NotSheep

I am soooooo tired. Spending most of one day worrying about a dog, most of the following night up and down to give said dog rehydration solution orally from a syringe, then most of the day after looking for a fridge - trust me, don’t do it.

Okay, let’s try to remember things in order.

Monday morning brought about a very frustrating phone-call with the insurance company. After taking lots of information about the engine-fire, the woman on the phone requested that I take the car to one of their approved repairers. Uh, half the engine is melted: this is not a car that is repairable, nor is it a car that’s going to be driven anywhere. Oh, their repairer would examine the car and decide if it could be repaired. I pointed out that fixing it would involve replacing the entire engine - at a cost substantially more than the value of the car. She finally agreed that it was a salvage case, and put me on hold while she got details of the salvage company they’d send out to get it. She gave me the details of a company in Bristol.

I pointed out that getting the car to Bristol would cost more than it was worth; she said the company would have a yard local to me. Uhuh.

Then she gave me the details of the office that would be dealing with the claim. That bit was fine, the office is probably the closest to me. The postcode, however, involved “T for Tango, Q for Cubic”. Eh? “Q for Cubic?” I said. “Yes,” she said firmly, “that’s right.”

I gave up and phoned the local office. The upshot is that the insurance company will write us a cheque for the value of the car less our deductible. The car is eleven years old though, so the value is low, and it might be better financially for us if we could just sell it for scrap and avoid increasing our insurance premiums. Except that I doubt any of the scrapyards will be interested.

In the meantime, Cass was ill overnight - believe me, you don’t want details. She had no interest in food all day Monday, and in the evening I took her to the vet. It was her first visit, and the practice I’d been recommended to use had no appointments available, so we ended up using a different one. They were okay, I suppose, but I wasn’t enthused. The vet was very uncommunicative, didn’t tell me what he thought, gave her three injections and didn’t ask my permission or even tell me what they were until I asked about each of them after it was given (antibiotic, painkiller, anti-inflammatory). He wanted to keep her overnight and have her on an IV; I knew she’d be distraught if we did that (she doesn’t even like it if Andie gets taken for a walk without her) so asked if it was really necessary. He said he’d prefer to do it, but it was my call. I decided to bring her home, so he gave me some hydration solution and an appointment for first thing this morning. Overnight she wasn’t as bad, and she’d brightened a bit by this morning, though still wouldn’t drink of her own accord (hence me syringing fluid into her mouth through the night). Back at the vet she got another two injections and a pack of oral antibiotics, even though the vet didn’t know if she actually had an infection, never mind whether it was bacterial. He also gave me a can of dog-food that would be “easier on her stomach” - I told him she was raw-fed and would be getting something very simple, like a chicken fillet, to start with, but he said that his can of “meat and animal derivatives”, unspecified cereals and “derivatives of vegetable origin” would be easier on her than that. Still trying to work that one out.

When I got her home she was a bit brighter again, and even drank some water from her bowl. I had to go out for a couple of hours; by the time I returned she was looking much better, and when I offered her some food, she ate it with relish. No digestive problems since, and she’s been drinking water and peeing, so fingers crossed she’s on the mend. I haven’t given her any of the antibiotics, because she’s already a lot happier and more interested in things again

Meanwhile I’d been looking at fridge-freezers. Big, expensive ones. I thought we’d decided on one, but when I looked at it again next to our second choice, I decided I liked the second choice more. Then I saw another one that was a bit cheaper, but also appealing, and thought maybe that was the way to go. And then I saw yet another, same price as the first two but a better brand and a much better build. So now I’m trying to decide whether a solidly-built stainless steel Admiral is worth £300 more than an average Daewoo… oh, and to work out where the aquarium’s going once either of them arrives.

As for the kids, they’ve pretty much entertained themselves for the last couple of days. The weather’s lousy and we were invited to join friends at an indoor playground tomorrow but a) I won’t have the car, b) Barney and George might be going to drama (can walk or cycle to that though) and c) we might have someone visiting.

I think I need to go to sleep. Now.