Good to hear from you even if it means that you've been silent for a horrible reason. At least this means that you are getting a bit better. You are such a ♥dearheart♥ to not want to infect anyone else, but you really do need help. It sounds like you are going to be weakened for a while from this and yet, you are pushing forward with work & shopping & etc. Please consider calling on someone (or a business) to do the shopping and errands and other things that are exhausting enough for a healthy you. MerryMaids may be cheaper than a relapse...
Praying for you...
Glad to know that Heidi & family have not abandoned you. They probably know all about what has been going on with you. Animals seem to be aware of a lot more than we are.
Heidi Chronicles: End of Another Summer
Happy to hear you're on the road to recovery. It had to be scary being that sick and alone. Get back into your routine slowly so you don't over do it. Will continue to keep you in my prayers.
Hope you're really on the road to recovery now. Sounds like it's be awful! Keep an eye on Widget to be sure he doesn't get sick too. I've read of 2 ferrets dying from the H1N1 virus and at least one cat that has a confirmed case. Glad you haven't been around the raccoons.
Susan
The worse sounds like it may be over. Hang onto that thought and like others said go slow and know you are not alone even though you feel it. We are all sending out wellness thoughts to you and also to others that are going through this. I just can't imagine what you are going through but realize how strong a woman you are to have made it this far through this horrific illness.
Judy
So glad to hear you're starting to feel better, Cheryl, but wow what a long hard fight you've had. Hope you're definitely on the mend this time; keep resting as much as needed to help you recover fully.
Just a quick note to let you know that I am back at work full tiIme as of Monday and am feeling great, better than before actually - or maybe it's just that it seems so much better by comparison to the sickness. ; )
I've been leaving chicken carcasses and cat food for the raccoons but haven't gone out at night to spend time with them again yet. Right now I'm trying to readjust to the work schedule and am pretty tired at night. Yesterday it was dusk when I got out there with the goodies. I called Heidi a time or 2 hoping she might be waiting in a nearby tree. I so wanted to see her again. I've missed her and the kids. She didn't show up while I was there. I will have to go out at night again soon just for the chance to see them again.
Cheryl, so happy to hear you are feeling better. Go slow miss! No set backs.
This stuff going around is horrible.
Hugs,
Debbie
Oh, I'm so glad you're feeling better. You sure have had more than your share of ills! I'll bet your backyard furkids miss you, too!
Good news--I got a kit to take a tiny piece of kitty kibble from my fingers! First it sniffed my fingers, leaving a wet noseprint on it, lol. Then it gently took it by mouth, and I didn't even feel a tooth. I was so excited!!
So glad you're well enough to be back at work, Cheryl; just don't overdo yourself into a relapse, okay?
Great news, KyWoods: congratulations!
Ditto to all that they said! Take good care of yourself!
I'm trying so hard to contain my excitement, but I bet you can see the big, Cheshire cat smile spread across my face from ear to ear and then some. Can't you?
Since I started getting well some time a week a go, I've been leaving chicken carcasses and cat food out for the raccoons most nights. Last night was the 1st night that I got up the energy to go back out there since my fight with the flu. I wasn't quite sure what to expect. It had been 3 full weeks since I last saw them. Would Heidi and the others even remember me? Would they still trust me after all this time? Would they come to me? Would they even come out of the forest and show themselves with me around?
I figured by now the kits might be running around some on their own. I didn't think they would be likely to come to me unless Heidi was around to say it was ok. A few nights last week I had turned the lamp on in the window near the patio. I had also turned on the outside lights and the kitchen lights. I was hoping the raccoons would see this, remember it as the official dinner sign, and come to the patio to get me. I had waited to hear Widget signal their arrival and failing that had even made a few trips to the back door to check for them each night - but each time I looked out all I saw was the patio looking so lonely and bleak without the smiling faces of Heidi and her kits out there to decorate it.
So last night I put on my boots and went out there with a bucket of cat food, a bag of ginger cookies, and a fresh can of vanilla frosting. When I got out there, the chicken bones and cat food I had left earlier was still there. I was surprised to find that the raccoons had not yet eaten it. I do know that something had been eating the gifts I left each afternoon for nothing ever remained by morning, but still on this particular night, it was already 8:30, had been dark for a good 2.5hrs, and yet there was still chicken and cat food sitting there. Had the raccoon given up on me entirely? Oh, how I longed to see one of them appear on the fence, but it was not to be.
I'm pretty sure something was there with me. I kept hearing things: a twig breaking, something like nuts or seeds falling from a tree branch, that sort of thing. As there was no breeze, I was certain some animal was out there with me. It had probably been eating some of the food before I arrived and was now hiding and waiting for me to leave. I was pretty sure it wasn't Heidi as she is far too experienced to make all that noise. I figured it was probably either one or more of the kits or an opossum. I have long since learned that chicken is a powerful attractant for Snowball and his friends, so I figured it was likely one of them especially since they tend to be a bit nosier (crinkling leaves and such) than raccoons. Still, I worried that it might be the kits hiding out and afraid to come out with me around. That bothered me. I called softly, "Heidi, Heidi", "It's ok", "Come on, Sweetie" over and over into the darkness, but no creature ever emerged from the darkness while I was there. Finally, I walked back to the house feeling a little sad, and wondering how long it would be, especially with winter approaching, before i would see the raccoons again; before we would even sink up our schedules to meet at the same time; and most of all how long it would be before they would feel comfortable around me again.
...continued...
ahhhhhhhhhhhh -- ya just leave me hangin....
my bet is all the kits come running...... leap in your lap and say Auntie Cheryl... where have you been???
Dang Cheryl....get to the good part....hurry up!!
I can see her typing feverishly... trying to get the 'vision' just perfect...
or, she's out feeding....
She's probably sitting there watching us fidget and sigh and moan and tap tap tap...
ROFL....
Tonight I was doing a little cleaning and organizing in the kitchen and breakfast room. I had pretty much given up on seeing any of the raccoons on the patio again at least until I had a chance to make friends with them again. Still, while I was in that area, I once again turned on all of the lights outside, in the kitchen, etc to signal the raccoons that the buffet was open again should they happen to come by.
Widget was in there with me. While cleaning, I had pulled some items out into the walkway, unconsciously blocking his path to the patio door. I had been cleaning and tidying up for a while and was just about to get a drink and head to the living room to rest a bit. I convinced myself to stick with it a few more minutes in order to finish the task I was on when suddenly I noticed Widget standing upright, looking toward the patio door, and trying to get around the trashcan I had put in the way. Often when the lights are on in the breakfast room, Widget sees his own reflection in the glass patio door and gets all excited thinking he has spotted a small dog out there; consequently, I didn't take his behavior all that seriously. Curious, but not really expecting to see anything out there except the same bleak and barren patio I had seen for days now, I walked slowly over to the door and switched the inside light off so that I would be able to see outside more easily without the reflections it produced. I knew there was nothing out there, but I just had to look...
When I 1st saw the kit standing at the door looking back at me, I was so elated I didn't even believe my own eyes. Surely, this was some kind of mirage, a reflection thing, something to do with the dark and the lights. I looked again and yet again. The young raccoon was still there, still standing upright right at the crack where the door opens, just standing there waiting to be recognized. "Hi, Sweetie!" I practically squealed with glee!
I quickly put Widget away and grabbed the bucket I had packed the night before. While cleaning and going through the raccoon food supply a bit earlier I had found 2 'lost' packets of jelly in the bottom of my tote bag. I took those along, as well. I walked out to the buffet area and sat down in my usual spot still not quite sure if they would be willing to come that close to me.
I could not have been more wrong. The kit that had been at the door, came right up to the spot just about a foot in front of me where Heidi used to eat. I tossed her some cat food, and she began eating. A moment later another kit appeared beside the 1st one as if from out of nowhere. The two ate together as though it were quite normal. This confirmed what I already knew. Without a doubt these were Heidi's kits.
One of the kits kept walking over to my knee and going back to the cat food upon finding nothing there. I reached into my bucket and took out the 2 jelly packets. I peeled the top off and held it out. That same kit came right over to me, sniffed the jelly, licked it a bit, and then took it in his mouth and carried it over to his spot where he sat upright and held it in his two hands to eat it. I held the other jelly packet out, and the 2nd kit came over to take it in her hands.
By this time 2 more raccoons had appeared, one kit and one adult. I'm not sure if the adult was Heidi. It was too dark out there and I didn't get a good look at her face. She stayed back behind the pool or beside the pool never coming over near me. I think it may have been Heidi though because (1) whoever it was got along well with the kits and (2) when she was walking away to leave, I said, "Heidi, Heidi, it's ok" and she turned around and came back which is something that I would only expect from Heidi.
I dipped ginger cookies in frosting. Both kits came over to me and ate a bunch of frosted ginger cookies. It was just like old times. They hadn't forgotten me at all. The kits were much bigger now, but they still remembered me, still came to me, still took cookies from my hand. Since it had been 3 weeks, I let them eat quite a few cookies before I closed the bag to save the rest for another day. By that time the adult and the other kit, the 3rd one to arrive, had already left, so once I put the cookies away the two friendly kits waddled slowly over to the fence and left as well.
I was SO happy! : D
LOL! Sorry, guys, while I was typing my post a friend called and I had to stop to talk to her.
I'll be back later this week to respond to all of your posts and to start a new thread. Please don't think I've forgotten you. It has just been a busy week trying to get used to working again and getting everything caught up again.
Cheryl... yanno, i knew they would not forget you... we always talk about what intelligent creatures they are.
the lights tell them the buffet is open... you get the lil ones peering in your doorway... they are not frightened -- even seeing lil Widget .... your presences and your scent... they'll remember you.
I think maybe as they age a bit.. and after being gone the winter months - the are a tad leary when they get back in the Spring... but over the years that i've been reading.. the ones that were always closest to you - do remain that way.
Finish adjusting... we'll be here when you get back.
Yep, what TCS said....
All right! What great news! I'm sure they were wondering the same things about you - "Did she forget about us?", "Do you think she'll come back?", "Will she remember how much we like frosting?", "Think she'll still let us take things out of her hand?" Glad it was a happy reunion for all!
Reading this made my morning, its wonderful. I'm so glad you are getting back to normal Cheryl, don't overdue it. You were missed and worried about.
Yes, I'm happy to hear you're feeling well enough to be out and about again. And I knew your furry friends would be happy about it, too!
Question: When you say 'ginger cookies', are you talking about ginger snaps? I love those, and if racoons love them, I will pick up extra for ours next time.
Wonderful! I'm so glad that you are getting your strength back & that the raccoons have remembered that the lights mean that Cheryl's buffet is open.
Publix is having a BOGO sale on canned soup. Since, for now, light chicken and veg type soups make up a major part of my post flu diet, I had to run by the store after work to stock up while it's 'cheap'. I also had to work late just because I overslept this morning - I can sleep for an hour or more with an alarm clock blaring only inches from my head. As a result, by the time I got off work, picked up a buggy full of soup (and a few other things), dragged it all inside, and put things away, it was after 9PM. I went out anyhow in hopes of seeing the raccoons again, but I pretty much knew it would be too late. They probably came by around 7:30-8 and, seeing no lights or signs of life here, gave up and went on to shop the forest for dinner.
Food must be pretty prevalent in the forest still. When I saw them last night, the youngsters were happy to get a little cat food and thrilled with the cookies, but they did not extremely hungry. To put it into perspective, they seemed about as hungry as most of us who live in a culture of abundance and are rarely all that famished. We eat, and so did they, but we rarely have a raging, half-starved appetite, nor did they. It was encouraging to see that they were able to feed themselves so well in my absence. The temps here are still quite moderate. I haven't needed the heat yet. The A/C is on, and most days it does run esp in the daylight. This, the moderate temp, may account for the plenitude of food in the forest, probably seeds, nuts, and berries along with the grubs and other insects that would also be readily available since the ground is still warm with no sign of frost yet this season.
Oh, well, there is always tomorrow.
KyWoods,
The ginger (and oatmeal) cookies I buy for the raccoons come in a fairly large bag and are Publix brand. I'm not sure if they are actually labeled as ginger snaps, but they are basically the same type of cookie, thin and crisp. The raccoons do eat them. My group, being spoiled, prefers them with frosting, but I suspect the 'normal' raccoon would like them just fine as is. The Publix brand oatmeal cookies are also thin and crisp much like the ginger cookies. The raccoons also like these. The price for these large-ish bags of store brand cookies seems pretty good. I was unable to find a better deal on these 2 types of cookies on my trip to WalMart. The quality is also good. Although I buy them for the raccoons, I have on occasion eaten a few and found them to be quite tasty. The raccoons also like animal cookies, esp frosted or iced animal cookies, and, of course, vanilla sandwich cookies.
I was so happy to hear about your experience feeding the kits. I could feel your excitement as I read your account. I know exactly what you mean about how gently they take things from your hand. This is what I experience with most of the raccoons. Every now and then I run across a raccoon, even a kit, who will snatch the item in a manner such that I am able to feel claws. This is never the case with any of Heidi's kits as they are raised to behave well and have excellent manners - reminding me of very well-behaved and respectful children whose parents have taken care to raise them well. The 'snatchers' are usually the kits of the more warlike mothers like Ursula and Cruella. I have also found that even those that are normally sweet and well behaved will sometimes be moved to snatch the item if there are others crowding around trying to get it 1st - something to be careful about. I've learned not to hand out treats while several raccoons are trying to beat each other to get the item. Again, congrats, I'm very happy for you!
Long day. Have to get to sleep now - and try to get up on time tomorrow. I'll be working on responding to you throughout the week.
Great news, Cheryl, but I can't believe you were seriously concerned that the kits might forget you. They've all shown you well over the years just how good their memories are, so why on earth would they forget someone who provides such wonderful toys and treats? Know you were glad to see them again, and no doubt they were just as happy to see you.
Hoping and praying that all is well with you. Too, I miss you...
Still praying for your sister's hand too. Is she regaining strength/function?
Hi June,
I'm doing well. Working all day then running errands and doing housework (the normal stuff) has proven more taxing than I expected. I'm still doing well, but find that I run out of 'gas' before the end of day and then crash when I've managed to finish the essential stuff. Thanks for your concern.
My sister is still having problems with her hand even after all this time. Every time the nail, which had been removed, tries to grow back it's too thin and just not right. Eventually the new nail breaks in the middle somewhere and either falls off or must be removed. The finger still doesn't look at all normal. Due to nerve damage, she has no feeling at all in the finger now - except for a few places on the end of the finger that are extremely painful (like a very bad version of a funny bone) when tapped a certain way. Drs don't know if she will ever have feeling in the finger again. It just depends on whether any of the damaged nerves are able to regrow or be replaced by her body. She could eventually regain some, none, or all of the feeling. Time will tell. The painful spots are due to nerve damage and scaring. That probably won't go away. Still, she is very lucky really as she could have lost the hand or even her life. It's just so unbelievable that it all started with a simple paper cut.
I cut my finger and cut the nerve too. It took about a year for the nerve to start regrowing, and then it grew about an inch a year. My Dad had staph in a broken shoulder and only took 3 years to regrow the nerves down to his hand. There is hope, tempered with patience.
I still say that you need to give your grocery list and errand list to friends or businesses and treat yourself as kindly as you would treat a friend...
Hi Ruth,
I didn't expect Heidi to forget me, but I wasn't sure if I had spent enough time with the kits to be remembered after a lengthy absence. I think my perception of time was skewed during my bought with the flu. Although it was "only" 2 wks, it seemed more like 2 months. (And it was 3 wks before I went back out to feed the raccoons.)
After I got back out there going to work and so forth, I became increasingly aware that my perception of the time I was sick was somewhat inaccurate. Intellectually, I knew it had been 2wks (during which I was completely down, in bed, and out of it). I don't know how to explain it. I knew the number - 2wks. But on some level I perceived that 2wks as a very long time, ages even. This time "dilation" I had seemingly experienced came up in other things including work although at the moment I can't recall the circumstances except that much like my perception of having been away from the raccoon for a very long time, I found myself thinking the same way about work matters.
Also, once it was over, I realized that some of my thinking had also been skewed - hey, I had a fever of 103 or so for days even while taking max doses of both Tylenol and an NSAID. That kind of fever tends to effect ones thinking, but you don't necessarily realize it at the time - kind of like the way drunks are convinced they are fine. In retrospect I think my extreme fear that anyone who came in contact with me would also contract the flu and my resultant unwillingness to let any of my friends or family come over to help might have been a little extreme. It took me a while after I was well to begin to realize that I might have been treating it more like Small Pox than flu, but then again I just didn't want to be the cause of anyone else having to go through what I was going through.
Basically, the long way around, what I'm trying to say is: anything I thought or said during and immediately after that awful flu probably shouldn't be taken too seriously. I was very, very sick, so sick that even my brain wasn't working properly.
Thank goodness that is over. Whew!
Yeah, I think I could sense that they were just as happy to see me again as I was to see them, and that was very nice. : )
June,
Glad to hear that your finger and your Dad's shoulder recovered so well. Isn't the human body amazing in its ability to regrow nerves and such. I basically filleted one of my fingers a few decades ago while doing something stupid - trying to pry frozen ham slices apart with the point of a knife while holding them. The knife slipped and... My about 2/3 of my finger was numb for years. It took a very long time, but I eventually got back almost all of the feeling in the finger. I have full use of the finger. I can type really fast (because I do it so much at work - developing S/W), and that finger does its job just like the others. However, similar to what my sister is experiencing, there is one area on the side of my finger that is sensitive if tapped the wrong way even gently. Thankfully, that doesn't happen often. When it does, the finger hurts 'like the dickens' for a few seconds. Then it's fine again.
I don't think there are any stores that deliver here or even any businesses that run errands like that. Stores talk about it from time to time, but it never happens. Small businesses that run errands start up occasionally, advertise, and then go out of business pretty quickly. If this were an option I would jump on it in a minute.
Now I'm pooped. Have to get to sleep. I'll be back to respond to others soon - and to start that other thread - although probably not tomorrow as I have to clean out the fridge to make room for the TG bird.
Before I go I want to tell everyone that I've seen the kits and an adult a few more times since my last post. One night after work I had to pick something up for Widget. While at the pet store I got a few toys for the kits. I was just so excited about seeing them again. I'm eating a lot of chicken now, and the kits are really enjoying the bones and carcasses. Unlike Heidi and many of the adults who almost won't touch the stuff, those youngsters actually seem to prefer the chicken to the cat food. Go figure. I guess, just as with humans, it's not so easy to generalize about what they like and dislike.
They have also enjoyed the toys. Everything was gone the next day except the large plastic cat toy which was gets moved 6-10 ft per day. It's a circular thing with a ball inside on a track and gaps just large enough for a cat, or raccoon, to get a hand in. They can't get the ball out because the gaps are way too small. When they reach in to try to get the ball, it rolls around the circular track prompting them to give chase. I've noticed that raccoons really seam to enjoy poking those hands in small holes to see what they can find, so I figured this type toy might be fun for them. Considering how the thing seems to "walk" around the yard daily, it seems to be working. One of the kits 'chased' the ball around with his paw through the gap for a while the 1st night when I was out there.
Definitely gotta get to bed now.
That would be a great toy to get for my kittycoons, lol, thanks for the idea! I've been feeling kinda icky since Friday evening, but I think it's just a cold.
I still have a slight numb spot below my temple where I had surgery back in '01. I have a friend who tells me I alway's been a numbskull anyway. ;)
Is your sister's finger on her dominant hand, Cheryl, and is she getting disability for it?
Hi KyWoods,
For a while I had been seeing version of that toy in various catalogs and such. It's a fairly common theme, some kind of round or square plastic 'box', usually only a few inches high, with slits just wide enough to accommodate the 'cats' paw and an item or items inside but too large to remove through the holes/slits. I've seen some that run $20 or more, but I found this one at the local Petzmart for only $8 which seemed like quite a bargain.
I got the idea about trying one of these toys from my memories of watching Dennis night after night standing over a kitchen compost pale that I had left outside by mistake. Don't know if you recall but there were even photos of this in the thread. Dennis was about the same age as these kits. She would stand over that compost pail and reach her arm in through an air hole in the top (after she removed the charcoal filter that covered the holes). She would sink her arm in there right up to her shoulder trying to reach the partially decomposed vegetable matter below (collard greens). After days of trying she was finally able to pull a few pieces of 'yuck' out of the there. She didn't eat the stuff, so clearly the whole thing was just an exercise in problem solving. She just wanted to figure out what was in there and how to get it out. I figured a ball that would 'run' away from her grasp partially hidden in a 'box' with gaps she could reach through would be a good approximation for the compost pail that had held Dennis' interest for days on end - few things held Dennis' interest for long.
Hope it is just a cold. Colds can make you feel pretty awful, but are not so debilitating as the flu. For me the flu went from a tiny cough to quasi life threatening within a matter of hours, so if it has been days now that's a good sign. Here are a few good indicators for whether it's flu or a cold. The flu is pretty much always accompanied by a high fever (102F or above). You may have a fever with a cold, but it shouldn't be that high. The flu is usually accompanied by a very persistent cough but generally doesn't include head cold symptoms like sneezing and runny nose. These are generalities, of course, so there may be exceptions, but these are usually very good as the 'rule of thumb'.
Our cats LOVE that toy, Cheryl! I'm so glad you're feeling better. When I had my wisdom teeth extracted, the oral surgeon knicked a nerve and half of my mouth, including half of my tongue, was numb for about 6 months. It was very very odd!! I will continue to pray that your sister's hand will heal.
Hi Marylyn,
Wow that sounds scary with the oral surgeon and having your mouth numb. Did you have the effect you get with Novocaine where one side of your mouth smiles and the other side remains stoic? I can't imagine 6 months of that. While we are on dental accidents, I think I already mentioned this one, but years ago a dentist actually broke the drill bit off in my tooth/jaw while doing a root canal. That resulted in about 2 years of severe pain and 2 more root canals on the same tooth along with a few other nifty surgical procedures to retrieve the bit and finally removal of the tooth altogether. (When picking a dentist/surgeon, choose wisely is what I learned from this.)
I haven't seen the raccoons the past few nights, but every time I go out there that toy has moved again. It moves anywhere from 3 to 6ft per night - and it's about 12in in diameter.
KyWoods,
Here is the toy I got: http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2751250&lmdn=Cat
There are more expensive models with more bells and whistles. This is the cheapest version I've found so far - didn't want to spend $30 and up to find out they didn't even like it.
Nope, my lips were fine. I just slurred my speech a bit for a while because my tongue wasn't cooperating completely. It took about 6 weeks to be able to eat normally again... I ate a lot of KFC mashed potatoes, overcooked macaroni 'n cheese, and canned cream of mushroom soup in the meantime! My sister had her wisdom teeth out about 6 months later, and she was eating hamburgers that same night. I was SOOO mad at her!! LOLOL