January 5-11, 2020

Weather | 1/5, 29°, 52° | 1/6, 20°, 40° | 1/7, 26°, 42° | 1/8, 17°, 36° | 1/9, 45°, 59° | 1/10, 1.02" rain, 27°, 43° | 1/11, 1/2" snow or 0.16" moisture, 20°, 23° |

• Sunday, 1/5: Katie texted several times prior, during, and after the Vikings/Saints Wildcard NFL playoff game in New Orleans, where she was one of several military people to hold a big flag during pregame ceremonies (see photo below). She watched the game in nosebleed seats with other Vikings fans. We listened to the game on the radio. Vikings won 26-20 in overtime. Also, listened to part of the Seattle Seahawks 17-9 win over the Eagles. All the right teams won. Mary did money wrangling to pay bills and figure 2020 savings funds. Since funds looked solid, I paid our credit card bill to-date. Went to bed earlier than we have in eons, since we want to be to the vet with Mocha when they open at 8 am.

• Monday, 1/6: Drove to Hannibal and to the vet by opening time. Dr. Jill Briscoe, the first vet we saw with Mocha at the General Veterinary Clinic, thinks Mocha might have an enlarged kidney, a congenital condition. That's different from what Dr. Robert Carson, the other vet who saw Mocha, said the last time we were there. A serious kidney issue might mean we have to put her asleep. They're going to do blood work and kidney problems would show up with that. We'll see what develops. Left Mocha in Hannibal, got gas at Fastlane in Taylor, MO, and went home. Mary and I went for a walk to Wood Duck Pond and up the creek bed that drains into the pond. Lots of deer and huge raccoon tracks. On the way back, we walked down the trail I cut prior to deer hunting season into Rose Butt Field. Katie called when we returned to the house. She's tired with a bit of congestion. Part of volunteering to hold the flag involved putting white towels on every seat in the stadium in New Orleans the day prior. Her legs are sore from marching up and down the stadium. She enjoyed herself at the game and said it was a good one to be her first NFL live experience. She was surprised at how average-sized a lot of the good Vikings players were. The Vikings equipment guy she borrowed the helmet from and who took her photo, was surprised at how many Vikings fans there were amongst the military folks. The guy holding the flag next to her was from the Twin Cities. She said, "We were nerding out, together," about Vikings players. They were on the same side as the Vikings sideline. We didn't receive a call from the vet today, but they said they might have to give Mocha an IV and build her fluids up prior to taking a blood sample. That will take time. Saw a bald eagle while doing chores. Listened to several chapters of the audio book, Educated, by Tara Westhover, a spellbinding book about breaking away from a survivalist family in Idaho. 
• Tuesday, 1/7: Our vet called around 9 am. The blood work on Mocha showed that kidneys were operating fine and white blood count was normal. We gave Dr. Phil Briscoe (husband of Jill who saw us yesterday) the go-ahead to do exploratory surgery on Mocha. He did and called at 1:30 pm. He found a large bone in Mocha's small intestine, removed it, sewed her back up, and she was starting to lift her head at that moment. "I don't know what critter she was trying to eat," he said, "but it was definitely bigger than her." He wants to wait 24 hours and see her get an appetite. He said he'd call us in the morning. I moved all of the wood that has been drying in the machine shed to the woodshed. Then, I split the most recently cut red oak logs and stacked most of them in the machine shed to dry. Built an outside fire and had a "meatie" roast...slabs of pork tenderloin stabbed with metal weiner-roasting sticks and cooked on an open fire. Was delicious. Mary made a shopping list for tomorrow. She swept and dusted, and opened up the north bedroom that was housing Mocha's food, water, and litter box. 
• Wednesday, 1/8: At 8:46 am we got a message from our vet that Mocha was alert, doing well, and would be ready for us to pick her up after 2 pm. We were going to go shopping in Quincy, but decided to postpone that. Drove to Hannibal and got Mocha. She's much more alert and eating like gangbusters...4 meals between 3:45 and bedtime. We watched 3 episodes of Ken Burns' Civil War to finish it. Set up a bed on the floor in our bedroom for the kitten. Mocha said the hell with that and slept between our pillows.

Mocha Bean is home!

• Thursday, 1/9: I shopped in Quincy while Mary stayed home with pets and Mocha. Dropped off more electronic stuff (mostly old computer cords) at Staples. Got 2 new smoke alarms at Home Depot. Shopped Sam's Club, Walmart, County Market, and Aldi for food and Farm & Home for pet food. At 1 point, I texted Mary, asking how Mocha was and she sent the photo below. Mocha ate 6 times. Mary added hay to the chicken coop in prep for bad weather. Goldie, our newest Buff Orpington hen, is laying small eggs. Mary waxed the human door, so we can get in. Prediction is for 0.1 to 0.3 inch of ice and 30 mph winds over the weekend. Can you say the potential for no electricity? Glad we heat with a wood stove.

"Looks okay to me."

• Friday, 1/10: Started day with Mocha refusing to eat. Gave her laxative, twice, and she slept all day. She perked up around 9 pm, was in the kitchen while Mary was making a ham sandwich, ate a bit of ham and meowed for more. I fed her bits of mine, then made a ham/water slurry in a bowl, which she drank and ate, then snarfed regular cat food. She obviously needed a day of rest. With a potentially bad ice storm coming, Mary made a big pot of vegetable soup and biscuits, and raked leaves, which she put on the compost. I removed a rain gutter that was over the north AC, so it wouldn't clog with ice and break off, pumped up the driver's side front tire on the Buick that had gone flat, and split the remaining big logs and stacked them in the Machine Shed. It started pouring rain while I was stacking firewood (after sundown) and rained all evening. We even had a bit of thunder. When we walked the dogs after midnight, the lawn and our lane was awash in water. It was starting to freeze at that moment, with mist coming down...glad I don't have to drive anywhere.
• Saturday, 1/11: After a pile of rain overnight, it was snowing by morning. Kept chickens inside and we stayed inside, too. Mocha is eating healthy. Did the ham/water slurry twice to make sure she consumed water. She's pooping, too. We're probably the only kitten owners who cheer when our little cat takes a shit. Mary made a pear cake, heavily laced with brandy. Vikings lost to 49ers in playoffs. Titans beat Ravens...don't care. Watched 2 movies...Hot Fuzz and I.Q. Had tea and cake with the movies. Storm is over for us and we didn't get much, which is just fine. A bald eagle flew low over the house...kind of common this time of year...we usually see 1 every day.