Older Folks and Vaping Back Porch - Part Seven

[Uncle]

WOW ! ! !

Been over a week since, I've really been able to go through all the threads and post here on ECF, other then a "Quip" every now and then . . . Long Story Short - Had unexpected and not invited "Guest" come to stay with me - Older Brother & Wife who had a fire in their apartment that they shared with their estranged son-in-law in Northeast PA. So since, it was deemed unlivable, they thought they would move back down here to Florida . . . Without saying anything to me (actually we don't talk that often anyway - been over 5 years) - nor letting me know anything, especially given they were already here in FL for the past 3 weeks . . . They finally showed up in town and decide to call me from a local restaurant - asking if they could visit and bring me anything (which they did) . . . . SO - Of course they didn't ask to stay, but waited for me to offer . . . "FAMILY" . . .

Anyway, they left yesturday and are gone for now (well at least for a little while) while they travel the state to look for an affordable apartment/place for Seniors . . . Now it is a game of wait and see . . .

Hello There My Dear Friend!! You are too kind! I'm still around, but not so much here.

"YOU" . . .

​

"SWEET LADY" - SO GLAD TO SEE YOUR POST . . .

You probably had my old email address - which got hacked. I was the victim of identity theft and shut that email down. I'll PM you my new email address.

Could be - I thought it was only your FB that got hacked . . . But either way, FB and I decided to part ways, especially since they longer would allow me to use "Uncle" as "My" profile . . .

What the heck happened to the facepalm smiley?

Well - It seems to have gone bye - bye . . .

Try this BBCode next time ( I use it all the time) . . . Oh YEA - Remember to remove all the periods/spaces between the colons . . .

> : < > . . . . < facepalm > . . . . < > : < ​

I was one of the Voltville gang. Is that still running?

As already mentioned, the thread kinda died after "You" last posted, however I know some of "Our" Friends are still around ECF . . . Just hard to find, especially since some have moved to other social media and vape Community Threads . . .

and everything is all blurry. Does it look that way to everyone else too? Or ... maybe I need to clean my glasses ...

Did to "Me" too, probably need to be updated them by uploading again . . . Just Sayin' . . .

Anyway, got the PM and will reconnect with you via email . . .

DON"T BE A STRANGER - I bet Ya' made some new friends here . . .

 

[Iffy]

Had unexpected and not invited "Guest" come to stay with me - (actually we don't talk that often anyway - been over 5 years) - nor letting me know anything

Well, wonder why?

 

[Uncle]

Well, wonder why? View attachment 841903

Actually - Since you asked . . . To be very honest - Not Really - I have never really wondered for over 50 + years at least . . .We were not a very close family (blood related family that is) from the beginning, especially since "We" all separated into our own worlds when our father & mother separated/divorced (I was only 5 yo) . . . Also, all 7 children had totally different personalities/opinions/etc. (plus a lot of other problems) as we grew-up . . . Ultra-Conservative to Ultra-Liberal . . . Educated - Drop outs . . . Wealthy - Poor . . . Sober - Addicts . . . Healthy - Disabled . . . Straight - Gay (and everything else in-between) . . . Married - Married w/children/grandchildren - Divorced - Divorced w/children - Single w/children - Single . . . ETC - You get the idea . . . And - From the eldest to the youngest there was also a 20 year difference in age (most were approximately 1 1/2 years apart) that separated the Oldest Girls (2) from the oldest Boys (2 - + 1 when he became a teenager and they became a "Gang") and then the Youngest ("Me", 2 1/2 years from the brother before & 9 1/2 years from eldest girl) and Our youngest Brother - who arrived 9 1/2 years later . . . Now that a number of people are gone (DIED) Father (1st - 1982), Mother (2008), Eldest Brother (just before he turned 60 - 2007), Next to Eldest Sister (72) & Brother (68) - both last year . . . Some of those that are left and feel guilty (Yes - Guilty) - want to connect/reconnect before they die . . . So Yea - I know why . . . Hope that answers your question and gives Ya' an idea - WHY . . . The Life of An "Older" Person . . . Just Sayin' . . .

.

 

[Janet H]

Actually - Since you asked . . . To be very honest - Not Really - I have never really wondered for over 50 + years at least . . .We were not a very close family (blood related family that is) from the beginning, especially since "We" all separated into our own worlds when our father & mother separated/divorced (I was only 5 yo) . . . Also, all 7 children had totally different personalities/opinions/etc. (plus a lot of other problems) as we grew-up . . . Ultra-Conservative to Ultra-Liberal . . . Educated - Drop outs . . . Wealthy - Poor . . . Sober - Addicts . . . Healthy - Disabled . . . Straight - Gay (and everything else in-between) . . . Married - Married w/children/grandchildren - Divorced - Divorced w/children - Single w/children - Single . . . ETC - You get the idea . . . And - From the eldest to the youngest there was also a 20 year difference in age (most were approximately 1 1/2 years apart) that separated the Oldest Girls (2) from the oldest Boys (2 - + 1 when he became a teenager and they became a "Gang") and then the Youngest ("Me", 2 1/2 years from the brother before & 9 1/2 years from eldest girl) and Our youngest Brother - who arrived 9 1/2 years later . . . Now that a number of people are gone (DIED) Father (1st - 1982), Mother (2008), Eldest Brother (just before he turned 60 - 2007), Next to Eldest Sister (72) & Brother (68) - both last year . . . Some of those that are left and feel guilty (Yes - Guilty) - want to connect/reconnect before they die . . . So Yea - I know why . . . Hope that answers your question and gives Ya' an idea - WHY . . . The Life of An "Older" Person . . . Just Sayin' . . .

.

Wow, that's quite a spread in ages. No wonder you went in different directions, especially with a divorce. My sister is 11 years older than me, but we're very close. But she hardly knows my brother who is almost 2 years younger than me. She was our babysitter until she left home to get married so she was off living her life while we were pretty young. Just because you're related by DNA doesn't mean you're even going to like each other.

 

[Janet H]

We're very upset. We've had an invasion of the Spotted Lantern Fly. It showed up a couple years ago, but is spreading quickly. They suck the life out of trees and vines that kill them. (Oh no! Not the vineyards!) People are freaking out and are spraying their trees and yards like crazy. Eeeew! A bug. Gotta kill them all! Unfortunately it's also killing other things - like our birds! Every morning I put out suet and it's always been gone within 1-1/2 hr. Now there's still a chunk left the next morning. Our chickadees and most finches, humming birds and cardinals have disappeared.

Spotted lanternflies enter adult, egg laying stage: here's what you need to know [video, photos]

 

[Flowersoul]

Good morning, all!

 

[Flowersoul]

We're very upset. We've had an invasion of the Spotted Lantern Fly. It showed up a couple years ago, but is spreading quickly. They suck the life out of trees and vines that kill them. (Oh no! Not the vineyards!) People are freaking out and are spraying their trees and yards like crazy. Eeeew! A bug. Gotta kill them all! Unfortunately it's also killing other things - like our birds! Every morning I put out suet and it's always been gone within 1-1/2 hr. Now there's still a chunk left the next morning. Our chickadees and most finches, humming birds and cardinals have disappeared.

Spotted lanternflies enter adult, egg laying stage: here's what you need to know [video, photos]

Oh no!!! That is truly upsetting! Those birds disappearing is especially concerning, but the trees being sprayed is also very upsetting.

We're having a similar situation here, only they are frogs.....Cuban Tree Frogs. They are 5" or more in width, and will eat anything that will fit into their mouths. That includes baby birds, and all sorts of other lil creatures, including the fish in our pond!!!!.......the only predator that seems to work is the rat snake which is tenuous because the frog does emit a toxin, and those friendly non venomous snakes, know that. Even the squirrels won't eat them, and we've seen that population grow this past summer. We are getting rid of these frogs per the instructions given by Florida Wildlife, and fortunately, we've only had a few, but that is 'few' too many. Most of these are in S. Florida, but they are migrating to N. Florida, into Georgia and Louisiana.

Scary stuff these days! Who knows why!!!

The Cuban Treefrog in Florida

 

[yiddleboge6]

'Morning everyone...

 

[Uncle]

How appropriate for the "Back Porch" - a new visitor arrives in her own "Chair" too. . .

 

[classwife]

Speaking of prayers, we thank you for yours and the positive thoughts!

Our eldest daughter had a colostomy a while back due to either Crohns or ulcerative colits (unknown at the time). Two weeks ago she had surgery where they removed her affected large intestine and connected the remaining 'plumbing'; IOW a successful surgery!

The docs determined she had UC, which was corrective with the operation. Her prognosis is excellent, with diet changes.

So we again thank you for the prayers and positive thoughts! View attachment 840929

Side note:
When I received a text that the surgery was successful, went in to tell my bride of fifty years...
Honey, the surgery was successful!
I know.
How did you know?
I prayed.

AMEN !

 

[amoret]

I started a little bit on the front porch telling the tale (tail) of my latest cat. January was extra cold this year, even for North Dakota. The second half of the month never got above double digits below zero. At the time I still had kind of a pet door/airlock, with a cat door* going from the laundry room to an odd little room that attaches the garage to the house, and a large dog door from there to outside. There's a bully neighbor cat that was keeping life exiting by wandering in now and then just to pick fights with my 2 older guys - thus why 'at the time' above.

So about the 1st of Feb another, much smaller cat snuck in around the other 2 and took up residence under a big desk in the living room where he had a defensible entry and a small (too small for the others) opening on the other end about 4' from the cat food dish. I could tell he was there, but didn't get a good look at him until one morning he was sleeping curled up around that food dish. He'd obviously been on his own for a while, scrawny and spooky, but the real kicker was that the tops of his ears had frozen off. What was I supposed to do - kick him back out?

About 2 weeks after he moved in he finally ventured out and about**, and had obviously been a pet before. He's way more cuddly than any cat I'd had in years. So that's how I ended up with another cat again after having decided to not get any more at this age/stage of life.

He's not healthy, has FIV,*** has bad teeth, and showed up with about every parasite a cat can have. I've spent a small fortune on him at the vet, though part of that was getting him neutered. That's probably why he was feral, someone got a cute kitten that grew up into a tomcat spraying and smelling and yowling.

So, Here's Smiley - named for George Smiley, from 'The Spy Who Came in From the Cold' not for a facial expression.


This is from his first day out and about. Don't know how I figured out he'd been a pet before.

It's amazing how much the ears are part of identifying 'cat' in your brain.

And this is him preventing me from getting back to work on my DIY today:

* The cat door had been replaced with a 'medium pet door' after Willow outgrew (sideways) the official cat door. When I did decide to close the doors up I was at the mfrs web site to order a new slide in plate to close it off and had a good laugh when I saw that the model is now called the 'tubby cat' door.

** One of his first adventures was joining in on chasing that big neighbor cat out of his new home. Interesting that while the older cats want me to let them out, and in, and out, and in he shows no interest at all in leaving the house.

***the feline version of HIV, at least my older guys had been tested and vaccinated years ago.

 

[MikeE3]

I started a little bit on the front porch telling the tale (tail) of my latest cat. January was extra cold this year, even for North Dakota. The second half of the month never got above double digits below zero. At the time I still had kind of a pet door/airlock, with a cat door* going from the laundry room to an odd little room that attaches the garage to the house, and a large dog door from there to outside. There's a bully neighbor cat that was keeping life exiting by wandering in now and then just to pick fights with my 2 older guys - thus why 'at the time' above.

So about the 1st of Feb another, much smaller cat snuck in around the other 2 and took up residence under a big desk in the living room where he had a defensible entry and a small (too small for the others) opening on the other end about 4' from the cat food dish. I could tell he was there, but didn't get a good look at him until one morning he was sleeping curled up around that food dish. He'd obviously been on his own for a while, scrawny and spooky, but the real kicker was that the tops of his ears had frozen off. What was I supposed to do - kick him back out?

About 2 weeks after he moved in he finally ventured out and about**, and had obviously been a pet before. He's way more cuddly than any cat I'd had in years. So that's how I ended up with another cat again after having decided to not get any more at this age/stage of life.

He's not healthy, has FIV,*** has bad teeth, and showed up with about every parasite a cat can have. I've spent a small fortune on him at the vet, though part of that was getting him neutered. That's probably why he was feral, someone got a cute kitten that grew up into a tomcat spraying and smelling and yowling.

So, Here's Smiley - named for George Smiley, from 'The Spy Who Came in From the Cold' not for a facial expression.


This is from his first day out and about. Don't know how I figured out he'd been a pet before.
View attachment 842261

It's amazing how much the ears are part of identifying 'cat' in your brain.View attachment 842271

View attachment 842267

And this is him preventing me from getting back to work on my DIY today:

View attachment 842269

* The cat door had been replaced with a 'medium pet door' after Willow outgrew (sideways) the official cat door. When I did decide to close the doors up I was at the mfrs web site to order a new slide in plate to close it off and had a good laugh when I saw that the model is now called the 'tubby cat' door.

** One of his first adventures was joining in on chasing that big neighbor cat out of his new home. Interesting that while the older cats want me to let them out, and in, and out, and in he shows no interest at all in leaving the house.
View attachment 842261 View attachment 842269 View attachment 842271
***the feline version of HIV, at least my older guys had been tested and vaccinated years ago.

Such a heart touching story ... thanks for telling us about Smiley.

 

[amoret]

Such a heart touching story ... thanks for telling us about Smiley.

What I especially liked was how sneakily he just moved in.

 

[DavidOck]

Clearly knew about cat doors

 

[Janet H]

Oh no!!! That is truly upsetting! Those birds disappearing is especially concerning, but the trees being sprayed is also very upsetting.

We're having a similar situation here, only they are frogs.....Cuban Tree Frogs. They are 5" or more in width, and will eat anything that will fit into their mouths. That includes baby birds, and all sorts of other lil creatures, including the fish in our pond!!!!.......the only predator that seems to work is the rat snake which is tenuous because the frog does emit a toxin, and those friendly non venomous snakes, know that. Even the squirrels won't eat them, and we've seen that population grow this past summer. We are getting rid of these frogs per the instructions given by Florida Wildlife, and fortunately, we've only had a few, but that is 'few' too many. Most of these are in S. Florida, but they are migrating to N. Florida, into Georgia and Louisiana.

Scary stuff these days! Who knows why!!!

The Cuban Treefrog in Florida

Ugh! Seems to me I vaguely remember hearing about those frogs. Strange that something like benzocaine can kill them.

I started a little bit on the front porch telling the tale (tail) of my latest cat. January was extra cold this year, even for North Dakota. The second half of the month never got above double digits below zero. At the time I still had kind of a pet door/airlock, with a cat door* going from the laundry room to an odd little room that attaches the garage to the house, and a large dog door from there to outside. There's a bully neighbor cat that was keeping life exiting by wandering in now and then just to pick fights with my 2 older guys - thus why 'at the time' above.

So about the 1st of Feb another, much smaller cat snuck in around the other 2 and took up residence under a big desk in the living room where he had a defensible entry and a small (too small for the others) opening on the other end about 4' from the cat food dish. I could tell he was there, but didn't get a good look at him until one morning he was sleeping curled up around that food dish. He'd obviously been on his own for a while, scrawny and spooky, but the real kicker was that the tops of his ears had frozen off. What was I supposed to do - kick him back out?

About 2 weeks after he moved in he finally ventured out and about**, and had obviously been a pet before. He's way more cuddly than any cat I'd had in years. So that's how I ended up with another cat again after having decided to not get any more at this age/stage of life.

He's not healthy, has FIV,*** has bad teeth, and showed up with about every parasite a cat can have. I've spent a small fortune on him at the vet, though part of that was getting him neutered. That's probably why he was feral, someone got a cute kitten that grew up into a tomcat spraying and smelling and yowling.

So, Here's Smiley - named for George Smiley, from 'The Spy Who Came in From the Cold' not for a facial expression.


This is from his first day out and about. Don't know how I figured out he'd been a pet before.
View attachment 842261

It's amazing how much the ears are part of identifying 'cat' in your brain.View attachment 842271

View attachment 842267

And this is him preventing me from getting back to work on my DIY today:

View attachment 842269

* The cat door had been replaced with a 'medium pet door' after Willow outgrew (sideways) the official cat door. When I did decide to close the doors up I was at the mfrs web site to order a new slide in plate to close it off and had a good laugh when I saw that the model is now called the 'tubby cat' door.

** One of his first adventures was joining in on chasing that big neighbor cat out of his new home. Interesting that while the older cats want me to let them out, and in, and out, and in he shows no interest at all in leaving the house.
View attachment 842261 View attachment 842269 View attachment 842271
***the feline version of HIV, at least my older guys had been tested and vaccinated years ago.

Oh my. He's got markings like our Maggie. You're right, he definitely is not feral or he'd never cuddle up to you like that. Poor little guy, he must have been so cold! Looks like he's chosen you, so sweet! I'm surprised your other cats accepted him. Rest easy Smiley, you're safe now and you've found someone to love you.

The old cat that tried to adopt us a week ago turned out to be 21-1/2 years old! Fortunately we found the owners. He's never wandered off before and we can't figure out how he managed to make it all the way to our house and how long it must have taken him. Poor thing moved like a sloth. Driving home from the store a few days after he was reunited I saw the owners working in their yard and stopped to ask how Scraps was doing. They told me they had to put him down. He just kept getting weaker and weaker until he couldn't even get up anymore so I guess it was time. Funny thing though, our girls freak out whenever any animal comes in the house or even up on the deck, but they were just cautious when they saw him. Guess they knew he was no threat.

 

[3mg Meniere]

He could have been confused with memory problems. My dog now officially owns me.

 

[rosesense]

I started a little bit on the front porch telling the tale (tail) of my latest cat. January was extra cold this year, even for North Dakota. The second half of the month never got above double digits below zero. At the time I still had kind of a pet door/airlock, with a cat door* going from the laundry room to an odd little room that attaches the garage to the house, and a large dog door from there to outside. There's a bully neighbor cat that was keeping life exiting by wandering in now and then just to pick fights with my 2 older guys - thus why 'at the time' above.

So about the 1st of Feb another, much smaller cat snuck in around the other 2 and took up residence under a big desk in the living room where he had a defensible entry and a small (too small for the others) opening on the other end about 4' from the cat food dish. I could tell he was there, but didn't get a good look at him until one morning he was sleeping curled up around that food dish. He'd obviously been on his own for a while, scrawny and spooky, but the real kicker was that the tops of his ears had frozen off. What was I supposed to do - kick him back out?

About 2 weeks after he moved in he finally ventured out and about**, and had obviously been a pet before. He's way more cuddly than any cat I'd had in years. So that's how I ended up with another cat again after having decided to not get any more at this age/stage of life.

He's not healthy, has FIV,*** has bad teeth, and showed up with about every parasite a cat can have. I've spent a small fortune on him at the vet, though part of that was getting him neutered. That's probably why he was feral, someone got a cute kitten that grew up into a tomcat spraying and smelling and yowling.

So, Here's Smiley - named for George Smiley, from 'The Spy Who Came in From the Cold' not for a facial expression.


This is from his first day out and about. Don't know how I figured out he'd been a pet before.
View attachment 842261

It's amazing how much the ears are part of identifying 'cat' in your brain.View attachment 842271

View attachment 842267

And this is him preventing me from getting back to work on my DIY today:

View attachment 842269

* The cat door had been replaced with a 'medium pet door' after Willow outgrew (sideways) the official cat door. When I did decide to close the doors up I was at the mfrs web site to order a new slide in plate to close it off and had a good laugh when I saw that the model is now called the 'tubby cat' door.

** One of his first adventures was joining in on chasing that big neighbor cat out of his new home. Interesting that while the older cats want me to let them out, and in, and out, and in he shows no interest at all in leaving the house.
View attachment 842261 View attachment 842269 View attachment 842271
***the feline version of HIV, at least my older guys had been tested and vaccinated years ago.

What a good person you are to take him in. He is so sweet looking all cuddled up with you. He knows you saved his life.

 

[Iffy]

Most felines go off to be alone to give birth and to die.

 

[Flowersoul]

Good afternoon, all!

Bowling today, then lunch with a dear friend; we sat and chatted more than we ate.......but then doesn't mean we didn't eat a LOT.

 

[amoret]

I'm surprised your other cats accepted him.

Well, Willow, the fat middle-aged one, hasn't really. She still hisses at him whenever possible. The first couple of months I had to present their canned food treats on 3 separate plates. I've got them all now using a big old pizza pan. Willow's enough of a glutton that she doesn't bother hissing then.

My old guy, Ole, is generally okay, but sometimes gets tired of being constantly 'little brother' shadowed.

Most felines go off to be alone to give birth and to die.

That's all we could figure when Meter (he only had a little more than 3 feet) the best cat ever, just disappeared one day when he was in his early 20s. We searched everywhere in and around the large house and the 5 acre property we had then and never found a trace of him.