Thanks to Natalie!

Natalie had a few of us over for a Crafty Afternoon on Saturday. It was wonderful! She made all kinds of nibbly things and soaked pineapple in vodka for some fabulous martinis. I met her dogs and her cats and her husband -- all very nice and welcoming. Even after we started singing with the karaoke machine. I did a killer "White Rabbit" if I do say so myself. And we all "had the music in us", too, if you know what I mean. Here Darcy and I are admiring the handsome Bodie.




The photo was taken by Carla, who brought her Polaroid camera -- hadn't seen one of those in years!. The other crafters were Tammy and Laurie. I couldn't have had a better time.

Crocheted Shoes

I confess. I was looking at Carla's blog and followed a link to SistahCraft. It's a great blog and had photos of fabulous knitted and crocheted shoes! I went on a quest online and found the following"
Crocheted wedges

Crochet flats

Some of my favorites were on SistahCraft's blog.

and

Great clogs she got on sale and now can only be found on the internet for $65!! Damn.
I "only" have my Danskos that I love. Here are mine and Ellen 's:


My weaknesses? Yarn. Shoes. Bags. Can never have enough.

Thanks

Thanks to all for your kind words about Zulu. I appreciate more than you know.

I realized I never finished my report on the mosaic tour. After the Watts Towers (I'm still blown away by that place), David and I met Ellen and Larry at a little mercado downtown. We ate at an Argentinian place -- I had hard boiled eggs wrapped in warm tortillas and covered in a verde sauce. It was delicious.


We moved on to the St. John's Episcopal Church on West Adams. The mosaics were done in Italy and were simply breathtaking.

They had a chapel that was added in 1968. It was covered in shiny gold mosaic and had these curious "clouds"? I guess. Loved them.


David and I went off to the old Home Savings building in Hollywood, a place I've drivien by a thousand times. It's covered with mosaics of movie stars and lists names of actors. Some, I felt, were better representations than others, but it is amazing all the same.


(Betty Davis? I don't think so.)
We also went into the ATM room to look at the stained glass of movie chases. Wow. Everyone should check that out.
It was too late to go to Forest Lawn by then. I didn't mind much. From what Ellen tells me, the mosaic in Mount Sinai is much more impressive. Something else to go on my list of things to see in LA.
Tonight I'm off to a Bollywood night with some friends. Amanda is bringing some films, Jackie is bringing the food, Heather is offering her house and I'm bringing the alcohol. Should be fabulous. I may dress up -- or not.

It's been a very difficult week for me and everyone has been so kind. Thanks to all again.

Zulu is gone. He took a turn for the worse over the weekend. He could no longer stand or walk. I took him to the emergency vet on Monday night and determined he'd had enough. He was a beautiful, funny, weird cat that made my life so much better. He will be very badly missed.
Alyson brought me these flowers from her garden yesterday. They are gorgeous and I especially love the "vase".


For Zulu.

Zulu has good cancer

Today was the day Zulu went to the oncologist, Dr. Zwahlen. She couldn't have been nicer. She thought he was a good candidate for chemo, so he got his first treatment. He has lymphoma, which is the best cancer to have. It's easily treatable and he has seemed to perk up already. He chowed down his food and just looks better. He also got an ultrasound, so they had to shave a patch on his side. I wish they had shaved a bit more, as he is looking pretty raggidy lately. I also have to give him prednisone every 24 hours. More pills! He has an appointment to go back in 2 weeks, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I finished the hat, but it came out way too small. I'm bringing it in to SnB tomorrow night; maybe someone's daughter will like it.



I also started and finished a "Ballet T Shirt" from Loop-d-Loop by Teva Durham. It turned out pretty good (gotta love those size 15 needles!) and makes me look quite curvy.

I'm bringing some birthday treats to share with the SnBer's tomorrow night. Be there or be square!

Zulu Update

I was really afraid he was going downhill fast. He took a turn for the worse a few days ago -- he stopped eating and looked pretty miserable. I called Dr. Broome, who suggested getting him in for chemo as soon as possible. I called to make an appointment, but the earliest they could get us in was April 16th. Brit is going to try to pull some strings to get an earlier appointment, although last night, he seemed to perk up a bit. He ate some tuna and came up to greet me this morning, which he hasn't done since he came home. I'm encouraged. It's affected me a lot more than I would have thought. Here he is this morning with his Fancy Feast salmon:


I have finished the second blanket!! Size 11 needles really make a difference.



I've started a hat that Natalie made a few weeks ago. It's from Knitty. So, I'm learning Fair Isle knitting. So far, so good.


And, last but by far not the least bit least, at SnB last Thursday, Ellen Bloom presented me with this absolutely gorgeous purse for my birthday (it's on Monday, if anyone wants to send me a card!). It's Granny Squares at their most beautiful.

I love it. She felt a little sorry for me after seeing the evening bag I made for the A***** A***'s because it was soooooo tiny. I now have a bag worthy of any formal or informal occasion. She proves again that "Granny Squares are the building blocks of fashion©".

He's Home

I picked up Zulu today from AVMI in Tustin. Dr. Broome called me this morning to tell me the test results from the mass have come in. It is malignant. I feel sick. He said he needed to run some more tests to determine the kind of malignancy it is and I should come and pick up Mr. Z because it could take a while. He is also going to contact Dr. Sheree Stern to see about treatment. I brought him home and he is quite stressed out. He is panting and has shallow breathing, but, when I called Brit, she said that was stress and he should get back to normal. I've had him home about 5 hours now. I also got thyroid pills to give him twice a day and a diuretic for the excess fluid. Giving him a pill should be interesting, but I've got to do it.
Between the stresses at work and worrying about Zulu, I'm exhausted. I begged off a Dodger game with Elaine last night (that proves I'm not feeling all that great!) and going to the Observatory in Griffith Park today. I'm taking it easy, knitting and catching up on TiVo.
Speaking of stress (that's what I should have called this blog), that fire on Forest Lawn Blvd. didn't help. We watched it from our studio door. This photo was taken by Alyson.

Pretty scary stuff. One of the guys at work said not to worry because the LA River was between us and the fire. I thought, "That little trickle of water in that concrete basin? I don't think so", but I kept my thoughts to myself.

More News

Dr. Broome called today to tell me Zulu's heart looked very healthy! Although there is a "mass" on his heart that made it look enlarged. He wanted to do a biopsy and I agreed. I heard from him around 3 PM. Zulu made it through just fine -- they got a good size piece of the mass and have sent it to the lab. It could take up to 48 hours to get the results. Dr. Broome wanted to take care of this before doing the thyroid treatment, so that hasn't started yet. Poor kitty. He's had quite an awful couple of weeks, but I'm praying that he will come through it all like the champ he is.

Thanks to everyone (especially monkeygurrrrl!) for all your support and love.

The Latest

I talked to Dr. Broome tonight. He is sooooo cute, but I saw a wedding ring -- damn. I dropped off Zulu around 10:30 this morning. He wouldn't even come out of the carrier when the door was open. Dr. Broome called to tell me about the results of the thyroid scan and he also took some more X rays.

He found fluid around Zulu's heart and will need to do an ultrasound and take some of the fluid for testing to see if the cause is the thyroid or not. He said the scan they did of the thyroid showed nothing horrible -- two tumors that aren't very big -- so it's the heart thing now. When I told Brit, she said that the "enlarged heart" Dr. Raina saw probably was a normal heart with fluid around it. I'm a little scared and concerned, but I will talk to Dr. Broome tomorrow night when he has the results before I get in too much of a funk. He may need medication when all is said and done. God help me trying to get a pill in that cat.

Oh, Zulu, my Zulu

Dr. Sheree Stern called Brit, who called me last night. She is really worried about the enlarged heart thing and wanted me to try and get him in for his radioactive treatment as soon as possible. I called today and they can take him in tomorrow. Sheree and Brit are extremely happy about this and so am I, even if I'm missing a half day's worth of work. It's so funny -- he seems fine except for the weight loss and wobbly back legs. Brit suggested bringing some toys and an old T shirt of mine so he can smell me while he is in isolation. No one can touch him for 3 to 6 days! He is going to be very lonely. The Advanced Imaging Center has great before and after photos of cats that have had the treatment. I'm hoping it works as well or better for my guy.

On a happier note, I FINISHED THE BABY BLANKET!!! I just have to weave in the ends and block it out a bit. I think it turned out pretty cute. I hope the baby thinks so.



I've even started another, only this time I'm using size 11 needles. It should be finished in no time. I'm using Caron Super Soft -- one strand of Country Blue and one strand of Bright White. I like it.



It's a little hard to see, but the pattern is diamonds in purl and knit. The pattern comes from Leisure Arts and is called Sleepy Time.

And the cat always gets the final word...



I hope the baby doesn't come out allergic...I will wash the blanket before I give it away.

Sunday? Mosaic Day!!

Tile David and I met Ellen and Larry for the LA Conservancy Mosaic tour on Sunday. It was a drive yourself tour of 5 of the major mosaic pieces in Los Angeles. It was AMAZING. I had never been to any of the places we went, so it was a treat to find new, beautiful areas of Los Angeles, the city I love. We met at Parker Center. The mosaic was in the lobby, but usually only seen if you got arrested. It was a big abstract interpretation of Los Angeles, complete with freeways and city hall.




It is in danger because they are building a new police center and will tear Parker Center down when they move, but the mosaic is freestanding and it looks like it will be OK.

Then we zipped over to the Watts Towers. I am ashamed to say I've lived in LA all my life and had never been. It was a special treat because we were able to go inside and walk around with the docent. David was impressing us all with his expertise and even gave the docent more information about the tiles that Rodia used. I was completely awe struck. I took about 40 photos there alone. Here's Ellen, looking lovely, as always.


And some shots of the towers -- I was reminded of Goudy's work that I saw in Barcelona.




It was so whimsical, big and beautiful. We walked over to the conservation office afterwards and got a slide show of the restoration and documentation that has finally been collated and organized into a data base. Pretty impressive. We then walked around the corner to see a house that is trying for a Rodia-like look. Some of it was cute:

Some was just creepy:

More of the tour later...

By the way, I refered to David as "Tile David" because I have at least 6 friends named David. I had to add to their names to identify them when talking about them to other friends. He loves it -- his uses it on his email and it is also on his vanity license plate.

Yarn, X Rays and Lunch

Today I took Zulu to the LA Pet Clinic so they could take some chest X Rays. He will need them before they can do the treatment. I left him off around 10 AM, had some coffee at Groundworks then called Ellen. I was going to be stuck in Hollywood all day and did she want to go to Black Sheep? Of course, she was already there because they were having a 50% off sale on EVERYTHING!!! Yarn, books, needles, magazines -- you name it. It was a blast! She ribbed me a little over how much I bought, but I thought I showed a lot of restraint.

Come on, it was 50% off!!

I then met David, another costumer friend from the '84 Olympics. He is a costumer on Seventh Heaven now and his supervisor, Sherry Thompson, was having lunch for her crew at her home. I had met Sherry at Christmas when she met David and me for dinner in Glendale. I liked her right from the start. She was kind enough to invite me, too. She lives in a cute house in Eagle Rock. She has collected aboriginal art for years and her home is full of ethnic art from all over. I LOVED it! I was so jealous -- I want my house to look like hers. I have a lot of art from my trips, but I haven't put it all up yet. I think she inspired me. She not only has a terrific collection of art, but she's also a terrific cook. I met all of David's crew mates -- a couple of them were knitters, so we got along just fine.

I got the call to pick up Zulu. The X Ray showed an enlarged heart, which is another symptom of hyperthyroidism. I think they had to anesthetize him because he is a "caution cat", but after I got him home, I noticed his limp had gotten much worse. I hope it is just the anesthesia and it will wear off. It's so sad to see him like that. We've now been home for 4 hours and he has just started to speak to me again. I would be pissed off, too, I guess.

Oooh -- the cat with the glowing eyes!

Catching up

I have a lot to catch up on. On Thursday, instead of going to Farmer's Market, I was taken to the ballet by my wonderful friend, Elaine. Elaine and I were roommates back in the 80's. We met working on the Los Angeles Olympics as costumers, doing wardrobe for the opening and closing ceremonies. She is still a costumer, very much in demand, AND she is a lot of fun. I sat out on the patio of the Music Center (I got there early) and drank in the beautiful evening. It was just warm enough to be comfortable, the sky was a gorgeous blue and I was in heaven. When she got there, we shared a split of champagne and went in. We saw The Joffrey Ballet. They performed, among other things, the Green Table, which I had only seen on TV. It was GREAT!


It turns out Zulu has hyperthyroidism. His blood tests showed an extremely high count. Brit told me about a therapy involving a shot of radioactive stuff that targets the tumors on the thyroid and is 95% effective. Poor guy. He will be going to Advanced Veterinary Medical Imaging for the treatment on April 15.

Daffy for Daffodils

My favorite neighbor, Charles, called me last night to meet him at the back fence. He handed me this gorgeous bunch of flowers and then said yes to hanging around today for the delivery men who were FINALLY bringing the rest of my bathroom vanity from Expo. He is the best. Now to get the contractor back over here to install the cabinets and measure for the quartz top. One step at a time....

In the middle of doing laundry yesterday, I passed through the bedroom to find the "little prince", as Brit calls him, sprawled out on the newly changed bed. So much more comfy that that tiny cat bed!!

He seems fully recovered from the trauma of going to the doctor's. I call tomorrow to have them fax the results to Dr. Shari.

Zulu the Caution Cat

Zulu survived his first trip to the vet's. The tech and the doctor checked him out while I held him, then they took him to the back to take some blood and pee. When he came out, another tech told me he had peed all over the table and I may have to bring him back if the sample they got was too contaminated. I had warned them he pees when he's scared, but oh well. She also told me that she had to put a "caution" on his card. Evidently he misbehaved while they were trying to take the blood. I told her that he had had a stressful day, but she just repeated she had to put a "warning" on his card. Then she said that "most cats don't have to have a caution noted on their card". I said I was sorry. What exactly did she expect me to do? I told her he was a bit high strung. Anyway, he's recovered quite nicely and is not the worse for wear. The doctor thinks he may have thyroid problems, but she won't know until the results come back. She said it was easy to deal with.

Today I went to the Grove for a baby shower. It was for Angela's baby -- Angela couldn't not be a more wonderful person. We met when she interviewed me as a "woman in the film business" while she was getting her master's degree at USC. We hit it off and she called me after she graduated, looking for work. She ended up working at the studio I was at, so I had the pleasure of seeing her everyday. She left to teach at an art college back in Georgia, but is now back in LA. She is teaching at USC now, but will occasionally work at the studio. I was thrilled when she moved back. She is also a terrific knitter and has come to the Thursday night group. She looked beautiful and I met some of her friends. We had a fun time -- I didn't even feel left out when it became apparent I was the only one in the group without kids or pregnant. Here she is with her friend, Sharon:

Angela is due sometime in May, but she looked about ready to me right now.

I got to the Grove about 15 minutes early, had a coffee at Nordstrom's

then walked around, admiring the poppies. They were gorgeous.

The shower was at La Piazza, a good Italian restaurant right by the fountain. I had penne puttanesca. It was delicious.

Now, back to reality...

From Bluegrass to Beethoven

I went to a great gallery show at Modernica on Thursday night (sorry, SnBers!) to see a photography show. It was put on by Frank Novak , the owner, to showcase his brother, Paul, who took the photos back in 1974. They were GREAT! Very evocative of the time. You can see more about them in Ellen's blog, because, again, she brought her camera and I did not. There was a bluegrass band and cans of Budweiser to drink, all in keeping with the theme of the photos -- a local speedway where the guys in the neighborhood would race their beat up cars.

Last night, I went to the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Christain Zacharias was conducting and performing the Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 2 and conducting the Haydn Symphony No. 4. It was blissful. I have had season seats for Casual Fridays for a few years now and really enjoy them. Check it out. The orchestra and conductor come out in jeans and T shirts, play a shorter version of the program and you can join them in the cafe afterwards to chat. I have been too sleepy to stay yet, but ONE OF THESE DAYS...

Today Zulu goes to the vet's. Since I got him from Brit, the vet, I haven't had to take him in EVER. I've had him 7 years now and it seems like he's getting arthritic in his back legs. I am taking him to a friend of Brit's, Dr. Sheri, at the LA Pet Clinic so she can give him the once over and take some fluids to check. Poor guy. He doesn't know what's coming.

Or maybe he does...