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Archive for the 'Family' Category

Jun 10 2009

Euthanasia Difficult Decision

Published by dougkueffler under Culture, Family Edit This

Euthanasia is the last resort for a pet owner and rarely is it an easy decision.

Again yesterday, we experienced that agonizing realization that there was nothing further to be done for our pet and the decision to release him from Earthly agony was one we reached reluctantly but with compassion.

Sadly, we said our good-bye’s to our black and white cat, dear “Oscar,” yesterday. He suffered an inexplicable circulation problem that resulted in poor blood flow to his hind legs, causing weakness and atrophy. That his mind was still sharp and eyes bright with life and alertness is what causes us the most pain, I think. If he were aged and his eyes were tired and dull we would simply acknowledge that he had lived a normal life span. To see him in his prime, and yet unable to move normally, was painful for us as well as for him.

The exercise of this “power” that humans have over animals is not really debated; it is considered “humane” to put an animal out of its misery and pain. When we choose to have pets in our lives we have to realize that we may be faced with the “life or death” decision, even more than once, when the pets that we love are approaching the end of their life spans.

The most difficult decision is often to choose between the cost of surgery and the “value” that we place on our love for the pet. How much is a cat worth? A rich man or woman might not hesitate to spend $1000 or more to extend a cat’s life by a couple of years, but for most of us, that would not be possible.

I realize that it is unfair to characterize animal euthanasia to be akin to “pulling the plug” on a human, but, speaking from direct personal experience, I can attest to experiencing some of the same emotional jolts to my psyche.

Farewell, Oscar, we hope that you find peace.

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Apr 16 2009

Hardwood Floor Retire or Refinish

Published by dougkueffler under Family, Retiree Projects Edit This

With a hardwood floor now approaching 19 years of age, much wear, about a dozen pets, many spills, scratches and accidents, we had to ask ourselves if we should just put carpet over everything and call it good.

I personally LOVE the look of a solid oak hardwood floor; it is something that can’t be duplicated by tile, carpeting or even the new laminated stuff that “looks” like hardwood.

My spouse feels the same way, and believes that wood really adds something intangible to a home’s environment, or “feel.” She likes to find nice rugs to place in strategic places to absorb the punishment of wood rocking chairs, of which we have two, and the dining table legs, and, or course, the coffee table.

So we looked at the cost of a complete refinish of the hardwood and found it to be a little over $3.00 a square foot, that is $9.00 a square yard, and probably HALF what we would spend per yard for fairly good carpet.

We hired a wood floor contractor and this is his week. After sanding, sealing, and applying a couple of coats of polyeurethane over a period of four days we have a like-new floor! We think it looks terrific and tomorrow we begin to move EVERYTHING back into the house.
Above: the New Floor. Below: the Old Floor
What an Amazing difference, huh? Wow! I can say that we are very pleased with the results. Additionally, we think that we must be helping out the economy by spending money. What a wonderful new excuse!

Anyway, I thought it would be appropriate to show “before” and “after” photos of a section of floor. Note that these are not exactly the same sections, but pretty much show the differences in general.

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Apr 10 2009

PETS to the DOG SPA Day

Published by dougkueffler under Boomer Generation Stuff, Culture, Family Edit This

Now that I am “retired” I have the pleasure, or duty, of taking the pets to the vets for shots and medicines, etc.

Today, I found out I am the “Pet Spa” driver too. I remember thirty years ago that my sons needed rides to the barber and daughters needed rides to the “beauty parlor” and “nail salon.”

Our puppy, CheyAnna, received her first nail clipping today, plus a shampoo and ear cleaning. I think they massaged her too, and maybe a few minutes under the dryer and a quick tanning session.

By all accounts she was a perfect “dear,” a “sweetheart,” a wonderful “little girl.” Pretty much the same things I used to hear about my daughters. How times change as we age! Now we treat our dogs like children. We talk to them and scold them and try to teach them how to be upright dog citizens so we aren’t ashamed to take them out in public. That also sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

I do admit that she smelled really, really good after her bath and “do” so I told her so. She smiled and wagged her tail at me. Time to go home.

RELATED:
Last month I wrote about CheyAnna in a post called, “What I Love About Dogs.” There are several photos of her there too.

And, now one from the Archives, This is called “Mortality Takes Some Getting Used To” and refers to my struggle to accept that I am not “indestructible.” Click on the widget below or on the text link above:

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Apr 08 2009

Sense of Humor? Better Not Lose That!

Published by dougkueffler under Boomer Generation Stuff, Family, Humor too, Lifestyle Edit This

My wife and her sister, both younger than I, have great fun at my expense. Like many wives and relatives, they enjoy making fun of me and my habits, idiosyncratic behaviors, and recently, my FACIAL EXPRESSIONS.

Last night they were making odd, frowny, scrunchy, toothy expressions until they got my attention. “WHO AM I?,” they asked. Of course, they were making fun of me, as I was snortling and scoffing at the dogs, the cats, the television, the Biggest Losers, the Dancing Stars, and the American Idols.

Then they told me I was a “LOMMM” or had a “LOMMM” which they explained to me while enjoying their private little gags at my expense. You see, “LOMM” stands for “Little Old Man Meany Mouth.”

Doesn’t sound familiar to me. I don’t recognize that in myself, and for the life of me, I do not know what a “meany mouth” looks like, although I sure as hell know what they are getting at with “Little old Man.” I’ve told them many times that they can make fun of me so long as they don’t use the words, “tiny,” “itty-bitty,” “small,” or “little.”

Some time ago, I wrote about humor for both men and women as we get older. There are some games we can play that may sound familiar to us all, but with a “senior” angle. Here is a link to the Archived entry on Older Folks Humor:

You can also just click on the text link, “Older Guy Humor“