For a smile as wide as a country sunrise
Hello everyone! I have been missing since Sunday on here which is not good, and certainly not planned. I don’t like missing days, but sometimes it can’t be helped. This week has started off rather different for Muffin and I. We have both been having health problems, a little more than usual, this week.
I finally had to take Muffin to the doctor (vet) yesterday since she was bleeding so much. She has 4 cysts on her neck that have gotten infected badly due to scratching too much. So, she got a needle and has 2 different medications I now give her at home. So far that’s going okay, kind of.

Our smoke covered lake.
Although the second medication made her run away from me and she wouldn’t come near me again for 2 hours. This is going to be interesting. Muffin is not a normal cat. I have had other cats that would do okay with things like this, medication wise that is. Muffin has this principle, touch my sore spot and I shred your arm into tiny pieces. Minor detail.
Tomorrow is my doctor appointment. Apparently a problem has been found in my latest tests, so I get to talk that over with my doctor tomorrow afternoon. Muffin and I are getting old and falling apart. Speaking of smoke. It has been terrible again this week, but then, it is right across the country now. Even Europe has some bad fires too, but they have more people than we do.

Another view of the lake.
Our fires are mostly in unpopulated areas where some 18 million acres (7,285,000 ha) has burned so far this year and 10s of thousands of people have had to evacuate their homes, with many losing their homes. Terrible having all those fires. One fire was over a million acres (405 thousand hectares) by itself, while the largest in our area of the country is around 500 thousand acres (202,000 ha).
We have had some rather large thunderstorms too. One of them knocked out power to our whole town for a while. Just when I was going to put another chapter of my story series up to read. So I had to give up that idea.

A smoky island.
Muffin won’t be doing her funnies post this week, but hopefully she will be feeling better by next week. Looks quite nice outside right now, the sun is shining, though there are clouds around too. However, it is still quite cool, only 65F (18C) and a light wind from the NW.
For me, that’s light jacket weather. Oh well. Supposed to be nicer tomorrow though. Maybe. I hope it is though. Speaking of flowers, I need to water mine again, so I better get at it before I forget. Have a great mid week everyone and God bless!
Steve and Muffin.
Β©2025 Steve McLeod.
I hope you, and Muffin, get better soon, Steve. Callie, and family, send healing vibes. πΊ
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Thanks so much Eugenia! π€πΏ
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Most welcome. π½
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Sorry to read you and Muffin are both in the wars – speedy recovery. All that smoke canβt be good for anyone.
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Yes, that smoke has been so bad this year and has bothered me a lot more than usual. Thanks so much Sheree! π€πΏ
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Just praying.β€οΈπ
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Thanks c. a., sure need it these days.
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This is not the happy blog post that I thought I would be reading. Iβm so sorry that neither you nor Muffin are feeling well. Wishing you and Muffin a speedy recovery with no complications! ππ»πΉ
P.S. Iβm back on WP after a side-hustle (digital art hobby, took up a lot of my free time) took an unexpected turn for the worst, and everyone is leaving in droves. Since I have no reason to keep uploading new designs to keep the algorithm happy, Iβm back on WordPress.
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Yep, not my usual type of blog post for sure, some days are like that. I’m sorry. We’re both having some problems at the same time, though mine is probably easier to handle, just take more medication. Providing it’s available, seems some meds are in short supply right now, including 3 of the ones that I take. Hopefully Muffin doesn’t need surgery. Thanks so much Hilary! Glad you came back to WP! A lot of people have been leaving WP in large numbers too, unfortunately. I hope you will stick around, we need good bloggers! Have a great day! ππΊ
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That stinks, I am sorry that meds are in short supply right now. The only meds I take are Advil and an anti-inflammatory supplement. Occasionally Tylenol. I have a very bad flare-up and my face feels like it’s on fire. I started getting rosacea about 3 years ago, and this is the worst that it’s ever been. Being in pain is no fun! I hope you’re able to get your meds and that you and Muffin feel better soon. Praying that Muffin doesn’t need surgery πWe love you Muffin!! #meow
Yes, I am back on WP for the long-haul (I upgraded my plan and I’m locked in, so I better use it). I find that when I pay a pretty penny for something that I’m more likely to use it, so we shall see. Today, I did a blog makeover and finished the right sidebar thing. It took 2 days to get it right and since it was loading so slowly every time I tried to edit something, it took even longer. I thought it was full-site editing that I needed, only to learn that it’s in block editor which I cannot work with…. so I’m using my retired theme yet again even though it’s so slow. I’m just grateful to have a blog at this point, honestly. Hopefully you’ll see more posts from me in the future. π₯°πΈ
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Yep, and it has to be 3 of the ones that I take, including Tylenol 3, which I need by Wednesday. There’s even a shortage of iron pills, so I only got half my prescription for those, it was all the pharmacy had. Strange that so many different pills are in short supply right now. I remember reading a bit about it on CBC. Hopefully it will be back to normal soon. I looked up that problem you have, certainly sounds painful. I had never heard of it before.
Glad that you will be posting more again Hilary. Actually, block editor isn’t so bad once you get used to it. I didn’t like it at first until I learned a few tricks to make things easier. I would like to change the look of my blog a bit, but I’m just not good with such things. A new theme is what I would like, but that is a big step. Oh well, maybe this winter…π
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I use block editor for writing blog posts, but for editing a full website I canβt figure it out, plus Iβm afraid of breaking my site trying to figure it out π I made the mistake of accidentally activating a different theme, hated it, so never again. I experimented with a few themes and Iβm not 100% content with any of them so Iβll still to my outdated blog theme. I enhanced my blog a bit by fixing the side bar and bottom widgets, so it looks more βprofessional.β I donβt even have an email for my blog and just use my personal one, so who am I to talk about it professionalism? ππ€£
Yeah, I heard about there being a shortage of meds too. Even iron? Iron is technically a supplement, and Iβm surprised thereβs a short supply of supplements too. βΉοΈ Iβm down to my last small bottle of Advil which Iβve been using instead of Tylenol. I havenβt used Tylenol 3 but itβs often more effective than normal Tylenol for pain.
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P.S. I really like your theme and I donβt think you need to change it. Itβs clean, well organized, and easy to read! π
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Thanks so much Hilary!π
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I don’t have a special email for my blog either, though I have thought about it. I know, I have tried out some themes but just can’t find one I really like. It can be hard trying to figure things out sometimes, but I also want one that is easy for people to use.
Yep, iron is just a supplement, but the one I use I get free if it’s prescribed, other types are not. But there’s a shortage of this one. Naturally. It has to be the one I use. The T3s work good most of the time, they don’t take the pain away, but they do reduce it sufficiently to help. I may need to use something stronger soon. Just one of those things, not a big deal, that’s for sure. Well, have a great day Hilary!ππΊ
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I was able to recover an old @live.com email that is apparently super rare now. If I were to switch from my personal one @hotmail.com, I would switch to that one. But thereβs no hurry for me since I donβt get a lot of blog related emails.
Btw I have your address and have been wanting to send mail. I havenβt sent any mail this year. I miss sending snail mail, just havenβt gotten around to it. π
Same here. The easier it is to use and read, the better. That makes sense – some supplements that are prescribed are often much stronger than the OTC kinds. What you could do in the meantime is take multiple iron pills to match the strength of your prescription. It should say the mg dose on the bottle. π
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For me, most of the blog related emails are ones I would prefer not to receive anyway. They are usually very negative in a personal way. But, occasionally I get a nice one.
That’s okay, I haven’t written either. I tried writing a couple of times and had a hard time reading what I wrote! Writing is becoming a lost “art” it seems and many schools don’t even teach it anymore, except to learn how to sign their name. I need to practice my handwriting!π But you might get a letter soon if the post office doesn’t go on strike again.ππ€
Yes, the pharmacist showed me which iron supplement I would need to take and how many to match what I have. I didn’t realize that my prescribed iron pills were so much stronger. Taking a few extra pills is not a problem for me. I take so many pills now that a few more wouldn’t be noticed!ππ
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I’m mostly unsubscribed to blog emails. I find that they’re often annoying and clog my email inbox. It was more for the contact form, if anything. I have mine linked to my personal email because I don’t get many emails to begin with, or at least they’re manageable for now.
That’s good to know – I will have to check my mail box more often. Apparently, I’m supposed to be getting a new driver’s license in the mail but I haven’t checked my mail box in 2 weeks. ππ As for blogging, I think I’m back (for now). I posted something new late last night explaining why I’m blogging again, and how I’m out of a side hustle. You are absolutely right that long-form writing is a lost art. It’s great for focus too (writing forces me to focus on a task long enough to create something I can be proud of sharing). π
That’s good that you’re able to match the strength! That’s something we do in the hospital, but we still have to check with the pharmacy just to make sure., since meds can vary a lot. π
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Yes, I use it for my contact form too and I have cut back on blog emails too since I can’t possibly read them all anyway.
I usually check my mail box once a week since I don’t get letters, just bills, and they’re all paid automatically anyway, so it’s not important to pick them up right away. About the only time I get real mail is at Christmas. And even that has dropped off a lot from what it used to be.
My neighbor is being noisy again this evening. She used to be quiet when she first moved in, but she has made friends with some “trouble makers” in the building and they come to her place to make noise. She calls them her drinking buddies. I finally had to complain since the noise was going on until 1:30am, now they quit around 10pm. I like your new photo! Looks like Muffin wants her bedtime snack, think I might too.ππΊ
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