Looking Back at 2012

2012 was filled with sorry and joy.

The biggest event, and worst event, was the passing of Miss Maggie Moo.  She had been adopted, after being dumped.  I nursed her back to health, she had one eye removed, surgeries on the other, and for a while she did well.  She learned to play and bat toys around.  Every night, she would snuggle to me in bed.  Then a tumor in her mouth grew and spread.  Eventually she had to be put to sleep while I held her.  I have had many cats and loved each of them, but she was a special little being -- she was my soul kitty.  And to this day, I don't know how I survived her death.

 But they say when one door closes another opens.

So, Anya came into my life.  Someone posted something about a 13 year old cat, with one eye (Maggie had one eye too), a tumor, an URI, possible kidney failure, but terribly sweet.  This person, however, left her at the shelter.  When I called the Los Angeles shelter, the lady said, "If the animal control officer comes in with 3 cats, she will be put down."  I couldn't sit around and not do anything, so Anya came to live with us.  She quirky, but oh so loving!  She also has no kidney problems.  The tumor is a fatty tumor and benign.  And the URI is related to herpes and is fairly easy to control with lysine.  I am very glad I got her.

And I should mention Clarissa also came into my life.  My little tortie tot has been a source of joy and laughter with her wildness, and of great pride when she won some ribbons as a cat show.  She's cute and adorable, but like all my cats, she has problems.  She was bred as a miniature and so has problems with her digestive system.  But she makes me laugh.

In terms of work, mixed blessings.  I got rehired, but I also got 6 classes, 3 different subjects, 40+ kids per class, 1/5 of which are either special ed or English language learners.  Not easy for any teacher, but insane for a second year teacher.  Supposedly this shows how much confidence they have in me, and I'm hoping this is true.

Personally,... well, I'm healthy and that's all I can say.  I didn't gain weight  but I didn't lose it either.  I was cranky most of the year from the pressure of teaching.  I have little time to relax or workout when teaching.  And when I'm not teaching, I either am bored, or sleep, or play on the internet doing nothing.  While I know I did not have much time for things and I know doing nothing sometimes is exactly what I needed, I'm very disappointed in myself.  There were things I could have done that would have improved me or my house or my cats' lives, and I didn't do them.


One important discovery came late in the year -- I received 2 very special presents.  One was a scrapbook of photos of Maggie, which I have written about.  The other is a handmade quilt with the names of all my cats.  (I'll write about it at a later date.)  Both of these presents were unexpected and have forced me to reconsider some of the things I think about myself -- namely, that I'm unlikable.


So, I have a few hours before 2013 comes and I'm planning on thinking about things and figuring out where I go from here.  In the meantime,

Happy New Year!!!