Hope Research Center

I had my monthly blood draw, urine, etc done today. I reported that I stopped taking my Provigil for fatigue about 10 days ago. This is primarily because I have heard that others on the trial have had less fatigue and I don't like to take anything I don't have to take. I was actually starting to have some trouble sleeping so I was cutting back my dose. So far so good. I am tired but that's because I don't get enough sleep. I don't think, at least so far, that I am having fatigue or focus issues. We'll see....

Kachina cat

Kachina is not doing too well. I have been cleaning up her coughing up water/food for a couple of weeks kind of sporadically. I've also seen Cassi following her around and licking her butt like a mama cat--yuck! Well, this morning I found Kachina straining to poo, and she was walking around the house doing it. She was also vomiting.

I got her in to the vet and they are doing some labs for her constipation, etc. She is only 7 pounds now! That friggin hyperthyroid treatment hasn't helped her gain ANY weight at all. She was almost 12 pounds at her heaviest, so she's always been small, but I'm not sure if I am just delaying the inevitable at this point or I should jump through the hoops to find out what's wrong. Vet says probably GI related and after the labs come back, they might want to do Xrays, then if that doesn't help, an ultrasound, then a biopsy. It just seems like too much for a 17 year old cat, but where is the line? Now (labs) or the next step or the next one....?

Nutrition resolutions

Some resolutions I can borrow or aspire to eventually!

Adam Drewnowski, director of the University of Washington Center for Obesity Research in Seattle: The true value of foods lies in the nutrients they contain and not in the nutrients they lack. I will not be intimidated into choosing bland foods that are good for me merely by being "free" of this or the other ingredient. Rather, I will select foods that are nutrient-rich as well as affordable and appealing. Such foods can be found in supermarket aisles. One caution: This may require some cooking skills. And butter.

Make a commitment to shape our lives instead of shaping our bodies.

Set aside 30 minutes on Sunday nights to comb my trove of recipes and prepare a shopping list with ingredients for two recipes that I haven't made in recent history and one that I've never made.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/05/AR2010010501428.html?wpisrc=nl_health

Natural Air Purifiers

According to Discovery Health Tips, golden pothos, English ivy and peace lilies are popular choices for natural air purifiers.

Wags for Wishes Agility Trial

It was really cold this morning--we could see our breath. We headed to the FAST ring. Cassi did okay but was not able to complete the send bonus. It was a tunnel and then teeter, with the tunnel coming out toward the line rather than the teeter, so she came out across the line. However, she did go back and attempt the teeter, so I was happy with her performance.

Teka was able to complete the course and the send bonus for 56 points (needing 50) under the time limit. I was excited about her run because she actually seemed excited and NOT stressed. This was her first qualifying score!

After the runs, we had a very long wait. I don't understand the way this trial runs. The jumpers and standard courses ran Excellent, Open, and Novice in that order. So they ran the Excellent small dogs in one ring and large dogs in the other, then swapped, while all the Open and Novice sit around doing nothing. Then they run Open in both rings, with Excellent LEAVING and Novice waiting some more. Then they run Novice jumpers followed by standard, in the hottest part of the day, while everyone is packing up and leaving. The Novice walk-through for standard was actually happening while the Novice jumpers were still running. Nothing like a little extra stress...

Anyway, we ran jumpers and they both ran over time, but Cassi finished strong and actually, Teka found her focus near the end. The standard course was just too long for the heat of the day for them. Teka got distracted by a guy that walked up to the ring right next to the Aframe and stood there and her weaves suck, but she didn't potty in the ring! Cassi flubbed her weaves and went under the tire jump at the end. I have to remember to just stop her when she does that instead of trying again! Oh, if only they had a better handler....

Wags for Wishes Agility Trial

First was FAST class. I walked it differently for Cassi and Teka, but Cassi decided she wanted to go the way I was planning for Teka, kind of. She went over the first jump and then beelined for the teeter! And did it quickly! I actually thought we qualified but I must have stepped on the bonus line or something cause I got a fault and in FAST, you can only get a fault on the send bonus. She did the bonus, so I'm disappointed in whatever I did! Mike and his dad had a communication problem, so Mike was not there to see or video.

Teka went next, and actually did pretty well, but after she got through the tunnel for the send bonus, she didn't do the jump and came back across the line, so she got a fault too. And then she poo'd in the ring. Aargh! Well, at least she wasn't going to qualify anyway.

In Jumpers with Weaves, Cassi did very well, even got the weaves. Q!

Teka was harder to get through the course, but we managed to get through it. The weaves took long enough to keep her from getting a Q, and she had to be coached through every obstacle. She is a LOT of work.

Our last course was Standard. Cassi did very well, including a tire jump and a fast teeter. She took a bit of a detour when I had a late call; she came off the dog walk and over a jump, and I called her to the weaves but she was already heading off to explore. I got her back and had to coach her into a sit on the table, but she managed to get her Q. Whew....

Teka started off well, but she wasted a lot of time on the weaves and never got the last one (and it was only 6!), so she did not Q. The upside is that she did all the obstacles and I was able to get her attention when she started looking for a place to pee.

Another interesting thing today was that Teka is acting like she wants to play with other dogs on occasion, so I am encouraging her with a good girl. Of course the one time she did it in front of Mike, she started growling, so I smacked her butt lightly with the floppy Frisbee to break her focus on the other dog, and led her away. (It was someone who knows us.) I don't know if I'm doing the right thing, but I don't want her to think that other dogs mean bad things for her.

I am trying to keep my hopes low, but Cassi could finish two titles tomorrow. (JWW and FAST) My goals for tomorrow are: with Cassi, fast teeter, no hesitation on the tire, and for me, early calls; for Teka, keeping her motivated and reducing her stress level, completing the course and hopefully all of the obstacles. A complete weave from Teka would be awesome!

Happy New Year!

We went to R and D's house last night to bring in the new year. It was fun, with a very slow boat ride included.

I would like to do these things this year:

• spend more time with family (I have written a monthly goal in my planner)
• spend more time with friends (I have written a monthly goal in my planner)
• track my active time and make sure it exceeds an amount I have in my planner
• continue to learn how to live healthier
• get more sleep!

I am hoping to put together the 2nd and 3rd goals with less food related activities with my friends and more fun stuff like skating, rock climbing, hiking, etc. (I know that's not going to happen with family!) Getting 8 hours of shut eye is going to be hard but it's a big goal: one day at a time.