Summer Fun

So we've had a pretty generous helping of both good and bad events since the last post. Let's start with the bad; My little ferret Helen had a major stroke a week ago - I thought for sure I'd lost her, but she's still alive and fighting like hell to stay that way. I have to give her food and water with a syringe, as she doesn't have the necessary coordination to eat or drink by herself. Her balance is way off, so she can't walk. But her fighting spirit is in there, and she's made great improvement since that first day. I won't hazard a guess whether she'll recover fully or not, but I have to let her try.
Other bad news is that Jim's going to have to get a tooth pulled next week. It started hurting on Wednesday and we got him in to the dentist the next day. Turns out he has an abscess - so he's on antibiotics to take out the infection and once that's taken care of they'll pull the tooth. Poor little guy is handling it wonderfully.
Other brief bad news - one of my SCA friends passed away suddenly last week, my favorite wolf-dog up at Carole's is losing the use of her back legs to arthritis - which of course had to happen on my watch - and.... oh all manner of horrible things. But we survive.
The other shoe is mostly composed of hopes, rather than solid facts, but it's cheering nonetheless. We had another bite on the house, and we both think that this guy might be the one! He showed so much enthusiasm over the house and property, asked lots of questions, and stayed hanging around in the field for about fifteen minutes after the showing was officially over. When I told him that the ferret cage was removable he said, "No, leave it! It will be perfect for my bird!" So we have a pretty good feeling on this one. Cross your fingers!
Just a few days after this showing, Auntie Carol sent us word from her friend at the company Chris is hoping to work for, letting us know that they're hiring in both departments and they're interested in Chris! So he re-sent his application and we're waiting for the bosses to contact him. Exciting times!
Hm, other stuff... Chris' uncle Jeff came up from the Seattle area with his three kids, and we really loved spending time with them. It was great to get to know everybody! Hopefully we can return the visit sometime soon. I finished a new painting I'm pretty proud of (the photo washes the colors out, unfortunately), the kids are getting along, and Kirsi's talking more. Jim gave us an envelope on which he had written, "I love Kirsi/ from: Jimmy/ to: hole family" The school board did shut down Evergreen, so if we're still here Jim will be going to Valley View for first grade. Guess that's about it.