Did you get an urostomy (sp?) for Ivan? I got one of those for my cat Cooper and there could have been no better money spent, but man, did it topple me over financially for a while.

Yeah, ordinarily this would be a totally decent, ordinary death. But to die while planning the funeral for your child- gah, so, so sad.

:( Poor sweet old lady. I know she was a lot more than that, but gah, so sad.

Whoa, those are some serious investments indeed. Did writing it all down make you realize just how much you’d invested? I know it did for me- and then, of course, I had to shrug and laugh, because face it, cats don’t exactly ooze gratitude.

Oh, so glad it wasn’t more serious. Those urinary blockages sure can get dreadful.

Yes, everyone instinctively jumps to attention at mention of the phrase “feline herpes.” I’m not sure if Eliza would like me sharing all her intimate details, but that’s what she gets for eating my tampon wrappers!

So he knows full well you’re available to finance his tropical getaways? That could get expensive.

Yes. Just as with people and assorted varieties of herpes, I assume all kitties have been exposed to it, but only the choice few have outbreaks. It basically presents as a cold: lots of cute little sneezes, along with not so cute gooey red eyes. My little Liza had quite the case, but the vet wasn’t concerned, as she,…

Oh no! Has he had one before?

Um, those are suspiciously innocent eyes. Have you made sure kitty doesn’t have access to all your passwords/credit cards?

Things my three cats have pulled this year:

Ugh. I just got back from a rehab group, in which one of my fellow drunks said “I’m just glad Trump is going to be President.” I was tempted to say, “Jesus, if you’re that suicidal, why not just drink?” but instead I made a point of going into my family history of fleeing the Nazis, how my mother was named after a…

Did your parents ever give you an explanation for why they did things that way?

Have you brought this issue up with your parents since reaching adulthood? My brothers are a lot younger, which made it hard to compare chores- still, I can envision the burning rage...........

Holy fuck. Rage. So your brother didn’t have to do anything on a regular basis?

No sibs? :(

I can’t imagine having to deal with nutcase parents as an only child.

Do you have any siblings? I feel for you if you don’t- I know the gallows humor I employ with my sister and brothers goes a long way to bolstering my sanity.

At my age, and given my parents aren’t violent with each other, it’s more annoying than anything else. It’s still infuriating they won’t get divorced.

Ha ha, this past Thanksgiving weekend, I had the privilege of taking two separate four hour car rides, one with each parent, each of them intent on swaying me to their side. “Your mother uses drugs!” “I wish I’d married that National Geographic photographer!” I was about ready to divorce both cars from the road.