Stormy

It’s been a rough few months. At the end of July, we lost a close family friend. He was a college choir director for many years. At the funeral, so many of his former students spoke about how much their lives had changed because of him. It was so inspiring and heartwarming. I’ve always hoped that someday people would feel that way about me; however, with the path I’m on right now, I find that highly unlikely. No one is going to say “Wow, Anna totally changed my life with her meeting scheduling and editing.” I know it’s not only about actions, but also about how you make other people feel. I have a hard time trying to make people who clearly don’t care feel good about themselves. But I digress…

In August, my beloved cat of 10 years, Petey, got very sick and died. I did not expect to lose him this soon, but I am grateful for the extra three years we got. (He was sick in 2009 as well – a different illness.) In the process of trying to figure out what he had and get him well, I spent thousands of dollars. Not great, but I had to do it. I wouldn’t have been able to forgive myself if he had been put to sleep for an easily treatable illness. Rest in peace Stinker. You were the best kitty boy I could’ve asked for <3

I don’t even remember what happened in September, other than all the stress from Petey being sick was making me sick. I’m just now seeing improvement from those issues. A friend and I went up to the cabin the last weekend in September for the annual Chainsaw Sculpting Invitational in town. It was fun and relaxing!

So here we are in the last week of October already. Yet another rough month. I’ve been in a depression funk for the last few months and also lost another cat, a foster kitten. He came down with feline distemper and didn’t make it. He most likely contracted it when he was a stray – it’s heartbreaking to have a tiny 7 week old kitten pass away =( Jaynie Mae also caught a respiratory infection while she was at the vet. Thankfully, she seems to be doing ok so far and Cleo‘s vet appointment was pretty uneventful. She has lost 3 pounds this year though – yay Cleo! The last disappointment (so far) for October is that I had to cancel my Halloween party. Only one person RSVP’d yes. Yep, I’m super popular.

The Ruff Start Rescue 2012 Calendar Contest was a success, and I finally have the file ready to go to the printer. We will have a few weeks for pre-orders and then place the order. I’m hoping everything goes smoothly there.

I really do try to be an optimistic person, and I realize how blessed I (and my family) am to not have any terminal illnesses or anything. Still, sometimes life just really gets me down and overwhelmed. In the words of Bill Withers, “Some times in our lives, we all have pain, we all have sorrow. But, if we are wise, we know that there’s always tomorrow.”

Best,