Yom Ki-pu(p)r...Say What?!

Reilly actually wanted fasted on Yom Kippur. The little bugger gave "Momma" kisses when "Momma" asked if she wanted to fast(!) and would be fasting on Yom Kippur(!), though she also gave kisses when she found out that she won't have to fast!

Meanwhile, while Reilly won't be fasting on Yom Kippur, she (or at least on behalf of Reilly, "Momma") wishes everyone whom is fasting a tzom kal v'gmar chatima tovah.

PS "Mimi" would absolutely resent if "Auntie Nicole" ever joked about Camille fasting!

Camille's Pre-UTI Inflammation Or Early UTI Infection, Mental Illness, Etc.

Somehow, my phone ended up sending Facebook-status updates to the wrong page. Nonetheless, this does eventually give me the opportunity to bring up the conversation as to how pets such as my sister's puppy, Camille, can affect the mental health of their human family members—such as my sister and me—for good and—albe inadvertently—for bad.

Like my sister, I have OCD/Anxiety; and let's just say that, that exacerbated our dread when Camille ended up at the emergency vet due to a fever and pre-UTI inflammation or a UTI infection. For many (if not most) people with OCD/Anxiety, this is the case: that is, dreads that are understandable and normal become exacerbated, and the exacerbation affects an OCD/Anxiety. Thus, an OCD/Anxiety-Exacerbated Dread cycle began when Camille ended up at the emergency vet.

There have also been other mental illness-exacerbation cycles regarding events ad other matters that involve Camille and Reilly (my puppy), and I imagine that this is nothing surprising to other pet owners whom also have mental illnesses. I imagine that this is also nothing surprising to those whom've read what I've specifically written about or otherwise mention in regard to those matters—not to mention that I feel absolutely judged (and know that I've been judged) for writing about those matters (Don't think that I'm not aware of that when, e.g., I lose friends on Facebook and followers on Twitter for writing about those matters and sharing my writing—what you think of me online reflects exactly what you think of me offline, as the Internet is merely technology that you use and not the reason for how you act offline and online).

Am I going to lie, though, when, for example:

1. I overslept quite a bit during Reilly's first year due to a Depression flareup? I was very lucky that Reilly needed up to 20 hours of sleep per day during that amount of time, meanwhile.
2. I have been unfairly judged by my mother and even my sister, whom have said that I shouldn't own a pet if I can't take care of her or him due to how my mental illnesses affect me? (By the way, "[Y]ou shouldn't own a pet if you can't take care of her or him" is a common canardic trope that is used against people with mental illnesses and other people with disabilities—not to mention people like me whom have both mental illnesses and other disabilities.). They (like others) could be a little more understanding and helpful instead of unempathetically judgemental.
3. The mental illnesses that I have effect energy drains that affect me to not be the best "Momma" to Reilly and "Auntie" to Camille?
4. The guilt that I feel for not being the best "Momma" to Reilly and "Auntie" to Camille affects my Bruxism to flare up (as it's affecting it to flare up as I type)? By the way, I inherited every single one of my mental illnesses (including OCD/Anxiety) from my father, whom also has Bruxism.
5. There are actually matters about which I've not written (including which I didn't mention before writing this blog entry), such as OCD/Anxiety flareups when I'm making cards with pictures of Reilly and Camille? Because of the OCD/Anxiety flareups, making those cards can take quite a bit of time. For example (and this is where I feel judged already again), I often hit the "Undo" or "Delete" button when making those cards because what if, for example and God forbid. I'm using colors that look like colors that hate groups use (I try to avoid using certain colors because of that.) or drawing a shofar with shapes and end up using it on the card, anyway, because I can't correct the part of it that looks like a butt when at least one of the shapes is unfilled or outlined? Am I actually being irreverent and is my motive actually to be irreverent, even by typing this? Also, I avoided using "objects such a shofar with shapes" because I don't want to sound like my Anti-Semitic ex pastor whom called the Ark Of the Covenant a "piece of furniture" by calling a shofar an object.

Incidentally, my memory-affecting ADD also flared up as I was writing. For instance, I forgot for quite a few seconds what I was intending to Google when I (and for a moment just now, I forgot that I wanted to type "intending to Google when I") went to Google "Bruxism"? As for when my ADD flares up in regards to immediate matters regarding Reilly, instances of my ADD flaring up are when I forget that I was going to put on her harness and leash or give her a treat.

Meanwhile, Camille is healing from the pre-UTI inflammation or early UTI infection—and (though I don't mean to sound flippant) excuse me if part of her pre-UTI inflammation or early UTI infection was due to not taking her to "go potty" as often as it seems like I could, as my energy is frequently drained. Besides, Camille doesn't always immediately ring the bell when she needs to "go potty", and I don't know if she needs to "go potty" until she rings that bell or indicates that she needs to get out of her crate during naptime to ring the bell.

Re "For Some Moms, The Nest May Never Be Empty"

My dad's 49-year-old cousin Jamie was treated for seizures when he was 1.5 years old, and the doctors at the hospital gave him an overdose of codeine. They didn't wait to check with my granduncle and grandaunt, whom were out on a date night and having my grandaunt's sister babysit Jamie, and this was despite that Jamie is allergic to codeine.

As a result of the codeine overdose, Jamie got Cerebral Palsy and had his development stop right then and there. My granduncle and grandaunt were gracious and merciful about it, understanding that my grandaunt's sister tried her best by taking Jamie to the hospital. They also gave the doctors the benefit of the doubt, and they opted to not put him in a Pennsylvania state hospital or school (and this was three years before Willowbrook in New York was exposed).

I can only imagine the "What might've been?" and "Why did this happen?" questions that they've had, and especially since Granduncle Jim's endured a lot of other losses along with Jamie's loss of a normal life. Even before he lost the chance to see Jamie have a normal life, he lost his uncle (my great-granduncle) Bernie (of blessed memoryy) only years before (and Great-Granduncle Bernie had a botched shrapnel-removal operation that resulted in his having brain damage and resulting regression to a child-like state); and he lost his father (my great-grandfather Anthony Czarnecki, whom was a very-difficult man and -abusive father) due to Depression-affected suicide in the year after Great-Granduncle Bernie died at the Veteran's Affairs Home and Hospital in Lebanon, Pennsylvania due to a Coronary Occlusion as a result of a Schizophrenia flareup (and perhaps Granduncle Jim and even other relatives—and I myself recently—have wondered if Great-Granduncle Bernie didn't actually have a DVA-forced lobotomy that did damage similar to the damage that Jamie's codeine overdose did).

As for some of the losses after Granduncle Jim's having to deal with Jamie's loss of a normal life:

1. His brother (my granduncle) Francis (of blessed memory) died at the age of 45 due a heart attack and Alcoholism in 1985.
2. His brother (my granduncle) Tony died unexpectedly in 2014 at the age of 68—and being almost four years older than him, he expected to be outlived by him.
3. His daughter, Denise, has never married or had children due to suspending much of her life to help care for her older sibling—so, he's also watched as Denise has lost a chance to live a normal life.
4. He nearly lost his own life when he could've died due to a fall that he had from a letter in 2007, when he was trying to clean some eggs that some punks had thrown onto his roof. 

As for Grandaunt Annie, she's endured both losses of her own losses that she and Granduncle Jim have shared. Meanwhile, both Granduncle Jim and Grandaunt Annie are in their 70s, and both of them are probably wondering what they're going to do in terms of what happens with Jamie when each of them dies—and what happens, if Denise, who's now in her 40s, and/or other relatives can't and/or won't take care of Jamie after they are gone?

Thus, I think that Granduncle Jim and Grandaunt Annie—and perhaps especially Granduncle Jim—can relate to that feeling of never being able to have an empty nest and especially never being able to watch each of their children live a normal life, let alone having children and grandchildren that'll someday live their own normal lives. 

PS To Miriam Sokol, let me add to the following:

"I didn't know that, for example, my dad's 49-year-old cousin is a "difficult child". But what do I know? That overdose that he had on codeine when he was 1.5 years old must've been his fault. Never mind that the doctors at the hospital didn't wait to check with my granduncle and grandaunt before they tried to treat him due to his seizures."

What I want to add is this:

Jamie is not at all a "difficult child" (and neither is every other child or adult whom's afflicted with especially-severe physical and intellectual disabilities). In fact, Jamie is a very-sweet and -loving person (as I remember from when I and my side of my family would see other sides of the family every year that we could up to Pennsylvania to visit my great-grandmother, of blessed memory).

Happy Autumn From Reilly!

PS Poor Cam couldn't be in the card, as she had to go to the vet and had a fever due to a possible UTI 🙁. She is doing better now, though, and has a follow-up appointment tomorrow 🙂! 

Why Does "Momma"/"Auntie Nicole" Make So Many Cards With Reilly And Camille?

The short answer is, "Why not?" The long answer includes that:

1. So far, Reilly is "Momma"'s only child in any sense—whether a fur child or a human child—and firstborn "dogter".
2. Having updated pictures of Reilly and Camille for "Momma"/"Auntie Nicole" to share with others gives "Momma"/"Auntie Nicole"—among, admittedly, other things¹— a chance to share holidays' and other occasions' greetings on behalf of herself, Reilly, and Camille.
3. At least somebody has to love holidays' and other occasions' greetings from (or at least on behalf of) Reilly and Camille.

By the way, "Momma"/"Auntie Nicole" plans to make a "Happy Autumn" card for everyone (including September babies and half-year babies whom saw the last card) that's a joint "Happy Autumn Shabbat" card.

לשבת בראש הסתיו טובה לכולם מ"אמא" וראילי!

(Happy Beginning Of Autumn Shabbat From "Momma" and Reilly!)

¹ Including :

1. Writing fodder—as photography and cardmaking are visual forms of writing (since, after all, "a picture speaks 1,000 words"), as opposed to phonetic writing (Even hybrid forms of visual and phonetic writing—i.e., "videophonetic"(?) writing—such as hieroglyphics fall into the category of phonetic writing as one of the categories by which they can be classified. By the way, "Momma"/"Auntie Nicole" found out Reilly's and Camille's first names in hieroglyphics—though given that Ancient Egypt generally worshipped cats, this maybe would not amuse Reilly or Camille.
2. For family, friends, and others to be among the people whom see them (Who could resist wanting to have Reilly as a "dogter", for example and by the way?). Also, "Momma" did send one card to someone early once; so, she occasionally likes making special cards.

Briefly To Foray Into That World Known As Misbehaving...

Camille decided that refusing to come out of her crate while she had a toy with a squeaker in it was acceptable (By the way, the recordings are mostly-audio recordings, which were made on my cellphone.).






Incidentally, here are some (taken-on-my-cellphone) pictures of Reilly and Camille with their new toys—which were not intentional Yom Teru'ah gifts, I should add—and in case anyone's wondering, Camille's growling, barking, etc. were not teru'ot l'Yom Teru'ah—sounds (teru'ot) forYom Teru'ah 😉.

L'Erev Teru'ah Tovah!

Hopefully, Yom Teru'ah 5777 will be a better Yom Teru'ah than Yom Teru'ah 5776 was—at least for "Momma"/"Auntie Nicole"! As for Reilly and Camille, they started off their Yom Teru'ah celebrations with peanut butter for (relatively) cooperating in taking pictures—so, Reilly's and Camille's 'Erev Teru'ah 5777 has been a Mo'ed Teru'ah l'teru'ot simchot—and Reilly got an extra treat because she patiently waited for "Auntie Michelle"/"Mimi" to get Camille into the picture and move in order for Camille to look directly at "Auntie Nicole" instead of be distracted by "Mimi"!