Welcome to the Caturday open thread! Today’s visitors, courtesy reader Georgiana Y., remind us that different cats have different styles:
Skye and Storm still love to cuddle together for a nap.
Minnie prefers relaxing alone on her pillow next to me on the couch.
I’d never go out if I had all that gorgeousness at home
Would they mind making it a trio? I could use some kitty cuddles today.
Went to the doctor on Thursday because I’ve been getting apparently nerve pain in my feet (mostly my toes). Sometimes they feel like they’re burning, sometimes cold, and sometimes I can’t even decide which. Also get pains elsewhere in my legs (mostly the left, down the back of my thigh and outside of my calf) but not as frequent and not the same type of pain. It might be coming from my back (which hurts a little, enough to make me careful moving around right now, but I didn’t do anything specific to it recently). She ordered a bunch of blood work to check various things including autoimmune markers; did the same about a year ago and everything was fine. (At the time she gave me a ten day course of prescription-strength naproxen in case it was some swelling affecting a nerve in my back or somewhere. She didn’t do that this time.) So yesterday I watched three vials of blood pour out of my arm. (I have no problem watching that part but I have to look away when they stick the needle in. I joked about that to the tech and she said someone else had said the same thing earlier, so I guess I’m not alone.)
She also referred me to a neurologist. The name she gave me is an MS specialist but I don’t know if she picked them just because they’re part of the same hospital system as the family practice. Or if it would be better to see someone who does more general neurology. (She said “rarely” it could caused by MS but I have no family history of it.) My mom sees a neurologist and said she really likes her. She also has four stars (out of five) on the patient reviews section on my insurance company’s website, vs the two stars the other one has. She’s part of a different health system but her office is near the hospital here. So I guess I don’t have to see the one my doctor suggested but I’ve never really had to see a specialist before (aside from routine stuff like dermatology or whatever). Kinda scary.
On a lighter note, I used to be pretty good at these things, but I’ve never gotten this good a prize.
If you can choose which neurologist to see I’d say go see the same one as your mother because it could be a plus that he’s already familiar with your family history and if she likes him it means you’ll probably like him too.
That’s a good point I didn’t think of.
I would also go to your mom’s doc.👍🏼
Do you take any B12 tablets? The nerve stuff reminded me of my nerves. Excruciating pain, can barely walk, started after my second knee surgery. They did a nerve test and I didn’t feel ANYthing down my right leg! (My back has also been very bad after all those surgeries.) I take 2000 mg a day and I don’t have those pains. (B12 gets washed out of your body daily.) I know it’s the B12 cos I stopped taking it after I retired and that’s when the inability to walk w/o pain turned up. My sister was freaked out when she saw how bad it was. Went back to B12 and doubled the dosage and it took care of the problem! I was amazed!
You might want to try it?
I don’t but my blood levels are at the lower end of normal (412 when it says the “normal” range is 200-1245; slightly lower than a year ago when it was 453). Though from what I’ve read there’s some debate about what is considered deficient. Should ask the doctor about it.
I have especially not been eating well for the last year or so (working on it…) so being low in some things is not surprising.
Your ability to absorb B12 from food also goes down as you age. B12 is an acid-sensitive vitamin, and your stomach produces something called “intrinsic factor” which binds to the B12 and protects it long enough to get it down into your small intestine, where it actually gets absorbed. Most people produce less and less intrinsic factor the older they get, and you can actually develop something called “pernicious anemia” if the decrease is big enough. My husband’s mother had really severe pernicious anemia and nearly died before she got it treated (she was very suspicious/afraid of doctors and hospitals, poor lady). Once she was on regular intramuscular B12 shots (thereby bypassing the issue in the digestive tract) though, she did better.
Also, my understanding is that by the time you start to show actual symptoms of a B12 deficiency (at least of the neurologic variety) the damage has already been done, and may not be reversible. So, as long as your regular doc isn’t opposed to it for some reason, a supplement is probably not a bad idea–look for one that’s specifically labelled as “methylcobalamin.” (The other common and often cheaper form is cyanocobalamin, and–as the name implies–the actual B12 is bound to CYANIDE in that case. In very tiny amounts, yes, but still, not something I would personally want to be consuming on a regular basis!) I’d suggest starting with a relatively small dose (500-1000 mcg) because many people have genetic stuff going on that can make them react poorly to certain supplements, B12 included. I have one such gene mutation myself, and methylcobalamin makes me feel “brain-buzzed” and uncomfortable, like I’ve had WAY too much caffeine, so I have to make sure I get enough just through my diet. Anyway, if you feel ok on the lesser dose, then you can try increasing it gradually until your blood levels come up to where they need to be.
My blood work results have started appearing my chart online (not that I know what they all mean but for most of them they give a little bar chart with “normal” range in green and above/below normal in yellow, with my result marked along that line, and I can also see the change from previous tests in a line graph (it shows me April 2023 and summer 2021). Most of my stuff is within the normal range. Vitamin B12 and D are at the low ends, though (green range for B12 is 200-1245; I’m at 412, and for D it’s 30-100 and I’m at 31.4; I do take a D supplement and drink a lot of milk which is fortified; don’t spend a lot of time in the sun, though, what with my Irish/German skin and all…and also my face and hands are the only things exposed when I go outside since the fall).
My blood glucose was high by 2 points (but 3 points lower than last year and she wasn’t concerned about it then) and my hemoglobin A1C is right at the top of the green range. Blood albumin (not sure what that actually means…) is high but apparently that could just be caused by dehydration (or, y’know, a list of scarier things, but since I had only had a little water before I went to the lab, and I don’t think I drank much the day before, dehydration isn’t unlikely); but it’s the same as the last two times. And my cholesterol is high but not egregiously so (about the same as last year but lower than in 2021). The two autoimmune markers that came back are normal.
I know B12 deficiency and diabetes can cause nerve issues in the hands and feet but I’d guess (hope?) neither of those seem likely to be the culprit based on the numbers. But also I think I clearly need to clean up my diet and cut down on the sugar.
It also seems to change some depending on how I’m sitting or standing, so I’m leaning toward a pinched nerve or something being most likely. Doctor said if it’s that then maybe seeing an orthopedist and cortisone shots/physical therapy would be the path to take.
I also took a walk around my complex the last two days. Yesterday I checked the step counter on my phone and one lap around was approximately 2300 steps. Probably won’t be doing that today since it’s supposed to rain all day. Gonna try to get some stuff done and not sit too much.
If you read all this, thanks. 🙂 Here’s some Husky babies getting baths. And if you didn’t read it all, you can still watch cuz they’re cute.
Allein, I never understand bloodwork results, but it looks like yours are getting you closer to some answers???? Keep us posted.
If you need a cut-down-on-sugar buddy to hold you accountable, I’m in! I cannot stop gorging on sweets because I have no self-control. Someone put out coconut goodies at work this past week, and it was al over.
Also those pups are delightful and hysterical–Karens of the dog world indeed!
I have Oreos in my kitchen. That is a bad idea. I told myself I wasn’t allowed to buy any more but I didn’t listen.
I’m wondering if a podiatrist would be helpful too. May help with shoe choices that could help and general foot health.
Personally I like the idea of a team working together but know that’s not always an option.
Hope that your team is able to help you
I hope so, too. I’m going to call Monday morning first thing (they’re closed on Saturday). Maybe I’ve been sitting at the table too long but it’s kind of bad right now. I hope I’m not looking at a long wait just to see someone. I called for a dermatologist appointment a couple weeks ago and that’s not until June, and I’m not even a new patient and it’s with the physician’s assistant, not even a doctor.
I looked up the different types of B12 and of course the methyl version doesn’t seem to actually be available in any of the stores I frequent (and most of the ones I found are brands I know nothing about, and supplements are always potentially a little iffy).
If you have to order it, this is the one my hubby takes, it’s the right dose and form and he’s never had an issue with it:
https://www.iherb.com/pr/superior-source-methylcobalamin-b-12-1-000-mcg-60-microlingual-instant-dissolve-tablets/26977
I’m sure it’s available through Amazon and other online retailers if you prefer to purchase elsewhere, iHerb is just one of my personal go-to places for supplements so it was the first one I looked at. Jarrow Formulas also makes a methylcobalamin chewable that’s available in numerous different flavors/dosages–I’ve never used this exact product personally but they’re a very reputable brand and generally pretty reasonable pricewise as well:
https://www.iherb.com/pr/jarrow-formulas-methyl-b-12-cherry-500-mcg-100-chewable-tablets/43808
Hope that helps, and best wishes that you feel better and get everything figured out very soon!
Thanks! I’ll check them out. I usually go for Nature Made brand, but they don’t seem to have a methyl option.
I remembered this morning that there’s a Vitamin Shoppe in town and the website seems to indicate they have the Superior Source one in stock.
Sending you good, healing and kind thoughts, Allien. 🙂
thanks ❤
I would like to win a sweetie like Garfield.
I don’t remember seeing Minnie before? She is gorgeous!
It’s my babies!
It’s 9h00 am here right now and I’m the only one awake, Storm and Skye are sleeping on the bed with my husband and Minnie is sleeping downstairs next to the warm air vent.
It started snowing again in the night and everything is white again, we thought Spring had finally started after a week of milder weather but I guess will have to wait a little longer.
Hope everyone has a nice weekend.
It’s 50 degrees here but it’s pouring rain and supposed to keep it up all day.
And today’s NYT Wirecutter newsletter is about “Rain jackets we love.” 😄 ☔
How’s Minnie been feeling? You posted about her thyroid condition last weekend, and we’ve been crossing our paws here for good health.
Your weather sounds like springtime in Colorado! Week before last, big snowstorm, then weekend temps got up into the mid 60s Fahrenheit.
I’m not sure the new dosage for her hyperthyroidism is doing much, she still eats a lot and doesn’t gain any weigh. But today is a no eating day, she does that when she passes a hair ball, stops eating for a day then goes back to eating. She’s been doing that since she was a kitten so it’s nothing new.
And she’s back to eating now.
Your babies are adorable. Hope that they’re able to maintain their appetites, especially sweet Minnie.
Spring seems to have sprung in the Shortcakery’s garden, with most of the new plants flourishing and a massive weed, nourished by what can’t be more than a spoonful of dirt, flaunting itself shamelessly in the kitchen guttering. Time to get the ladder out…
In other news, I recently bought the rail tickets for my May holiday to Glastonbury and Avebury. The train journey from York to Castle Cary takes a whopping six hours, followed by another hour on the bus from Castle Cary to Glastonbury! I’ve also crossed off an item on my holiday bucket list by booking a stay in Padstow next year to see the May Day ‘Obby ‘Oss celebrations. I was hoping to combine the trip with a stay in Helston to see the Furry Dance* but it proved to be too expensive.
*Not what you’re probably thinking
Okay, you have to explain all these quaint English customs. I will not rest until I know what the Furry Dance is!!
I’ve longed to visit Glastonbury since my King Arthur phase in my 20s–never made it, despite numerous trips to England.
I had to go google. Wiki sez:
In Helston, 8 May, the Apparition of Saint Michael, the Archangel Michael of Christianity, is called Flora Day,[4] and the term furry probably derives from the Cornish language: fer, “fair, feast”.[5][6] It is a celebration of the passing of winter and the arrival of spring. The schedule of the day is thus: morning dance at 7 a.m., the first performance of the Hal-an-Tow pageant at 8:30 a.m. with the last completed by 9:30 a.m., children’s dance traditionally at 10 a.m. though in recent years the numbers and logistics have seen this advanced to 9.50 a.m. and in 2016 to 9.40 a.m., midday dance at noon, and evening dance at 5 p.m.. Of these, the midday dance is perhaps the best known: it was traditionally the dance of the gentry in the town, and today the men wear top hats and tails while the women dance in their finest frocks.[7]
That looks great but I couldn’t stand being in that crowd I would have a panic attack!
To be honest, I’m not a big fan of crowds myself – and the Padstow celebrations take place in narrow streets and can get very boisterous (a few years ago a poor woman actually died). But I’ve wanted to see this event since I was a teenager and I’m now 64, so I can’t keep putting it off!
Oh, a Furry Dance has a different meaning here in the US.
that looks like a lot of fun. Love the old traditions, want to do a real maypole one day and mummer’s dance. Also want to see the Ashbourne football games one day, the idea of an entire town playing football…
Not the craziness of Philly’s mummer banjo bands and south Philly neighborhood groups, although those are fun too.
I did maypole dancing at my primary school in rural Lincolnshire in the late sixties. I particularly remember getting tangled up in the ribbons and slipping on a highly polished wooden floor when we practiced indoors!
I’d like to visit Philadelphia one day – my great-great-grandparents and other relatives are buried in Laurel Hill Cemetary
Love seeing the two cuddlebugs and their beautiful older sister! I’ll never get over their gorgeous colors.
Hope the thyroid kitties Minnie and Jacques are doing well this weekend.
Quiet day here, after several weekends with Saturday appointments. It’s nice to stay home! I’m about to head to the loom to finish another scarf, and I’ve got gorgeous handspun to wash, and a hat to knit for my retirement planner. Lavender will be really annoyed when I have to stand up–she’s draped on my lap, farting in her sleep.
Sending you all lots of hugs.
She’s purring from both ends.
🤣
Skye, Storm and Minnie, I am channeling my inner cat today along with you. Mug of hot tea, blanket and space heater on high. Five degrees outside and pouring. Not even my inner duck wants out in it.
I worked yesterday: spring break in a town full of teens means LOTS of extra work. It’s strange. When I was that age, I would have been thrashed and grounded if I had behaved like teens these days. Pulling taps off sinks and toilets off walls, racing scooters inside the malls, having screaming contests in the center court, writing foul words on the tables, assaulting random people for fun, etc. And while I was sorting garbage in the food court (compostables, plastics, refundables), some guy came up to me and offered me a couple of dollars, since my dealing with the garbage obviously meant that I was starving and looking for food.
I made a major decision this week. Once our finances are settled, I am going to self-publish my book. I’ve been doing a bit of checking, and it will cost much less for me to self-publish with a company on the island than it would if I had accepted the offer from that hybrid company a few months ago. And I will get 100% of the profits. Win-win. And I can guarantee acceptance for publishing. Triple win.
It took five years, but Duckie has finally accepted that my arm is not going to hurt her, and she is reluctantly stepping up on it. She will give me an obligatory nibble first, every time, but it only stings a bit. And the fact that I am holding her favourite graham cracker in my other hand is a definite incentive.
I discovered this morning that some apple seeds I planted last week have sprouted, much to my surprise and delight. I have two apple trees growing in my kitchen. And, in the same line of interest, I received an email yesterday informing me that I am one of three hundred people in the area that won 40kgs of green compost! I am not sure how I feel about that.
Allein, I have a very similar problem with my feet/toes from the sarcoidosis. Burny cold, hurty/achy/tingly, numb and screaming at the same time. I fully sympathize with you, and might make a suggestion that you go barefoot in roomy slippers as much as possible. My toes do NOT like socks, and shoes are torturous.
I’m going to do as little as possible today and tomorrow. Next week is going to be crazy with work, appointments and various church events for Holy Week.
I wish everyone a good and safe weekend.
Duckie, just be aware that profits from self-published books will be virtually non-existent. The book won’t be available in bookstores or purchased by libraries, nor will it get any publicity worth the name or be reviewed anywhere that matters. The only people who know the book exists will be the people you tell personally or those who come across it online via Amazon’s algorithm. May I ask which company this is?
Publishing.tellwell.ca
And I’m not too concerned about marketing. I have several ideas.
The standard package is $1,285 (US dollars, the firm is Canadian). This is still vanity publishing – you could genuinely self-publish for around $126, and that includes a cover design made by someone advertising on Fiverr. The old “You’re taking the risk, you should get to keep 100% of the profits!” claim ignores the fact that real publishers ARE taking a risk and therefore do their best to actually sell books. Telltale gets your money up front and has no motivation to put your work before the reading public.
Don’t be put off by the technical aspect of formatting the book yourself – a choice of free templates makes it incredibly easy!
Food for thought. Thanks
My two kitties don’t curl up together. They’re lined up on the windowsill.
Alice, I envy your nearness to things like ‘obby ‘osses. Ancient and mysterious customs are fascinating! The Furry Dance is charming.
One of the most bizarre English folk customs has to be the Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake, which sounds like a Monty Python sketch. It involves dozens of people chasing a wheel of Double Gloucester cheese down a steep hill. According to Wikipedia, the cheese can reach speeds of up to 70 miles per hour down the one-in-three slope, and injuries are fairly frequent. Says Wikipedia: “Canadian competitor Delaney Irving won the ladies race in 2023, despite finishing unconscious, and only learning of her victory in the medical enclosure.” The Padstow celebrations sound as safe as houses in comparison!
I’ve seen videos of the cheese rolling–definitely dangerous!