Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Skunked

Last night, I was in such a great mood. JJ's family had a great time this weekend (and so did I) and I was looking forward to an evening with just the two of us. JJ had stayed home all day to clean up the house and go grocery shopping. The house looked great and there was no work left for me to do! We had dinner on the porch because his parents bought us this cute table to put outside. It was a gorgeous evening and we had sat outside eating and sipping some wine. We were having such a great time. We came inside and were just hanging out.

Around 8:30 Little P (her real name is Piper. I am tired of using a fake name) started asking to go outside. I opened the door to let her go out. Piper bolted out the door and I yelled for her. She has been chasing frogs around our yard lately and if she catches one, it will pee in her mouth and she will throw up. So I was yelling at her to stop. I flipped on the light and I saw it. I saw the black body with the white stripe. I saw the tail lift up and spray Piper right in the face. I smelled the HORRIBLE stench. I slammed the door shut and started freaking out. JJ came downstairs and let Piper inside. She was foaming at the mouth and started rolling on the ground to try to get the smell off of her. I was screaming and still freaking out (I do really well in stressful situations). JJ grabbed her and put her in the bathtub while I called the emergency vet. They said that skunk spray is harmless (except if it gets in her eyes which I don't think it did since they aren't red or runny) and to mix 1 quart of peroxide, 1 cup of baking soda and 2 tablespoons of Dawn dishwashing soap together and bathe her. We did that and she actually smells a lot better. By that point it was about 10:00 and I was exhausted. I am usually in bed by 10 because I have to wake up at 5:30 in the morning.

The bathroom was a disaster. There was hair everywhere and baking soda was all over the place. Also, the ENTIRE house smelled so BAD. We cleaned up the bathroom, opened all the windows and sprayed Febreeze everywhere we could. I went to bed around 11:30 but JJ was up much later vacuuming and cleaning. This morning our downstairs smells much better but the rooms upstairs still stink.

We had noticed that something had been digging in our mulch but we never thought it was a skunk! We have a 6-foot privacy fence so it must be digging a hole and going underneath our fence to get in at night. What do we do? How do we get rid of it? I guess we can call someone to come trap it but I am afraid it is going to cost us a fortune.

This is actually the second time Piper has been sprayed by a skunk in the past year or so. When I lived with my grandparents she was sprayed in the face too. However, my grandparents live in the middle of the country, not in a neighborhood like me! Agh! I HATE SKUNKS!

At work today, I have had two coworkers tell me that I, along with my office, smell like a skunk. AWESOME. Maybe someday I will look back and laugh at this. Right now though, I am hoping no one comes into my office the rest of the day.

Friday, July 17, 2009

Grateful

Things over the past few weeks have definitely been rough. In addition to the last two posts, my laptop crashed, my dog got sick and I got food poisoning. However, I made it through all the crap and am trying to think positively! I decided to list these positive things so when I get down I can just read the list and instantly be in a better mood.

1. JJ is wonderful. He has been so supportive!
2. I am marrying my wonderful JJ in 2 and 1/2 months. Ahhh!!!
3. My family is doing very well. Everyone is healthy.
4. My mom and sister are coming to visit in a few weeks. I am so excited!
5. I love my wonderful dog, Little P. Seriously, she brightens my day whenever I see her wagging tail and adoring eyes.
6. I have a decent job and work with a few really close friends. In today's economy just being employed is something to be very grateful for.
7. I have some really supportive friends that have been there for me during the hard times.
8. I am financially stable. I'm definitely not rich, but I don't struggle like I did through college.

Yay, I feel better already. Plus it's Friday and I only have 30 more minutes of work left! JJ is already home because his entire family arrived today. Including JJ and I, there will be SEVEN people staying in our little house this weekend. It should be interesting. Tomorrow we are going to the Unclaimed Baggage Center and I am really excited. When the airline gets baggage that is not claimed, they sell everything to this store and you can buy stuff for really cheap. I've wanted to go for so long so I'm really excited about finally seeing it. Other than that we are probably just going to hang out, go out to eat, maybe see a movie, get the guys measured for their tuxes and have his sister try on her bridesmaid dress. We have spent the past week cleaning and getting ready for them to come so I am looking forward to a laid-back weekend!

Friday, July 10, 2009

Too Much Sadness


Another loved one has passed away. My mom had to put our family dog to sleep yesterday. She was 16 years old. She has been in our family since I was 8 years old. Sorry for all the depressing posts. In my dad's words, "I just don't know how much more sadness I can take."


Tuesday, July 7, 2009

I'll Miss You Papa

My grandfather (my father's dad) passed away on Thursday. He was 73. He and my grandmother would have been married for 54 years this December. I am completely devastated. I wish there was something I could do for my father or grandmother to help ease the pain.

He had an aneurysm burst about 2 weeks ago. He was on a gambling boat and he felt something weird in his stomach. He told my grandmother that they needed to go home. He drove an hour back to their house and went to lie down. A short while later he called for my grandmother and when she came into his room he passed out. He had been bleeding into his stomach that whole time and he also had a heart attack. My grandmother called 911 and he was rushed to the hospital (that was about 30 minutes away). He spent two weeks in the ICU and he was making progress. The doctors decided to take him off the ventilator and he seemed to be doing really well. He was awake and even spoke a few words. Then all of a sudden his heart rate went crazy and they said they needed to put him back on the ventilator. When they put him under anesthesia his heart stopped. They were never able to wake him up again. My mom called me Thursday night to tell me and I was completely in shock. The last news I had gotten from my dad was that he was off the ventilator and it was a huge step. It never crossed my mind that he wouldn't make it through this.

JJ has been so supportive and I don't know how I would have made it through the funeral without him. I don't even think everything has hit me yet. Little things remind me of him and make me cry. Sometimes I start panicking because I remember that I will never be able to talk to him again. It hurts so badly.

I miss you so much Papa.