Rest in peace my sweet Jinx...

I post this entry with a very heavy heart... On April 12, 2011 at 9:35 am, Michael and I had to bid Jinx adieu. She was suffering from a severe, progressive respiratory disease and had taken a sharp turn for the worse over the last few weeks. We couldn't bear to see her suffer any longer, and the prednisone we were giving her just wasn't relieving her symptoms anymore. Dr. Moran at Presidio Way Veterinary Hospital was the kindest, most compassionate person we could have asked for in sending Jinx to kitty heaven.

My mom agreed to let Michael and I bury her up at her property near Jackson, CA and my dad was kind enough to make her a little box and sent it from Portland. I am incredibly appreciative that he put so much love and thought into her box. Here it is to the left. I teared up when I saw that he cut out her name in wood letters and glued it to the lid. Michael and I bought her a little stone marker that had her name, the year she was born, the date she died and the inscription "forever loved and deeply missed". We buried her on the 16th under a little plum tree near the well pump house on my mom's property. We had a nice service for her and I am finally feeling a sense of peace and closure, but I still miss her like crazy and keep expecting to see her when I walk into the flat. To the right is me next to her little grave. The next time Michael and I go up to the property, I am going to bring a bag of bulb flowers and plant them around her stone marker. She was such a great travel companion, friend, cuddler and embodied the true definition of unconditional love. Everyone that met her ended up loving her.

Things have been a little somber around the flat this week, and even Buttercup is having a hard time with Jinx being gone... He looks for her on occasion and has been extra cuddly lately. I think he really misses her too, even though she wasn't very playful the past three months she was here. He still would sleep by her and try to play with her a couple of times a day. But he is adjusting and things are slowly getting back to normal around here.

My little Jinx... Here's to a decade of companionship, cuddles, purrs, over 5,000 miles of travel, three duty stations, many late nights of studying, and a lifetime of rememberence. I love you my sweet girl and I miss you every day.

66HM5 out...

Updates please!!

So... I just realized that it has been SIX months since I have updated this thing! Needless to say A LOT has happened in the last six months, so I guess I will start at the beginning. I started school at UCSF in late September, not really knowing what to expect. I forgot how quickly the quarter system moves and how much work gets packed into ten weeks! I had a great birthday with my mom and my Auntie B here in the city at Tadich Grill. Great food, great service, and great conversation... The only thing that was missing was Michael.

Leah passed through San Francisco in October on her way to the Periop course in El Paso, so I called Rosie and we all met for dinner at Tadich Grill for some more great good and famous service. Here we are at the bar waiting for our table. It was so great to see my girls and talk wedding ceremony business... I had a bridesmaid to replace and Rosie was the obvious choice! ;) We had so much fun and it was just like old times at Ft. Benning!

I also took a trip out to Chandler to see Michael, since he was STILL waiting on his transfer to the SF office. Of course, I had to say that I went to the Buca in Chandler while I still had the chance, so here I am cheesing it with the sign. I have to say that Planet Hollywood's aquisition of Buca really ruined the place... Crappy new menus, ugly tomato ties, name tags, and the dishes that remained on the menu just don't taste the same. :(

November was just nuts, trying to get through finals and finish up all the last-minute wedding prep done. Michael flew out to SF for Thanksgiving up at my mom's property and we had a nice time relaxing without the hustle and bustle of school or work. I got to see my Monte boy too, which is always nice. He is such a sweet boy and a little cuddle-bug when he wants to be... I love and miss his little face!! Here we are chilling on the bed, with him looking annoyed that I have taken like 20 pictures of him. Ha-ha.

December was glorious!! I finished my first quarter of Grad school with all A's, and the countdown to the wedding was ON! I spent almost all of December in Arizona getting all of the last-minute things together and trying to relax and enjoy my break. Michael and I headed to Yuma for Christmas again and had a great time hanging out with his parents. My in-laws are just the best people, it is ridiculous! Here we are in front of what MUST be Santa's house... I swore he lived at the North Pole, but maybe he and Mrs. Clause wised up and moved to the desert. :)

My bridesmaids came out on the 27th and threw me an awesome bachelorette party, complete with all of the accoutrements! We had a great time dining, bar-hopping, drinking and dancing. I finally got to meet Michael's old roommate Brandy, and she was such a blast... She had us going from place to place and incited fun wherever we went! Here are Brandy, Ashlee and I all decked out. :) My mom came out a week before the wedding to help me get everything done and was amazing! My dad and Carolyn came out before the wedding too and were instrumental in feeding and watering the troops on the day of the wedding. :)

Before we knew it the day of the ceremony was upon us!! It was truly the most amazing day of my life... It was everything I thought it was going to be and more. Well, I would have changed the fact that it was 40 degrees outside, considering that it was an outdoor wedding... BUT, it was still amazing to share it with 75 of our closest friends and families. The whole day seems like a dream now, but I will remember it forever. :) Here is a great view of the venue... It was incredibly beautiful, even in December! I have to say that we had possibly the best photographers in Phoenix. Jennifer Radack of O'Grace Photography managed to capture the best images and we have almost 1,000 photos to look back at and remember our special day. To the left is the "You may kiss the bride... Again" shot. I love the way it captures our kiss, the back of my dress and more of Boojum Tree. :) This is another one of my favorites... All my girls trying to get my French bustle tied up. It was definitely a challenge... Seven ties on the bottom layer of tulle, three ties on the middle layer of tulle, and three ties connecting the dress to the top layer of tulle! I am SO happy with the way everything turned out... My dress, my veil, my hair and my make-up were just perfect! Kudos to Diane Aiello at Glam Lounge for my make-up and Jessica Lawson of Salon Surreal for my hair. These ladies are amazing and made me look more beautiful than I could have ever imagined!

Unfortunately, it was back to the real world right after the ceremony... School started back up for me, and Michael had the move from Chandler to San Francisco to contend with. I flew back out to Chandler to help with the pack and move of the condo after the first week of school. The morning after the movers boxed up the condo, Michael and I headed back to San Francisco with two cars and two sedated, but still unhappy cats in tow. January turned out to be quite hectic with twice as much stuff in the flat and not a lot of time to find a place for everything. Michael hit the ground running in the offices here and now has some pretty high-profile clients to manage, but of course, is doing quite well and making a name for himself.

February and March found us dealing with a sick Jinx... And to our chagrin she is not getting any better. We are thinking it will only be a few more months until we have to bid adieu to her. She has been the best little cat I could have ever asked for and I will really miss her when she is gone. This is my favorite picture of Jinx and I... It was taken back at Ft. Benning about 5 years ago. I remember that she was looking up at the camera, but marked my face at the last minute and made me laugh right as I took the picture.

Well, to those that are still following my journey... You have been fully updated. :)

66HM5 (and Michael) out...