Thought For Today

There are things that we don’t want to happen but have to

accept,things we don’t want to know but have to learn, and

people (&pets) we can’t live without but have to let go.

…Author Unknown …

First meeting in 2001

FAREWELL OUR FAITHFUL PET

MUFFETT b. 2000 - d. 25 Aug 2010 7.15pm

Sadly last night we had to say goodbye to our dear little Shitzhu-Maltese X dog who has been a big part of our family since 2000.

Muffett has now been reunited with his best mate of 7 years, Rusky (in all of the following photos with him).

I know he is now romping around in heaven with Rusky, Boots & Squizzy and suffering no more pain.

RIP Our Muffy-Man.

TWO HECTIC WEEKS - DRAMAS GALORE

Today some normality returned to our household, my son Mark went back to his piano lessons with my cousin Jack.

This has been after a rather scary, disjointed and hectic couple of weeks.

Five days after Mark got out of hospital he was driving in Wantirna Rd, Ringwood when a woman driving in the opposite direction decided to make a right hand turn, ostensibly in front of him, but instead she collided with my car (which Mark was driving). She wiped out the entire driver’s side of my car and because Mark had, at a seconds notice, tried to avoid her he had also collided with the gutter and then a light pole on the left hand side of the road. Mark was trapped in the car for some time until the ambulance officers checked him out and found that, though sore and a little bruised, he was okay – thank you God!

The woman, who had two small children in her car, was screaming at Mark that he had hit her but the Police, who also attended the accident, after investigation, told Mark he was totally in the clear because he was going straight ahead and the woman was supposed to give way to him. It must have been very scary for her children though and I was very happy to hear that they were not harmed.

Of course, as is usual after having your car written off there is all the drama of getting everything out of my poor battered “Nellie” the next day at the towing company’s yard. First though we had to make our way to Budget Car Hire, Croydon (courtesy of our wonderful friends at Budget who picked us up) to get a hire car so we could get around. Payment for this is covered in my comprehensive insurance thank goodness.

Then it was time to spend hours and hours trawling through Car Sale websites on the computer and then to visit used car yards in our area to try and find a replacement car for our family.

On the second or third day we found another car, a Ford Fairmont again, of course, and a year younger than my lovely “Nellie” had been. But this was not the end of the drama, how could I ever have thought it would be that easy?? Our insurance company had a few problems, one of which was misplacing “Nellie” at their yard, so an assessment couldn’t be done. After many (some rather terse) phone calls and almost two weeks later they found “Nellie”, did the assessment and I finally got my money to pay for my new car which Kilsyth Kars had very kindly held on to for me whilst the RACV got their act together.

Below: "Nellie" in Oct 2009

A few days after the accident Mark developed a really bad dose of the flu, poor darling, he was pretty miserable for about a week. They say these things happen in threes, so there was No.3!

That’s not the end of our dramas though – last Saturday our 10 year old dog, Muffett, had some severe, painful problems with his legs again and my middle daughter, Diane, had to take him to the vets. Long story short is that he has now moved in with Diane & her cats, as we didn’t have anywhere here to confine him for two weeks as the vet said had to be done. He will probably now live out the rest of his life with Diane and her cats, Marmalade & Tiger for company.

Above: Tiger & Marmalade

Below: Muffett

BIRTHDAY REMEMBRANCE FOR TODAY

MY VERY SPECIAL POPPA -

Leslie Frankland STRINGER

b. 16 Aug 1896 at Ballarat East, Victoria, Australia

d. 21 Feb 1985 at Red Cliffs, Victoria, Australia

BEAUTIFUL BLOOMS

To celebrate the homecoming yesterday evening of my darling son from hospital I thought I would share some of our glorious camellias, (and a pretty little geranium flower) with you. Enjoy !

A VERY WORRYING WEEK

This past week has been a very worrying one as my darling son, Mark (37), has been in the Maroondah Hospital after waking up one morning with the whole right side of his face swollen and very, very red. He had severe pains in his stomach, diarrhoea and where his face (and his eye was swollen shut) was extremely painful to touch.

We went straight to the hospital on Tuesday, they had no clue what it was, "maybe shingles, maybe not!!" They did lots of tests, ECG, CAT scan, blood tests, eye tests etc etc and eventually they sent him home with antibiotics, anti-virals and pain killers. For that day and night all Mark wanted to do was sleep, and then he developed a higher temperature but just wanted to sleep so I left him alone even though I was very worried.

When Mark awoke on Wednesday morning the left side of his face was now also bright red and swollen. His eyes were both swollen shut. To say I felt panicky is to put it mildly. I took him straight up to see our local GP and he was even shocked to see the state of Mark's face. Our family doctor, too, wasn't sure what the cause was because if it was shingles they don't usually go past the mid point of the face where the nerves end. So he sent Mark home with some stronger antibiotics - penicillin, anti-virals & stronger pain killers, saying that he was very concerned because the infection (unknown cause) was so close to Mark's brain and of course his eyes.

By Thursday morning a few tiny spots of his normal colour was coming through on the right side of Mark's face but his eyes were still swollen shut and he still had a high temperature and was in a lot of pain. Mark slept all day again and was not the least bit interested in eating. By 8pm that night I was getting very concerned because Mark was barely rousable so I insisted we go back up to the hospital.

After seven hours in the emergency department the doctors, still be-fuddled, decided to admit Mark to the hospital and to put him on some stronger intravenous antibiotics, anti-virals & pain killers. Luckily Mark still has his sense of humour because when describing his face I said the only way I could describe it is looking like a baboon's bottom! and he laughed at that.

So that is where he has been since then and today we are hoping that he will be able to come home. The swelling has gone down, his face is still a little red, and the pain is almost gone thank God. Our cat, Meesha, will be very happy to see Mark home because Mark is her favourite and she has been walking from one end of the house to the other for days now howling because he's not here.

After blood tests each day he's been in hospital they are still no wiser as to the cause of all this. I have a theory about that though, because, a week prior to the rash appearing Mark went into the city (Melbourne) on the train and I believe that he touched a railing or something on which the virus' that caused this lay in wait.

Anyway, I am just so grateful to God that He has given the wonderful doctors and staff at the Maroondah Hospital the knowledge and wisdom to assist in His healing work on my precious son.

The photo below I took just after Mark had his right eye tested at the hospital on our first visit and you can see how badly his right eye is swollen shut.