RIP, Mufflig

Muffy went quite peacefully at 14:34 today. The vet came and did it here, so she never knew a thing.

She had started refusing her favorite foods last night, so i think she was ready to go. She purred like crazy when the opioids hit, and was gone halfway through the injection.

i sent her off in my ratty old Berkeley sweatshirt, together they were the two favorite things i still had from grad school. She will be cremated next week and scattered in the yard at the Commonwealth Veterinary Hospital. From the picture on the site, the grounds are very beautiful, not that it matters. Still, it is better than some old gas station lot or something.

The vet was awesome in every respect. Here is his page on Euthanasia as a humane alternative. He caressed her and talked to her the whole time, and wrapped the sweatshirt around her so gently and carried her out like a baby. You could almost believe that he knew her for over a decade, too. He certainly did a lot to make her last year much more comfortable.

Roscoe was there when it was done, so he knows what the deal is. All three (remaining) kitties came up and sat with me and purred and licked me right after the vet left. So sweet.

And then there were three.

Why Hair Goes Gray

DFCI scientists discover cellular roots of graying hair; could shed new light on malignant melanoma

Few things about growing older are as inevitable and obvious as "going gray," yet scientists have been unable to explain the precise cause of this usually unwelcome transformation.

In a report posted on Dec. 23 on the website of the journal Science, researchers from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Children’s Hospital Boston say they have found the cellular cause of graying hair while investigating the origins of malignant melanoma, the potentially deadly skin cancer.

Much more in link

Super Milk Chan

Watch the show, you dumbass!

Villain of the Year 2004

Restaurant Business Magazine has voted Morgan Spurlock one of it's ten "Villains of the Year". Other lucky recipients include MADD and meteorologists in Providence, RI. (i do agree about Rocco DiSpirito, though. Well, no, he's too lame to be a villain.)

Their heros? Fucking Jared Fogle and the woman who stopped people from getting overtime pay in the administrative layer of the food industry.

Phil Hartman

Holy crap, Phil Hartman had a voice credit on the Ren & Stimpy Show. OTOH he had one for Scooby & Scrappy Doo, also.

"Your Order Has Shipped"

YAAAAAAAAAY

View order:
Items shipped on December 26, 2004:
Delivery estimate: December 31, 2004 - January 4, 2005
1 package via USPS

* 1 of: The Lord of the Rings - The Motion Picture Trilogy (Special Extended DVD Edition)

Muff-date

Well, the super hardcore pain meds are doing wonders, but i cannot let that distract from the reality. The vet named three possible diagnoses for the Muffster. To get a solid diagnosis for any of them would require much expensive imaging and testing (MRI and CT scans) which would cost a ton and torment her, and not really add to any significant quality of life. She looks great today, and was so sweet and purry all night (she slept on my chest) that i was afraid to move. But it would be selfish to go overboard with the heroics.

The possible diagnoses:
Continue reading "Muff-date"

Poor Muffy

Things aren't looking good at all for the little white girl, i think we're counting her life in days now if not hours. At least Mufflig has some good opiates at the moment. i could use some too. This has been on the table since March, but it is still pretty awful.

Comments fixed?

Oh, it looks like way back on September 5th i had an IP blocked with no number entered, so that effectively turned off the comments. i guess i didn't notice since i had turned them off for quite a while due to spammers. Whoops! And i thought you didn't love me anymore. Let's see if it works now. If anybody is still out there, that is.

---

Holy crap, i never thought about it, but comment spam is of course a form of googlewhacking. Huh. In other news the comment spam has begun to pour in, but it's nice to hear y'all check in, so i'll just delete it. i changed the text so it doesn't read "c*mments", so let's see whether that helps.

Doctor, Lawyer, Indian Chief

Comet, Meteor, Nebula, Star

Creepy!

Celecoxib

NIH Halts Use of COX-2 Inhibitor in Large Cancer Prevention Trial

Ummm, i've heard of one of those 40 trials. i haven't heard any insider info, and i wouldn't know enough to tell you anyway, so don't ask. It does make me really curious, though, how about you?

With age comes wisdom

And lots of them don't give a damn if it's for medical use:

Poll: seniors support medical marijuana

Associated Press

Dec. 18, 2004 | WASHINGTON -- Nearly three-fourths of older Americans support legalizing marijuana for medical use, according to a poll done for the nation's largest advocacy group for seniors.

...

Though 69 percent of those age 70 and older said they support legal medical marijuana use, less than half agreed it has medical benefits.

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i wish i could have a flu shot

Of course tens of thousands of shots left over out of 58 million vaccines is a tiny margin, but now can i have one? Oh, you have to be 50. Oh well, they only work about half the time anyway, i hear.

CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices Expands Priority Groups for Inactivated Influenza Vaccination

Press Release - For Immediate Release - December 17, 2004

Adults aged 50-64 and close contacts of persons in high-risk groups will be eligible for influenza vaccination in areas where vaccine supply is sufficient to meet demand

Today, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) expanded the list of priority groups recommended to receive inactivated influenza vaccine this flu season, depending on the availability of influenza vaccine in state or local health jurisdictions.

More in link

Continue reading "i wish i could have a flu shot"

Save 'THE WIRE'!!

(Spoilers : if you haven't seen all three seasons, don't look. Seriously.)

'The Wire' fears HBO may snip it

At the climax of its third season, HBO's gritty drama "The Wire" is hanging by one. "We haven't been renewed," said creator David Simon, "We have not been killed either."

NNNOOOOOOOOO

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Bye, Bill

Thanks for everything. Journalism will never be the same. From the NY DAILY NEWS:

Moyers retires his bliss

'NOW' it's time, says PBS legend

Bill Moyers is retiring from PBS after a long career... ...that included working with President Johnson. After 33 years as a TV journalist and commentator - and prior careers in the Lyndon Johnson White House and as publisher of Newsday - Bill Moyers is walking away from television.

The final installment of "NOW with Bill Moyers," his eclectic and thoughtful PBS series, will air tomorrow night at 8:30 (on WNET/Ch. 13).

Continue reading "Bye, Bill"

Name this phenomenon

Can you identify this effect?

the answer

Broccoli Rabe

Mmmmmm. Next years late summer gardern for sure.