Dear friends, family, fellow travelers,
As we near the winter solstice, I am counting down the days to our annual two weeks of hibernation at the holidays. Each year for the past few years, Hanna and I have committed to not traveling and making very few social commitments for the two weeks between Christmas Eve and Epiphany. We are lucky enough to have workplaces that close between December 24 and January 1, making it possible for us to add some vacation time around the edges to round out a fourteen-day break.
It's heavenly. We turn off the alarm clock and sleep in, go for daily walks, eat on our own (rather than work-constrained) schedule, read, write, and craft as we please. Do some end of year reflection and organization for the coming year. (Re)set our intentions and discard the ones that are no longer serving us. This year has left us feeling more strung out than usual in a number of ways, and for the past few weeks I've mostly wanted to hunker down under our feather comforters and sleep for a solid fifteen hours a day. So this upcoming pause is most welcome.
Since my last newsletter, our Christopher was hospitalized for two days with a scary infection that was never fully diagnosed (though successfully treated with antibiotics). During the course of his stay at the MSPCA-Angell Medical Center he tested positive for feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV). We were so, so glad to welcome him home the evening before Thanksgiving and to see his appetite return over the holiday weekend. He was particularly excited about the Churu Pops ("moist and chewy cat treat"!) that we gave him after his twice daily medicine.
During his hospitalization, as the cost of his care and testing mounted, we were overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity of our friends and family -- none of them wealthy by any stretch of the imagination -- who begged us to make it possible for them to assist us with the medical expenses. In the end, they crowd-sourced over 70% of the bill and turned what could have been a not only a medically frightening but also financially frightening situation into a week where we could really focus on getting Christopher the help he needed to heal and return home. We are humbled by all of the ways (financial and otherwise) that all of you care for us and our kitty companions. Christopher has since shown no signs of a relapse and is happy to have discovered a new winter napping spot atop the radiator in the living room.
Things I am looking forward to doing during our two weeks of hibernation:
In companionship and weary solidarity,
Anna
As we near the winter solstice, I am counting down the days to our annual two weeks of hibernation at the holidays. Each year for the past few years, Hanna and I have committed to not traveling and making very few social commitments for the two weeks between Christmas Eve and Epiphany. We are lucky enough to have workplaces that close between December 24 and January 1, making it possible for us to add some vacation time around the edges to round out a fourteen-day break.
It's heavenly. We turn off the alarm clock and sleep in, go for daily walks, eat on our own (rather than work-constrained) schedule, read, write, and craft as we please. Do some end of year reflection and organization for the coming year. (Re)set our intentions and discard the ones that are no longer serving us. This year has left us feeling more strung out than usual in a number of ways, and for the past few weeks I've mostly wanted to hunker down under our feather comforters and sleep for a solid fifteen hours a day. So this upcoming pause is most welcome. Since my last newsletter, our Christopher was hospitalized for two days with a scary infection that was never fully diagnosed (though successfully treated with antibiotics). During the course of his stay at the MSPCA-Angell Medical Center he tested positive for feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV). We were so, so glad to welcome him home the evening before Thanksgiving and to see his appetite return over the holiday weekend. He was particularly excited about the Churu Pops ("moist and chewy cat treat"!) that we gave him after his twice daily medicine. During his hospitalization, as the cost of his care and testing mounted, we were overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity of our friends and family -- none of them wealthy by any stretch of the imagination -- who begged us to make it possible for them to assist us with the medical expenses. In the end, they crowd-sourced over 70% of the bill and turned what could have been a not only a medically frightening but also financially frightening situation into a week where we could really focus on getting Christopher the help he needed to heal and return home. We are humbled by all of the ways (financial and otherwise) that all of you care for us and our kitty companions. Christopher has since shown no signs of a relapse and is happy to have discovered a new winter napping spot atop the radiator in the living room.
Things I am looking forward to doing during our two weeks of hibernation:
- Hosting (and writing for!) the 5th annual Twelvetide Drabbles challenge.
- Reading Cat Sebastian's latest Regency Imposters romance.
- Finishing my sister Maggie's 2018-2019 Christmas quilt.
- Designing and stitching a quilt square for a Survived + Punished protest action quilt project.
- Unearthing and attempting to make operable an old sewing machine that's been in storage.
- Naps.
- More naps.
- Further napping.
In companionship and weary solidarity,
Anna