds. However, I don't think she realizes that I read the entire medical file this morning. I know exactly what she was told and when she was told it.

I just need to stop thinking about this or I will punch a hole in the wall. And, then my hand will hurt, and that will do no one any good at all.

Originally Posted by ShortNCuddlyAm

Oh Ricky, sorry to hear that *hugs*

Thank you. My friends and fellow cat freaks on my email list are starting up a great thread about having a party for Cici at the Rainbow Bridge. They are having nip wine and cockroach on a stick (flambe).

[pshrynk]

Originally Posted by RickyMaveety

I just need to stop thinking about this or I will punch a hole in the wall. And, then my hand will hurt, and that will do no one any good at all.

And you'd have to get out the power tools...

[GeoffC]

Originally Posted by RickyMaveety

I just need to stop thinking about this or I will punch a hole in the wall. And, then my hand will hurt, and that will do no one any good at all.

especially if the house then falls down....

[nekokami]

Originally Posted by RickyMaveety

I am still really angry at the idiot-woman. The thing is, she is swearing to me that she knew nothing about meds. However, I don't think she realizes that I read the entire medical file this morning. I know exactly what she was told and when she was told it.

Yeah... but she's an idiot, as you've said. She probably wasn't listening. "In one ear and out the other" is pretty common when there's nothing blocking free passage between the ears.

Originally Posted by RickyMaveety

I just need to stop thinking about this or I will punch a hole in the wall. And, then my hand will hurt, and that will do no one any good at all.

Not a good strategy. If you must hit something, find something padded. But actually, I recommend swimming, if there's a reasonable place to do that near you. Swim until you're tired. Or take the doggies out for a good run.

Do your cats have a screened porch? I imagine they don't go out. Mine have always appreciated watching, listening to, and smelling the wild through screens, though.

[Slite]

I hate the company that is responsible for running the commuter trains here in Stockholm....

It's incredible that the fact that the trees dropping their leaves in autumn (duuuhhh) manages to create chaos every single year, because the wheels of the trains keep slipping on the wet leaves, and because of that develop "flat spots".

I just can't get that equation through my head. Leaves = soft, train wheels = hard ... How the blazes can leaves on the track cause the wheels of the train to develop flat spots??????

Stupid, stupid, and thats not all, we are heading towards winter, and what the heck, we got cold and snow this year as well! Imagine that... Yes, imagine that, we live in a country that the polarcircle runs through... sheesh! of course it gets cold.....

I hate commuting!

[DixieGal]

Oh GROSS!!! The cafeteria where I work just admitted to there being a snake cooked in with the collard greens on Sunday. Says it must have been "harvested" when mechanical harvesters gathered the greens.

And the diet is back on again. Cutting all snakes out of my diet.

[BookishDreamer]

Originally Posted by DixieGal

Oh GROSS!!! The cafeteria where I work just admitted to there being a snake cooked in with the collard greens on Sunday. Says it must have been "harvested" when mechanical harvesters gathered the greens.

And the diet is back on again. Cutting all snakes out of my diet.

I'm assuming they didn't follow directions for properly cooking a snake.

And to properly express my feelings on the topic, I'll quote myself.

Originally Posted by BookishDreamer

Eeeewwwwwww! <shiver> Snakes. Why'd it have to be snakes?

Dreamer

[RickyMaveety]

Originally Posted by nekokami

Do your cats have a screened porch? I imagine they don't go out. Mine have always appreciated watching, listening to, and smelling the wild through screens, though.

Yeah, they have a cat door that leads to a tunnel, the other end of which terminates in a screened porch with padded and carpeted lounging platforms that I built for them. They love it out there.

This is a photo of the porch (that's Kevin on the platform) that I submitted to the company that makes the black plastic part of the platforms.

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by BookishDreamer

I'm assuming they didn't follow directions for properly cooking a snake.