A blogless week! I saw psychologist, psychiatrist, numerologist. I slept, morning if possible, afternoons, and nights. Stuart-cat has decided that about 04h00 is a good time to attack mommy, and he doesn't give up. Not as if he wanted to get under the duvet or anything, just attacks for pleasure. I can ignore claws in the arm, although they do hurt. But a claw in the nose or the lip - sheer agony, and gets me upright and yowling! After which Stu disappears...if he wasn't such a sweet boy almost all the time I'd be tempted to hurl him from the room...
Most exciting thing for the week was that CLAW move really fast, and held the first clinic at Slovo on Friday. It took a while for people to actually believe that the vet was there for them, free. After that they started appearing with angry cats and many flea-ridden dogs. Don't think I've ever seen so many fleas in my life as each of the dogs was infested with. They were all deflea-ed though, as well as dewormed and vaccinated, and appointments were made for this Friday with a number of owners for spaying and neutering. Funniest sight for the day was Madiwors, Andy-cat's grandmother (seen above with Andy's sister), who used his crate to capture about 8 very indignant kitties, and was carrying it through the camp on her head. I am hoping to open the Andy-fund bank account tomorrow, after which we should start getting our small but regular donations. One of the rehab ladies has arranged a donation of free dewormer from the manufacturer, and boss-lady has filled 3 boxes with useful supplies. The vet who started all of this by refusing to treat Andy on Good Friday called me just now for a white pigeon. I was tempted to tell them the story, but thought it might not make me too popular, especially when I mentioned that it has travelled all over JHB.
Apart from that, meds are almost the same, with the addition of Gabaton, which p-doc is dispensing from his right-hand drawer (the left hand one is where all the much-loved collections of fatal stuff go before he flushes them), as it isn't available here, and dropping the Surmontil/Tydamine to 50mg. I am still weak, have to stop after walking 50 metres because of being dizzy, still having the postural hypotension - different from the dizziness, and really weird - feeling one set of waves in your head, and another travelling down your legs. Making a concerted effort to eat at least one meal or part thereof per day. And to eat something for breakfast, even if only a muffin. This is the first combo that's given me side-effects, so I'm kind of hoping I can get through them and that it will work after that. Fingers crossed - all of them.
Which reminds me - who all of you can cross your fingers- all 8 of them? I do it unconsciously, when I'm thinking - numerologist asked about it on Monday, couldn't believe that it was comfortable. It is though, and they just go there sometimes - inner ones over outer ones. Anyone else with strange fingers?
In return for Bronwen's (Children of Fire) time on Friday, I was tasked with taking one child for a singing lesson on Saturday, another to hospital yesterday morning, and having offered Bronwen a choice of an elegant dinner for herself or burgers with the kids, as a thank-you, I ended up taking 9 kids and 2 adults for dinner on Saturday night. They loved it, especially the jumping castle and trampoline. For those they probably would have skipped supper entirely. Thank you to the management of the Golden Creek Spur in Northcliff, on Beyers Naude, who, on seeing a group of badly burned children, approached me discreetly to find out what organisation we were from, and then gave us a 25% discount on the entire meal! Much appreciated, guys, and any future outings will definitely be to the Spur! Spur steakhouses
While I was being sociable, F the semi-sane cat lady and I went to what I think is the oldest, unchanged Chinese restaurant in JHB, the Chon Hing in Alexander Street. The area used to be the heart of 'Chinatown', but most restaurants and shops have moved to the suburbs - and become more upmarket. Not the Chon Hing - I remember going there about 40 years ago, when Yvonne ran it with an iron fist, and a collection of shady looking house-dresses. I was almost disappointed to see her on Monday in a skirt and shirt. She has had a hard life, basically running the restaurant single handed, while her husband reads the paper. She has outlived her daughter, raised her grand-daughter, and will probably raise her great-grand-son, who I saw on Monday for the first time. Meanwhile, nothing in the place has changed - walls covered in beautiful cups and bowls for sale, as well as a collection of really awful Buddhas. The Formica tables are, I swear, still the originals, along with the kitchen chairs. The last time I was there I decided never to go to the toilet again, as that means passing the kitchen. But the food is the best, and as F said, the prices don't seem to have changed much in 40 years either. Having braved the city centre at night (and consumed 2/3 of a bottle of wine), F then insisted we go across town to the scuzziest area of the CBD to see the building she lived in when she first came to JHB. The building next door was there, albeit with 2 security gates on the door, her building seems to have become a parking garage with shops at ground level. F was heart-broken, I was relieved that we left without being hijacked! I go to the CBD regularly to fetch birds and animals, but that is generally in daylight, when, although still filthy and rough-looking, the streets are at least filled with commuters as well as hijackers, whores and drunken bums.
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