Introducing Betty White

[tarasgirl06]

Nah. It’s not an iron immune system here. Just that all the masking and distancing did its job against the common cold and the flu. I used to get both of those at least once a year. I worked with folks who would bring that crap to work rather than taking a day off. I also used to social swing dancing. Every October, when the kids were back to school and the weather was starting to change, there was a popular dance convention that would get me sick every year. Even if I wasn’t dancing with the kids, I was dancing with parents, teachers, and nurses.

Not getting cold or flu was a wonderful side effect of all this pandemic isolation and masking up.

Swing dancing? So maybe you know about: Jonathan Stout and his Campus Five featuring Hilary Alexander? The bandleader is related by marriage to friends of mine. But I'm not dropping any names. Not only is their music amazing, but the bandleader and his wife are incredible swing dancers!
Yeah, I DO NOT LIKE the fact that so many employers almost force their workers to come to work, sick or not. I actually got fired from a job because I called in sick with the flu. I should have known better! A co-worker had to come to work, in spite of the fact that she was running down the hall every five minutes. *I won't elaborate. You get the picture.*
And the weather thing? Another co-worker would get sick every year when summer changed to Autumn, even here in la-la land where, as you know, we don't HAVE seasons. *She was from Pittsburgh. They have SEASONS in Pittsburgh. We threatened to send her back.*

 

[daftcat75]

Swing dancing? So maybe you know about: Jonathan Stout and his Campus Five featuring Hilary Alexander? The bandleader is related by marriage to friends of mine. But I'm not dropping any names. Not only is their music amazing, but the bandleader and his wife are incredible swing dancers!
Yeah, I DO NOT LIKE the fact that so many employers almost force their workers to come to work, sick or not. I actually got fired from a job because I called in sick with the flu. I should have known better! A co-worker had to come to work, in spite of the fact that she was running down the hall every five minutes. *I won't elaborate. You get the picture.*
And the weather thing? Another co-worker would get sick every year when summer changed to Autumn, even here in la-la land where, as you know, we don't HAVE seasons. *She was from Pittsburgh. They have SEASONS in Pittsburgh. We threatened to send her back.*

When I say swing dancing, this is probably what came to mind.

That is not what I dance.

I dance(d) (I don’t know if I trust social dancing anymore especially with latest variants) West Coast Swing.


And this is what it looks like with solid fundamentals and incredible musicality (as in I’m nowhere near this good!)

 

[tarasgirl06]

When I say swing dancing, this is probably what came to mind.

That is not what I dance.

I dance(d) (I don’t know if I trust social dancing anymore especially with latest variants) West Coast Swing.


And this is what it looks like with solid fundamentals and incredible musicality (as in I’m nowhere near this good!)

Oh yeah. I remember we had this convo before. Either way, a lot of skillz! and looks like a lot of fun, too.

 

[daftcat75]

5:30 rolls around and neither of us want to get up. She in her cloud and me on the bed under too many blankets. Back to the bathroom and the kitchen medicine cabinets: three different thermometers still say I don’t have a fever. Why am I still bundling up? Why do I still feel fever-y especially behind my eyes? And why am I craving the sweaty release and getting sweaty but no release? Ugh! FAQs say mild cases can take a week or two to recover. Today is day five.

Back to the kitchen. I wash up from last shift and Betty is still sleeping. And just as I pop open the cans for the new shift, “oh good morning, Betty!” She managed to rally and show up on the counter. She takes her two capsules like a freakin’ pro these days. And I set down her plate and hope for the best. She started slow and at one point I thought she was going to give up after just a few bites. But she kept going. And going. And going. And gone. She ate 30 of 32 plated grams. The remainders were not worth replating for later. Not alone. So I grabbed a few more grams for later. It’s a shim bite between first and second dinner. She usually has a small remainder to serve this purpose. I didn’t want to leave her the dregs of a finished dinner. And if I leave her nothing, she may get hangry too soon before second dinner.

I’m very impressed that she finished her med dinner in one go (for all practical purposes. I don’t expect her to polish the plate on the first pass.) This makes me feel like the AnimalBiome pills are working. And perhaps we’ll be finally able to get her off the mirtz.

 

[daftcat75]

8 pm rolled around and Betty still wasn’t interested in the shim bite I offered. Since I was feeling rundown and ready to start second dinner early tonight, I took away the shim portion. She doesn’t need it anyway. Thirty minutes later I serve her second dinner and we go to the bed to finish up A League Of Their Own on BBC. It’s at this point, with Betty Burning Cat tucked in my pit like I’m giving a headlock to a radiator that I realize that I’m feeling sweaty and less feverish. Betty’s got a really good nap going so I figure the sweat treatment is probably doing me some good. It took Betty a good long time from first dinner to come around to second dinner. She started with her paw. And I thought, “so it’s like this just one meal after finishing a dinner in one pass.” But. It seems she must have switched from paw to mouth because second dinner looks half done. More than she does by paw alone. And now my little heat nugget is back to my pit. I’ll say this about Nurse Betty: I don’t feel like bundling right now. But I would like some sleep now. Some normal non-fever sleep perhaps.

 

[artiemom]

(((hugs)))

 

[daftcat75]

I feel mostly better today. I’m not bundling like I have been. I spent most of last night kicking the blanket off, then pulling it half on out of some strange idea that I should be sleeping under a blanket. But I kept breaking into a sweat. Like a normal sweat. I still feel like I’m wearing a cloud for a head. If I had to return to work today, I don’t think I would. Or at least I wouldn’t be able to last very long before I’d have to lay down again. Hopefully the cloud will dissipate in the next day or two. It is my long Covid fear that it won’t go away. Today is day six.

Betty must have been having something of a night too. She left 1/3 of both second dinner and overnight meals. She just finished up 2/3 of breakfast in one pass. Not bad.

 

[tarasgirl06]

I feel mostly better today. I’m not bundling like I have been. I spent most of last night kicking the blanket off, then pulling it half on out of some strange idea that I should be sleeping under a blanket. But I kept breaking into a sweat. Like a normal sweat. I still feel like I’m wearing a cloud for a head. If I had to return to work today, I don’t think I would. Or at least I wouldn’t be able to last very long before I’d have to lay down again. Hopefully the cloud will dissipate in the next day or two. It is my long Covid fear that it won’t go away. Today is day six.

Betty must have been having something of a night too. She left 1/3 of both second dinner and overnight meals. She just finished up 2/3 of breakfast in one pass. Not bad.

Are you going in to the physical office some days now?
Yeah, cats are hot. They rev hot. Their normal body temperature is around 101F. Elvis will settle on my lap until we both get too hot, then jump down for an under-the-desk interval and back again, all day long.
I've had that feeling really cold and bundling with lots of clothes under blankets thing, without a fever, too. I ascribed it to just "me." My temperature usually hovers around 96F, so maybe that has something to do with it. High metabolism, hyperactive, restless and burning off whatever I put into the burner. Part cat???

 

[daftcat75]

Are you going in to the physical office some days now?
Yeah, cats are hot. They rev hot. Their normal body temperature is around 101F. Elvis will settle on my lap until we both get too hot, then jump down for an under-the-desk interval and back again, all day long.
I've had that feeling really cold and bundling with lots of clothes under blankets thing, without a fever, too. I ascribed it to just "me." My temperature usually hovers around 96F, so maybe that has something to do with it. High metabolism, hyperactive, restless and burning off whatever I put into the burner. Part cat???

Thankfully I am still WFH full time. I am probably taking tomorrow and maybe Tuesday off too the way this thing is unwinding very slowly.

Betty is running out of mirtazapine. We are on our last pill. Tonight is the third fourth and Tuesday is the final fourth. The prescription is ready for pickup. But I don’t trust my Covid head behind the wheel. Clock is ticking for me to either get well enough to pick up her Rx by Thurs night’s dose, find someone who can do it for me, or revert back to gel until I can get the pills again.

So there’s that on top of all of this.

 

[tarasgirl06]

Thankfully I am still WFH full time. I am probably taking tomorrow and maybe Tuesday off too the way this thing is unwinding very slowly.

Betty is running out of mirtazapine. We are on our last pill. Tonight is the third fourth and Tuesday is the final fourth. The prescription is ready for pickup. But I don’t trust my Covid head behind the wheel. Clock is ticking for me to either get well enough to pick up her Rx by Thurs night’s dose, find someone who can do it for me, or revert back to gel until I can get the pills again.

So there’s that on top of all of this.

They know you. They've seen you. They have your address and financial info. Can't they mail it to you? Vets have done that for me in the past. At least you have the gel for backup if needed.
Yeah, coding with a cotton-head isn't easy, I don't expect.
Lots of C.A.T.!

 

[daftcat75]

They know you. They've seen you. They have your address and financial info. Can't they mail it to you? Vets have done that for me in the past. At least you have the gel for backup if needed.
Yeah, coding with a cotton-head isn't easy, I don't expect.
Lots of C.A.T.!

They could mail it. I forget why they aren’t. I spoke to the nurse while I was peak sick on Wed or Thurs. Even for Covid, the conversation seemed more labored than it should have been. I thought I did tell them to mail it. I think we both thought I’d be well enough by Thursday. And I still might be. But if cloud head hasn’t left me tomorrow, I’m going to ask they put the pills in tomorrow’s mail.

Betty showed some worrying signs of nausea. That or she’s just in the pica habit now. She has found some frayed carpet near the deck door. Or rather, she’s figured out how to make some where the carpet meets the door track.

In any case, I stopped that in its tracks and got her to finish breakfast remainder off the carpet. I pulled out the scale and got her weigh-in kibble. Her weight is stable. Positive read was 9.52 and negative read (zero it with her on it and then shoo her off) was -9.50. So even with the missing calories on Thursday (hairball) and remainders left last night, she didn’t lose any weight.

Her breakfast and weigh-in is in the books. Her lunch is served. I don’t expect her to touch it for another hour or two. I made myself a protein shake and now I’m going back to bed. I’m still having thermoregulation issues. I bundle up to sleep. And I sweat more than I sleep. I’m also having to get up to pee a lot since I’m drinking a lot of fluids. This has not been a very restful recovery.

 

[tarasgirl06]

They could mail it. I forget why they aren’t. I spoke to the nurse while I was peak sick on Wed or Thurs. Even for Covid, the conversation seemed more labored than it should have been. I thought I did tell them to mail it. I think we both thought I’d be well enough by Thursday. And I still might be. But if cloud head hasn’t left me tomorrow, I’m going to ask they put the pills in tomorrow’s mail.

Betty showed some worrying signs of nausea. That or she’s just in the pica habit now. She has found some frayed carpet near the deck door. Or rather, she’s figured out how to make some where the carpet meets the door track.

In any case, I stopped that in its tracks and got her to finish breakfast remainder off the carpet. I pulled out the scale and got her weigh-in kibble. Her weight is stable. Positive read was 9.52 and negative read (zero it with her on it and then shoo her off) was -9.50. So even with the missing calories on Thursday (hairball) and remainders left last night, she didn’t lose any weight.

Her breakfast and weigh-in is in the books. Her lunch is served. I don’t expect her to touch it for another hour or two. I made myself a protein shake and now I’m going back to bed. I’m still having thermoregulation issues. I bundle up to sleep. And I sweat more than I sleep. I’m also having to get up to pee a lot since I’m drinking a lot of fluids. This has not been a very restful recovery.

It doesn't sound like it. But pushing fluids is always good. I drink a lot and look forward to my big glass of iced tea (or mug of hot tea in cool weather) and of course, I get up at night. But I do anyway, so it's okay.
Two locations ago, our family included several clawers-at-the-door. The master bedroom has a patch of missing carpet at the doorsill but no one has ever chomped on it, as far as I know. Hoping you can find a way to distract Betty from her pursuits! Plastic carpet runner? Foil? Foil foils. Or so I've heard.
Excellent weigh-in!
Yeah, they should mail them to you, definitely.

 

[daftcat75]

Betty’s finally come around to lunch. I can hear her chewing noises. So I turn on the Food Camera and sure enough. She’s eating by mouth. That’s always much more effective and complete than eating by paw. So that leaves me hopeful that there will likely be a clean plate at the end of the shift.

I’ve been taking Advil PM today. It hasn’t been helping me sleep all that much. But the Advil seems to help with the cloud head and thermoregulation issues. It makes me believe that despite every thermometer telling me otherwise, I really do have some lingering low grade fever that is helped with the Advil.

I’m still taking and probably will continue to take for a couple more weeks the Mucinex to keep any secretions thin and coughing loose.

Aside from those, I haven’t needed any other medications.

It just dawned on me that the blanket Betty sleeps on in her corner cloud is probably the best for me right now. Warm but thin. Breathable. Oh well. She can have it. I’ll manage.

It hasn’t been very deep napping today. But I put on The Hobbit movies and I’ve been napping about 10 to 30 minutes at a time. I feel hopeful if I can get a couple more days like this.

I sat up for a moment and saw Betty’s first pass on lunch was not nearly as impressive as it usually is. Between last night’s remainders and this, I wonder if a hairball isn’t far behind. She has plenty of time to come back to that plate. Even if she leaves a remainder, tonight is a mirtz night and we should have an easier go at night.

Because of my illness and thermo issues, I wonder if I’ve let the apartment get too warm for her. I wouldn’t know. But then she is sleeping in mostly all the same places. I don’t know. I’m going to bed down for the rest of the afternoon drifting in and out of the Hobbit movies. She’s not in danger of wasting away if she leaves another remainder before dinner.

 

[tarasgirl06]

Betty’s finally come around to lunch. I can hear her chewing noises. So I turn on the Food Camera and sure enough. She’s eating by mouth. That’s always much more effective and complete than eating by paw. So that leaves me hopeful that there will likely be a clean plate at the end of the shift.

I’ve been taking Advil PM today. It hasn’t been helping me sleep all that much. But the Advil seems to help with the cloud head and thermoregulation issues. It makes me believe that despite every thermometer telling me otherwise, I really do have some lingering low grade fever that is helped with the Advil.

I’m still taking and probably will continue to take for a couple more weeks the Mucinex to keep any secretions thin and coughing loose.

Aside from those, I haven’t needed any other medications.

It just dawned on me that the blanket Betty sleeps on in her corner cloud is probably the best for me right now. Warm but thin. Breathable. Oh well. She can have it. I’ll manage.

It hasn’t been very deep napping today. But I put on The Hobbit movies and I’ve been napping about 10 to 30 minutes at a time. I feel hopeful if I can get a couple more days like this.

I sat up for a moment and saw Betty’s first pass on lunch was not nearly as impressive as it usually is. Between last night’s remainders and this, I wonder if a hairball isn’t far behind. She has plenty of time to come back to that plate. Even if she leaves a remainder, tonight is a mirtz night and we should have an easier go at night.

Because of my illness and thermo issues, I wonder if I’ve let the apartment get too warm for her. I wouldn’t know. But then she is sleeping in mostly all the same places. I don’t know. I’m going to bed down for the rest of the afternoon drifting in and out of the Hobbit movies. She’s not in danger of wasting away if she leaves another remainder before dinner.

She's doing great!!!
That's good that you can be helped with those two OTCs.
You need more blankets!
I love the Hobbit and LoTR films.

 

[daftcat75]

I think Betty’s going to leave half a lunch behind. I think a big part of what’s going here with the remainders is me interrupting her normal routines. I would have been at the taproom this afternoon and she likely would have had both plenty of sleep and plenty of waking time to finish her portions. I need to get better first before I can worry too much about her. Her weight was good today even with missing portions and remainders last week.

 

[tarasgirl06]

I think Betty’s going to leave half a lunch behind. I think a big part of what’s going here with the remainders is me interrupting her normal routines. I would have been at the taproom this afternoon and she likely would have had both plenty of sleep and plenty of waking time to finish her portions. I need to get better first before I can worry too much about her. Her weight was good today even with missing portions and remainders last week.

Betty seems to me to be doing very well. It's summer, it's hot, you're sick, and all of those are reasons why she may not be finishing her meals every time. But yeah, YOU get better, BETTY will be happier and feel better, too. *Hobbit movies.*

 

[daftcat75]

I don’t think taking the PM during the day helped me get any
more sleep. But it has sure given me a Benadryl hangover. Makes me wonder how much of my symptoms are symptoms and how much are side effects. But we’re still on a continuum where today was better than yesterday was better than the day before. Maybe another few days to a week to clear it all out. Ten days is Thursday.

I made it out of the apartment for the first time in a couple days. Just the 50 yards or so to the mailbox and back. Ugh. Temperature regulation issues. I break into an all over sweat just being on my feet for too long. Which is about ten to twenty minutes.

Betty ate 24 of 37 grams for lunch. She ate 24 of 32 for dinner. She has a few hours for the mirtz to kick in to finish those 8 grams before the next meal. I found a poop pill on the carpet. Apparently I missed a lick and flick one morning. I have no idea how old that pill is. It could have been from last batch. Oh well. Tomorrow is another morning.

 

[daftcat75]

Mirtz mouth.

But she’s also eating.

 

[daftcat75]

Last night I was feeling almost better. But still having temperature regulation issues. And if I spent any kind of exertion like walking to the mailbox, I’d get flush with sweat and sick head. I didn’t sleep very well because the bed was too hot. The breeze too cool. Couldn’t find a balance between the two.

This morning I feel even worse. I think I took one too many Advil PM’s yesterday. Oh I wish that were all that’s going on.

I’m having GI troubles to put it politely. And nausea. I just choked down a veggie dog so I would have something in my stomach and so I could take a Mucinex. Now I pray I can keep it down

And the thermoregulation issues feel even worse today. The morning is still cool but I’m running both hot and cold. And I’m sure if I grab any of my thermometers, they’ll all gaslight me.

I’m feeling frustrated now because this seems to be breaking the progression back to well again. Today is day seven.

 

[tarasgirl06]

Last night I was feeling almost better. But still having temperature regulation issues. And if I spent any kind of exertion like walking to the mailbox, I’d get flush with sweat and sick head. I didn’t sleep very well because the bed was too hot. The breeze too cool. Couldn’t find a balance between the two.

This morning I feel even worse. I think I took one too many Advil PM’s yesterday. Oh I wish that were all that’s going on.

I’m having GI troubles to put it politely. And nausea. I just choked down a veggie dog so I would have something in my stomach and so I could take a Mucinex. Now I pray I can keep it down

And the thermoregulation issues feel even worse today. The morning is still cool but I’m running both hot and cold. And I’m sure if I grab any of my thermometers, they’ll all gaslight me.

I’m feeling frustrated now because this seems to be breaking the progression back to well again. Today is day seven.

That's awful. *Much sympathy.* Hope the hot dog stayed with you. When I was sick, my mom always gave me 7-up, celery (?), chicken gumbo soup (Well, it's not that different from chicken rice or chicken noodle...) and saltines. Those pretty much stayed down, as I recall. Cold cereal, or hot cereal without any additions, might work, too. Mom thought the 7-up calmed the stomach.
Hopefully no more lick & flicks, and hoping Betty will keep up the side, eating-wise.