Yes it's me, Slick. This is a rather hard post to write but I feel it is necessary. I have been pretty healthy for the past 3 years or so and enjoying retirement. Still, being around animals brings me the most joy in my life. Since the passing of Yodee I have stuck to the decision not to get a another pet, at least for this year. Need to concentrate on getting my financial status stable enough to handle vet bills as well as target my own health.

Three months ago I started not to feel very well. My blood pressure started to climb and I developed cough and shortness of breath. My doc sent me for tests and in the meantime I went on an 8 day road trip to visit friends and family in Alberta. While there I got really ill and ER doc (a cutie pie too ) said I had bacterial pneumonia. When I got back to B.C. I went for a CT scan which revealed a new spot on my right lung and it is highly likely that the cancer is back again, however we are not 100% certain because the spot is in the exact location where the pneumonia was. I have another scan scheduled for August 19th and doctor's appointments after that to determine the next step. For those who don't know, I had a bout of cancer in 2006 with the same symptoms prior to being diagnosed. On my 5th year followup I was told I didn't need any more scans unless I developed a cough or shortness of breath. Let me just say though that I'm not going down without a fight.

In addition, a week ago I spent all night in my ER because all day I had such a racing heart I thought it was going to jump out of my chest. This ER doc said I have AFIB (arterial fibrillation) so now I have a whole slew of cardiac tests and appointments to keep regarding that. If my heart starts racing again, I have to stop everything and get myself to an ER to receive IV med to slow my heart down. My Mom has the same affliction and my brother had a heart attack a couple of years ago.

I've also recently learned that my neighbour down the hall who took care of me in 2006 has been diagnosed with terminal bowel cancer. She is 81 years old and one of my very best friends up here. I'm gutted about this.

I guess what I really want to say is "don't waste time". What I mean is, stop putting off all the things on your bucket list. Stop putting off expressing your love for someone. Hug someone everyday. Hug your pet everyday. Don't be afraid to communicate. Talk things out and find a solution. Life is precious.

There are only a few of you on Pet Talk whom I feel close to and you know who you are. My apologies for not keeping in touch more often via email. I've just been feeling so down. All this happening to me who is active, the correct weight and eats right. Ha!

On a brighter note though, I get to look after two sweet and adorable cats for a week this month. I'm stoked.

Take care all of you and remember the words to that old song
"If you can't be with the one you love, honey"
"Love the one you're with"