Lymphatic Cancer. Very advanced. Unlikely that she would have survived much longer. The information sheet that the vet provided was 6-8 weeks without Chemo, surgery, etc...

I know I would've done anything and everything for Gabbi but the amount of money that Chemo would have cost, I don't know whether we could've afforded that. I would've hate to think that we could've been hindered by money. I'm glad that I didn't get to find out.

I guess it did all turn out for the best. I will miss that dog terribly! :~)

the people that left reponses at my home with regard to my dog Gabbi passing away.

Funnily enough that night, my cat Jasmine decided to come and lie down with my other dog Katie during the night. Normally the dogs have a proper bed to sleep on but the cover was being washed.

Somehow I don't think Katie likes her picture taken. *G* LOL

Not that many know of this but today, my dog Gabbi, died.

She was turned off her tucker during the Easter holiday. At first we didn't think much of it as she's had this type of thing before and it's usually cleared itself up.

After 2-3 days of not eating, we managed to get her to the vet on Tuesday. First diagnosis was an intestinal infection. Vet gave her tablets to take and then told to come back in two days. Still hasn't eaten and is getting weaker. We tried to give her food but she'd always turn away. Would only drink water.

After the two days, we went back to vets again and could feel an enlarged spleen. She went for scans and the scan revealed a mottled result. At the worst, the vet thinks it could be cancer. A biopsy was done to determine whether it is cancer or not. We now have more tablets (stronger and more specific to the infection that's there) plus some mushy food and some electrolyte stuff to put into her water. Had to syringe the food down her throat to get her to eat. It wasn't pleasant but at least she had food in her tummy.

Today, Gabbi decided she didn't want to go on anymore and pretty much gave up. Around dinner time just after I fed her, she started to get really shaky. When she tried to stand, she'd fall over, get distressed and start to shake. Near the end when I was conforting her, I could see in her eyes that she wasn't there anymore. It was just a shell.

Mum comes a couple of hours later and says that Gabbi's breathing is very shallow. In the minute or so that it takes to get from my room to the lounge room, Gabbi was gone.

We will bury her in the backyard tomorrow along side our other cat Timmy who passed away last year. Even though I have cried buckets of tears already (it's only been an hour and a half since her passing), I still can't quite believe it. It's almost surreal.

All I can say now is:

RIP Gabbi. I will miss you heaps! You gave me so much joy even tho you were sometimes a pain in the neck! :~D LOL You'd bark and bark and wouldn't shut up. We still love you tho. Goodbye my girl.

:~~~~~~~~~~~~~-)

P.S.: We still don't know the results of the biopsy. Apparently it takes 3-5 days. I guess the results don't matter anymore...

P.P.S: also if I've been a little "weird" to anyone this past week, I'm sorry but I guess you now know why.

I am still stunned at the news. I've been out of sorts all day since. When one of my workmates told me, I thought it was a joke. I had to look up ninemsn to make sure.

I've been a fan of his since the series "Roar". The world has lost a great actor. I sincerely hope that they release the Dark Knight and dedicate it to him.

Wow a lot has happened since the last entry. Too long and tedious to go into here but i will say that I managed to become full time at my work! Dunno whether to laugh or cry tho.

I now work for a 3PL (3rd Party Logistics co). We have the Ericsson contract. Supplying all the sub racks with cards (kinda like a motherboard) and wiring to all the major telephone exchanges in the country.

Now you would think that sounds rather glamorous or something and that it has some 'prestige' associated with it. Well, that's what the guys at the testing facility seem to think anyway. That's the conclusion we come to. They couldn't be more wrong.

You would think that having that kind of responsibility would make them look at the bigger picture? NO WAY!! They nit pick and snipe at us and basically try and find fault because we may not have all the parts that are associated with that project.

So we make them look bad to the end customer. Never mind that the parts are imported from Italy and Sweden to Australia and could sometimes be on a cargo ship for four months... *sigh*

Still, we are going to plug along. Not sure what's coming but I can feel that the proverbial sh#t is going to hit the fan....

Knew I shoulda taken that other job.... ;D lol

Seems things are looking up for the moment. *crossing fingers* Finally managed to get a full time position but that doesn't start until Monday. *G* Not sure yet what I will be doing. I don't think they know either. LOL

As to the bad luck? The car still is playing up but not as bad. I don't think the initial problem was found as I have gotten a few lights flash at me. Kinda annoying....

My (laptop) computer has decided to pack it in. Well it still works but it didn't seem to be coping with Microsoft Office 2007 so I did a system scan or something like that. Has completely uninstalled Microsoft Office and Photoshop.... NOT HAPPY JAN!!! I was told you only get one install on each copy of the program. :((((((

So... I went an bought another computer. *EWG* A Toshiba P200 laptop. V-e-r-y nice it is too!!! Still finding my way around. Has Vista and all the usual bells and whistles. 200GB Hard drive, Centrino Duo quad core 2GB processor, USB ports galore, etc... plus a 17" screen! Never had a 17" screen on a laptop tho. It's rather large! LOL Makes AW looks kinda squished. Instead of squished vertically, it's squished horizontally! lol Coz everything is spread out, the length of the page is now shorter. *G*

One downside that I'm getting is that the space bar could be a little longer on the right hand side. I seem to be hitting the alt key all the time. I dunno whether it's coz it's up high at the moment (it's sitting on my other laptop until I transfer the main files across so I am sorta typing with my hands up near my chin. LOL May be better when I get rid of the other laptop.

Fingerprint recognition is a neat little gadget but that is all it is. Just another gadget to play with.

I'm also hoping that the graphics card in this thing can cope with Children of the Nile and Caesar 4. My previous laptop couldn't cope and the graphics displayed in large blocks coz the processor couldn't cope. That will be another test later on.

Well, better be off now... got some serious Harry Potter reading to do. ;D Catchya the other side of the weekend. *G*

The fault did lie with the Engine Control Unit. But also the wiring around it. So the total cost of the exercise was $1300. :( I'm still unsure of whether it's completely right.

The Astra has a feature where it switches itself into neutral if it's been idling too long. The car is doing that but more frequently than it should. Dunno whether to put up with it or not. I'll wait another week or so to see if gets worse. If it does, then it's going straight back.

As for losing my cat, the absence of him grows. I miss him so much. When I think of him, I still cry. I know that I will be able to think of him without crying but it's still raw.

I would like another cat but dunno what Mum and Dad would say if I brought another home. Maybe in another month or so when it's not so obvious. No cat will ever replace Timmy.

Took my car to a Holden dealer and apparently they don't know what the fault is either! They replaced an "engine control unit" whatever the hell that is and it's still faulting (stalling at lights, hiccuping at the weirdest moments). That little part is something like $900!!!

Fortunately I haven't paid the bill yet coz they wanted to test it first. They said that if it still faults, then obviously it's not that part. Well DUH!!! I am soooo glad on that front! It's definitely going back to them. Dunno whether it's good for me or not. They could find something that could cost more!

No news on the lymphodema yet. Have severe swelling in the legs. They look as though someone has pumped them up with air. Twice the size they should be. I get stares from kids who have skinny mums but I'm used to that now. What's going to get even worse is now I have to wear "stockings". They are pressure bandages to keep the fluid down. Looks as though both legs are in plaster casts! LOL My nieces laughed at me today when I got home wearing them. Just lovely. :(

I guess what really tops everything off so far which has happened this year was that I had to have my cat of 14 years Timmy, put down. :~-(

He developed a severe kidney infection which led to kidney failure. We took him to the vet on Monday and had blood tests and chest x-ray. The blood tests showed the elevated white count and renal function was virtually nil due to infection. He was also breathing very fast and it was wearing him out. We decided to give it a shot and took him home with us with special food, kidney drugs and anti-biotics.

We actually thought he was actually fighting it but yesterday, it was almost as though he didn't want to do this anymore and wasn't eating or drinking at all. Very unstable on his legs. Kinda like when a dog or cat has just had an operation and is coming out of the anaesthetic (only worse).

The family decided it was kinder to put him out of his misery. We will all miss "our boy". I have cried buckets of tears during this week so if I have been a little 'off' in my posts or whatever, I hope people will understand the reason why. :~-)

Timmy

1993 - 2007

R.I.P 'my boy'

Is this month over yet? I almost wish it was!! This has probably been some of the worst weeks I've been through. If you think you got probs, then this should make you see the light! LOL Or that mine are so insignificant to yours. If they are, then I truly sympathise! :D

It all started on my Mum's Birthday (12th). I sprained my ankle at work. Could hardly walk on it. I get taken to docs and he gives me the rest of the day off. I go back the next day to the docs and my ankle has swollen up so much I can't get my steel cap shoes on. (Work policy to wear steel caps) So... doc gives me until Thursday off.

I notify my agency and they literally make me go in and fill in forms even though I can hardly walk. When I get there, they basically intimidate me saying that it was law that they have to get these forms in within two days. (It's actually 10 days!) Not happy Jan!!! :(

Have a late appointment on Thursday night. By the time I get home, the office is closed and can't notify anyone that I can go back to work. So I go in anyway. I fully expected my supervisor to send me home but he puts me into the Returns dept as I'm on light duties.

Monday I get messages on phone but don't get them until after I get home and after office has closed. I go in Tuesday and then my supervisor tells me that there is "no work" until I get the all clear from the Docs and I won't get paid if I do go into work as there is "no light duties". (Never mind that I've been doing "light duties" since last Friday) Go figure!!

Wednesday is a day off and so is Thursday until I see the doc again. See doc and clears me for work.

While all the above is going on, my car decides to go into a panic attack and stalls at lights, is running rough and it doesn't take off as well as it should. So, I take it to a local mechanic which we have used before. He says that it needs a tune and service. Then finds that it needs the brakes done too.

$450 later, I drive it home and the problem still remains. I literally blow my top! After dropping off the car for the second time, I walk home. 40 mins later on a hot day (28 deg), I get severe blisters on the underneath of my big toes and can't walk properly!! ARRRGGGHHH!!!!

This time the mechanic finds that a coil pack (whatever the hell that is!) needs replacing. Fortunately this time, he only charges me for the part and not labour. I sincerely hope it's fixed now although the stupid car stalled at the first set of traffic lights after I drove it out. Grrrr.... :(

Also whilst this is going on, my Dad literally screams the house down wondering what on earth possessed me to take it to that particular mechanic. Considering that we've already used that mechanic several times before, I though it was obvious... :( Apparently according to Dad, he's the worst mechanic around. I should point out that this mechanic always has cars in the driveway, people coming and going, etc.

Whilst Dad was screaming at me, I just lost it and walked out of the room. According to Dad I was acting like a 5 year old coz I was "running away" but I didn't care. I've had to deal with quite a bit the last few weeks. I know Dad is trying to "protect" me but I've got to be able to live my own life and make my own mistakes and decisions. After all, I am 36. :S

I will reserve judgement on this mechanic until tomorrow when I start up my car and go to work. If it's ok, then I may take it back to him for further services. If not, then that's it. I'll take it somewhere else.

If all that doesn't make you want to run from the room, I've had to have blood tests, scans on legs, etc... trying to determine my extreme oedema in my legs. I have so much fluid retention in my legs, they feel as though I have tree trunks attached from the knees down.

I reckon they are at least 40cm to 50cm around the calf. All the blood tests came back normal. Tested cholesterol levels, sugar levels for diabetes, kidney disease, thyroid, etc... All normal. I am overweight but this oedema has only happened in the last 6-8 months. I have not gained or lost any weight. I drink plenty of water. At least 1 and 1/2 litres of water a day, sometimes 2 ltrs. I dunno what's causing it. I've taken pills which is supposed to get rid of fluid... Nope. No such luck... :( I hope the Lymphodema clinic will have some idea....

I really don't think I can take much more...

Yep, it was dentist time for me tonight with 5 (yes 5!) fillings to be done all at once. During that time in the chair with all the tools hanging out of my mouth, I almost pictured what it would be like to be sitting in a dentist's chair back in Ancient Egyptian times.

The tools that they would have had, what they would have done for pain relief, etc.... A bizzare thought but thought of it anyway.

I guess it's a funny thing to be thinking about especially when the room is painted in a very light blue with pictures of marine fish and coral on the ceiling. I'm assuming that the pics are there to distract you from what they are doing to you. *G*

I guess I'm too addicted to this place, especially thinking things along those lines! Most people would probably be thinking "how long until I can get out of here" or "what shopping is needed to be done". You know normal things... What do I think of? Ancient Egypt. *shaking head* I really do need to get a life!! LOL