Piece of My Heart

I’ve just returned from a trip to Vermont. The weather was stunning of course, especially coupled with the just-past-peak leaves that covered the mountains. I went up because our dog, Cacia, has lymphoma and my parents don’t think she’s got much longer. She’s lost a lot of weight and you can see some bones through her fur. But she’s very shiny because my mom’s been feeding her straight meat. No kibble and no canned dog food. And she’s just as cantankerous as she’s always been, but that was still probably the last time I’ll ever see her. ::sniffle::

In other, more disgusting news, I think I have ringworm. Yay! Well, I’m pretty sure Karma has it, given the scaly, patchy nature of her skin in places and now I have a little red thing under one eye and another on the other eyelid. I also have little red spots on my chest and one on my neck. Given how much Karma enjoys snuggling up against my neck, it’s not all that surprising. Alan wants me to get it checked out. I can see where he’s coming from. An allergic reaction to Lamotrigine causes a rash. But it’s characterized by blisters and a swelling of the mucus membrane. These are just surface irritations… a little scaly looking and not even as deep as a pimple. And which is more likely? That I had a reaction to a drug I’ve been on for the last two years (without any of the other symptoms of the reaction) or that I got a skin fungus from an animal that clearly has a skin problem? My plan for the day is a trip to the library to return some books, then a trip to CVS for an OTC anti-fungal. If the spots don’t clear up or they get worse or I start feeling like I have the flu, I’ll call my doctor and get myself to the clinic. In the meantime, Karma has an appointment with the vet tomorrow, so I’ll ask him what he thinks of it.

Did anyone know that spider plants have flowers? Mine has started sprouting some babies and the stalk has two little white flowers on it. My morning glory also has some buds getting ready to open. There’s one that’s pretty big and another close behind it, but there are tons of little buds all over. It looks like it’s going to bloom as nicely as my geranium did this past summer, and I only planted it a few months ago. Then again, morning glories are annuals, whereas geraniums are perennials when they’re kept inside.

It’s kind of a gray day today. I think perhaps I’ll take a walk in the woods and then do some indoor things, like starting my mom’s present. Au revoir.

~Liz