I WON!!!

Mom FORCED me to go to the v-e-t Friday and she took out SOME of my stitches, but not all of them. So I had stitches in for Halloween! But now I'm kind of tired of them, and I think I will get the rest taken out THIS Friday, cause I want my normal skin back again.

I have to admit, tho, that Mom kissing me on my bare, hairless skin is kind of fun! And she scratches the skin, (but not the scar) and it feels MARVELOUS!

I guess there's pros and cons to everything...

I don't think so...

Mom said we are gonna go after work and get my stitches out. I'm thinking not.

See, these stitches have been in me for two weeks. I'm used to them. They've grown on me. Well, maybe IN me. I think I want to keep them. Halloween is this weekend, so I'll fit right in.

Yeah, I'm keeping them. Leave my stitches alone!

Mixed blessing

Last night, for the first time in 2 weeks, I jumped! Even tho my back is still tender, I wanted to sit on Mom's lap, so I jumped right up there. Mom hugged me and told me I was a big brave boy.

But the reason I wanted to sit on Mom's lap bad enough to jump up was that I needed to snuggle with Mom. We were both so sad and crying over my good friend Frankie Sinatracat, who went suddenly to the Bridge yesterday.

Frankie had the same sickness I had in January, and I guess I was really lucky that I got better. But Frankie couldn't get better, and he was only a young thing of 10.

Frankie and I have been friends for a LONG time. When I invented a game called Brusselball, Frankie really took to it. He and Merlin the Cat Wizard started a group called Brusselball and that group is still going strong all these years later. Frankie has a spa in the group where he does manicures and pedicures and hands out a LOT of boas. He was TOTALLY into boas!

His Mom lost her other kitty, Macaroni, just recently and had gotten a successor for Mac, a tiny kitten named Lilac. Poor Lilac is suddenly an only kitty. But I know that Frankie taught Lilac to love all things lovely, and that he will guide her from the Bridge to grow into a fine and beautiful girlkit.

Farewell, Frankie. We love you and will miss you!

Mom broke the rules!

Mom and I are supposed to be loving and treasuring each other. So what do you think she did last night?

SHE THREW FOOD AT ME!! (I dropped his bowl.)

I HAD TO HIDE! (We both were startled.)

SHE MADE ME EAT FUZZY FOOD OFF THE CARPET! (I was cleaning the food off the louvered door to the laundry room and he was eating the food off the carpet.)

SHE MADE ME EAT FOOD WITH CLEANING SOLUTION IN IT! (I actually shooed him away from the food that fell off the louvered door while I was cleaning it.)

SHE TOOK AWAY THE RUG I SIT ON TO EAT, SO MY BUTT GOT COLD! (I didn't want him sitting in food remnants.)

WHAT HAPPENED TO ALL THE LOVING AND GOOD TIMES?

I think I need to file a complaint with my union, Local 12 of the VTSU. (Villains, Thieves and Scoundrels Union)

Oh, brother! It's always something!

Saturday, Mom and I were snuggling in bed. I had my back to her and she was holding my feet and rubbing my toes. She felt something on my left leg and thought it might be adhesive from the pain patch I had on last week.

She jumped up and got real close to my leg and gently felt it. She didn't scare me or anything, but I wondered what she was looking at for so long.

I have a new tumor on the back of my left lower leg. It is about the same size as the one I had taken off my back. I don't have nearly as much skin on my legs as I do on my back. So having another operation is not gonna happen.

Mom and I talked it over. She knows the surgery was very hard for me. So we decided that I am gonna keep this new tumor and Mom and I will "play it by ear" from now on.

We are gonna play, and snuggle and love each other a whole lot. One of my pals told me that he lived with tumors for two years before going to the Bridge. I hope I have that much time with my Mom. I love her, and I know she loves me.

Tumors are NOT gonna be the focus of our lives, but they are a fact of our lives. If I may borrow a phrase from my pal Calvin, Mom and I are all about love and fun and good times together. And our pals are an integral part of those good times, and we plan on hanging with you as long as we can.

Love,

Arnold and Mom

I'm back!

Last night, Mom tried to trim the tape off my foot dressing where the pain patch is. She said it had litter stuck to it. I said play with your own dressing and leave mine alone! And I bit her, but not hard.

Then she said, Arnie, your butt is a mess. I'm gonna clean it for you. And I said CLEAN YOUR OWN BUTT! And I bit her again, but not hard. Just hard enough to let her know...

I'M BACK!!!!! I feel better and I am large and in CHARGE! HURRAY!!!!!

Path-ah-low-gee

Mom got my path-ah-low-gee report from the v*e*t today. I don't know what path-ah-low-gee means, but Mom said it tell us about the bump I had on my back that the v*e*t cut off.

The reports starts by saying: Submitted for examination is HAIRED skin. Well, DUH! I'm a cat, Mr. Path-ah-low-gee doctor! Of course my skin has hair!

Anyway, the path-ah-low-gee report shows that they took off plenty of my skin from the left and the right and the bottom so that there are no more of those nasty tumors cells. I had sheets of nasty cells, but there are no more of those nasty things anywhere on my skin.

So I guess I am doing good. I got a good night's rest last night after my new pain patch went on. I always used to use my stairs to get on the bed and then just jump off whereever I felt like it, but Mom noticed now that I am taking the stairs up AND down. Hey, they're there, why not use them?!?

Thank you, my dear pals, for helping me get thru this surgery. It hurt a LOT, and I am glad that I had you to help me thru it all! I love you!

My weekend.

Friday, I was hissing at my back for hurting me. I was also biting at my foot to get that stupid patch off. It was not a good day.

Saturday, I used the stairs Mom made for me to get on the bed. There's a box, and then a chair and then the bed. And when I did it on Saturday, I didn't hiss at my back.

But when Mom took her shower in the morning, I took off running and hid from her so she wouldn't find me and take me to the v*e*t again. But she found me and patted my head and said: "It's OK, Sweetie-boy. I'm not gonna take you anywhere". Phew, I purred then!

Sunday Mom and I watched football and cuddled. I laid on her lap a little, but mostly I just rested and got kissed. I ate a LOT and I'm making mastadon quantity of poopies.

But the best part of the weekend was that I made poopies that looked just like doughnuts, TWICE! Perfectly round! I told my pal Newman right away, because he's writing a book about poopies, and I want to be in the book. Mom says they do not smell like Krispie Kremes, tho! MOL!

Oh, and I got entered in the World's Coolest contest in three CATegories. I hope you'll vote for me!

So that was my weekend. How was yours?

I want to be adopted!

*Arnold crawls over to the laptop and struggles to type*

I am available for adoption. I don't like my Mom ANY MORE! I want to go to live with a NICE lady or man.

Yesterday my current Mom picked me up after breakfast and took me to a v*e*t and LEFT ME THERE! And while I was there, the v*e*t hurt me real bad! She cut on my back and stuck things in my arms and taped things to me and made me pee on a towel!

I am a big boy and I DON'T pee on towels! And why would that mean v*e*t cut me for no reason? This morning when my current Mom left for work, I hid so she wouldn't take me anywhere where they would hurt me again. She didn't take me, but she shot some medicine in my mouth that makes me dizzy.

I am gonna leave! I won't be expensive to take care of, because I'll bring all my own toys. I can't leave today, because my back hurts, but I should be ready to go on Monday.

Personal ad: One slightly used, adorable, wounded kitty available for adoption. Has his own toys, is very loveable and handsome and adorable. Travels well by car and is adorable. PLEASE adopt me!

OW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I normally don't let Mom write in my diary, but I am locked in a cage in a v*et* office, so she's gonna have to write for me.

Arnold was at the vet office this morning at 7:30. He got to eat his breakfast and take his insulin before he went there. He was put under anesthesia (Mainly because he's so darned cranky at the vet! LOL!) and had his tumor removed with a 6 centimeter incision. That's almost as long as the average human index finger.

He has a pain patch under a dressing on his arm. He has little stitches and retention stitches (BIG stitches) to help the little stitches hold that big wound together.

I am going to pick him up after work and he is coming home to wait for the pathology report, which won't be available until next week. He's gonna be a hurtin' puppy.

If he's doing OK tonight, I will try to let you know how he is doing and get a picture for the nekkid stroll.

Thank you all for keeping my boy in your purrs and prayers.

PeeEss from Arnold: Did you see that snarky comment Mom made in the first parentheses up there^^? THAT'S why I don't let her write in my diary!