flea market ~ and a zippo update

 What a great time we had on Saturday! Me, Brian, my mom and aunt headed out to the flea market. We hadn't been there in several years. We didn't go with the intentions of buying anything...we just wanted to have a nice day outdoors together while the weather is still beautiful. This is probably the only picture you'll ever see of me in a hat. I am so not a hat person. Even when I was a kid, I hated hats. I don't even wear them through our brutal winters here in the Chicago area. I will put up the hood on my coat though. ;-) So, the only reason I wore a hat this day was to protect my hair color. I had just gotten my hair cut and colored the day before.

My mom and my aunt.

This is a huge flea market ~ we probably only covered half of it in a few hours. There are hundreds of vendors. I kept my phone in my purse and only took a couple of photos, so I borrowed the following ones from my aunt.

We loved these bourbon barrels. How cool would one of these be on a big patio or deck with a round glass top to make a table?

Lots of pretty bottles at this one vendor. These sure would be pretty lining a window.

I spent a whole fifty cents at the flea market. I was going through a box of vintage buttons and found one that said "Pip". Pip was my nickname for Phil. I had to have this button for his memory shelf.

On to news about my Zippo...

He saw the veterinary opthamologist last Thursday. Poor thing had all kinds of eye tests, a blood pressure test taken from his tail, and was put in a cat bag (like a little sleeping bag for cats...only his head was poking out) so that they could take blood from his jugular vein. He freaked out in the bag and peed in it...and all over the vet! She took it in stride and was laughing. She said she brings two changes of clothes to work with her every day. Of course, Zippo then had to have a bath. They didn't put him in a tub of water. They were able to wash him with a wet, soapy washcloth.

Turns out Zippo not only has secondary glaucoma, but cataracts and chronic uveitis. He's on three different medications. The pressure in his eye was 58. I believe the normal range is 10-20. 

Look how much better my fur baby's eye looks already! We went for an eye pressure re-check this morning and the news was very good. His pressure was down to 13! They also did what's called the "menace response" which tests the cat's blink reflex. The tech covered Zippo's good eye, then waved his hand in different directions in front of Zippo's right eye. He rated a weak-positive. Most of the blood tests have come back negative - but they're still waiting for a few more. The vet is trying to determine what caused Zippo's glaucoma in the first place (since it's secondary glaucoma). His urinalysis came back that he has borderline kidney disease, but the vet said for a cat his age, this wasn't bad at all. I have to follow up with Zippo's regular vet.

The vet also said with this good news today - so far - he doesn't need eye surgery. At the first visit last week, a shot in the eye or even removal of his eye was a possibility. I didn't say anything to the vet, but Brian and I discussed this and we decided if it came down to where Zippo needed his eye removed, we wouldn't do it. I know it's a very personal decision, but Zippo is 18 years old, has borderline kidney disease, and only weighs 8 lbs. To put him through the trauma of anesthesia and a major surgery would not be fair to him. He's had a long, loving, wonderful kitty life and we do not want him to suffer.

Happy Meowy Monday!