Phil Collins Is 'Not Dead Yet'

Order HERE.

Bittersweet seeing this cover -- and title -- of the upcoming memoir by my late friend Larry Brickman's all-time favorite artist. I named my cat after my friend who was taken from us way too soon so that my furry friend should meet a similar fate doubly crushed me. As I told Larry's mother when I asked her if it was OK to name my new pet after him, "I want to name the kitten Larry because I just can't bear to not have a Larry in my life." (I still can't.) Wish they were both here now -- Larry to lie on my chest and the older Larry to surprise with a copy of this new book. :-(

In Paris with the first Larry in my life, circa 2001.

UPDATE:

Look what came in the mail today -- a tree was planted in Israel in Larry's memory today, courtesy of my old friend/roommate Paul Samson. Incredibly sweet gesture. xo

Special Delivery

Not sure what is making me bawl more -- that Larry's vet sent these beautiful flowers to us, or thinking about how much fun the little guy would have had destroying them, Mutual of Omaha's "Wild Kingdom"-style ...

Song of the Day: 'The Lovecats' by The Cure

Going through albums of photos of my little love cat and smiling from ear to ear remembering all of the adorable things he did -- like when we finally got him a new litter box, only he wouldn't let us set it up for a few days because he liked hanging out in it too much on the kitchen table, where he discovered it 10 seconds after we got home. :-)

The World Just Got a Little Less Cute

We said goodbye to Larry yesterday. The little guy was truly one of a kind -- and I loved him very much. :-(

The Eyes of Larry Walsh

#Miralax

You're looking at the face of a kitty who had his first bowel movement since Saturday. (I think I was more relieved than he was!) Larry also had another belly drain on Tuesday and has been holding his own since, but is down from 16 pounds in November to 11.8 pounds now, which supports the doctors' theory that there is a very serious underlying condition behind his chylothorax. The drains are draining my bank account -- your donations have been incredibly helpful! -- but we plan to keep him comfortable until he tells us otherwise. xo

More info HERE.

Larry Says #WearOrange

And not just because it's laundry day!

From HERE.

The Larry Sanders Show

From HERE.

Larry likes the box almost as much as I like the Sanders Bumpy Cake that came in it from my Detroit best friend, Mark, for my upcoming birthday (June 8)! As for the little guy's health, we're kind of in a holding pattern right now as he is doing reasonably well at the moment after some very dark periods. The next step would be performing a CT scan, thoracoscopy and/or a pericardiectomy, none of which is likely to help -- but all of which would be incredibly taxing on his now-frail body. Each time he gets the fluid tapped, it takes him longer to rebound. It was so bad the last two times that we actually had made appointments to have him put down in recent weeks, but each time he overheard us discussing it he suddenly rebounded(!) -- which has convinced us that sedation is his worst enemy. With that in mind, we've decided putting him under general anesthesia for what the doctor thinks will be exploratory at best and deadly at worst is not worth it, at least not right now. Although he's running at about 25%, he is acting an awful lot like his old cute self -- eating, hanging out with us again and purring up a storm -- and seems as happy as he can be given the circumstances, which for those who are not up-to-date is most likely a slower-moving cancer (mesothelioma is their best guess as it is hard to detect without an invasive biopsy). Everything could change on a dime, but for now we're just enjoying every second we have with him as we feel like he is on his eighth life. xo

Larry On

Thanks to everyone who has inquired about Larry. Specialist at Animal Medical Center ran some more tests and had some interesting theories about what is ailing my little guy, but still nothing definitive. (An abnormality of the pericardium or mesothelioma -- which occurs spntaneously in cats, unrelated to asbestos -- have been hypothesized.) Larry has slowed down enormously, which has given us pause about even pursuing this further -- but then he will bounce back again and convince us to carry on. Will let you know where we go from here. The CT scan remains on the table, so donations are still greatly appreciated. xo

Learn more HERE

Mr. Pink Nose Rides Again!

Uber kitty

Larry saw a renowned internist at Animal Medical Center today, something that would not have been possible without so many kind donations to his GoFundMe campaign. Still processing everything that the doctor told us, but the good news for now is that my baby is back home where he belongs after getting a huge amount of fluid drained from his stomach and chest cavity. I had to get to work, but Damian tells me when the little guy got in the door, he immediately used the liter box, chowed down on his food and starting purring up a storm! -- xo

More info TK. 

From HERE.

Poor Larry got busted lying about his age ...

Hoping Fur a Miracle

Although we are taking it day by day, I'm happy to report that little Larry had a pretty good weekend -- which is noteworthy given that about a week ago we had booked a tentative appointment for "humane euthanasia" when it appeared he was rapidly deteriorating. Not only was he able to lie in his favorite (adorable) pretzel position without coughing/wheezing ...

he was also on high alert for pigeons ...

and found a comfy place to hang out after we comfort fed ourselves. (Adorable!) Many weeks ago I had tried to get Larry in to see a doctor at Animal Medical Center known to be "the best" in the business only to find out there was a six-week wait, which seemed to be too far out of reach. Turns out his appointment was/is for this Friday -- so barring anything catastrophic this week, it looks like we may be taking him in to see Dr. Palma after all. Although we've been told there isn't anything else that can be done for Larry -- and he does, indeed, seem to be slowing down -- I'm still hoping we can get a definitive diagnosis so we can at the very least start the right palliative care, if not suddenly have an explanation for why his cavities keep filling with lymphatic fluid. A huge thank-you to everyone who has contributed to Larry's medical fund so far -- I will, of course, keep you posted on any updates. Despite the odds, I still haven't given up on the little guy!

Learn more about my critter's plight HERE.

UPDATE:

After seemingly being too tender to be touched all weekend, look who jumped into bed this morning for some cuddle time? Needless to say, this week has started out on a very high note! xo

Throwback Thursday

Throwing back to 2007, before Larry was an oversize package!

Learn more about my little guy's health crisis HERE.

This Woman's Work

By the grace of God, the fluid has only returned to Larry's belly -- rather than also being in his chest cavity -- which has made breathing normal for an entire week, something he hasn't been able to do for months. (The stomach fluid is obviously incredibly bad news -- and the chest could change on a dime -- but it's still been nice that he can be comfortable.) Still awaiting some test results, but have reached out to the Animal Medical Center for a(nother) "second" opinion (more like fourth). I may be delusional at this point, but just look at him. I know he's got a little life in him yet. xo

More info HERE.

Cat as Cat Can

One of the most difficult things about Larry's health crisis is not knowing from one moment to the next if "the end" might happen at any moment -- and yesterday was particularly scary. I came home from work and when he jumped down from his perch to greet me -- per usual -- he completely lost his equilibrium, all but falling down on his side. He then stumbled into the bedroom, and spent the better part of the evening in a dark corner under my desk, a place he's never hung out before. (When Troy was ready to say goodbye to us, he hid under my bed.) Just when I was ready to sign Larry's death certificate, he surprised us when we were in the kitchen doing dishes and paying bills and joined us, as you can see above, which made me the happiest man in New York City! To learn more about his situation, click HERE.

How Much Is That Kitty in the Window?

Happy to report that Larry had a good weekend, even getting some sun in the kitchen. The donations we've received so far have been incredibly generous -- a huge thanks to everyone! -- and have enabled us to run some additional tests to see if we can save my little guy. We hope to learn more this week. For more information, please click HERE.

Larry's a Lover -- and a Fighter

OK, I'm pretty much a cat lady these days. Poor Larry endured five hours under heavy sedation Wednesday for yet another series of tests and everything still came back normal -- except his ability to breathe. Learn more about my little buddy's plight HERE.

Simply the chest

Larry travels in style ...

Cat's Got My Tongue

Wow, I'm nearly speechless. My fundraising campaign to solve Larry's medical mystery has already reached 50 percent of the goal in just 24 hours, which I must tell you has made me almost as weepy as not being able to figure out how to make my little buddy better. As you can see from these recent photos, despite being given a virtual death sentence over the weekend, Larry is playful as ever -- look at those razor-sharp eyes! -- but is still in dire need of a proper diagnosis if there is any chance he can be saved. Please know that I appreciate every dollar that's been donated -- many from people I've never even met -- and also that I completely understand if you have more pressing obligations. (This was set up on a lark born out of desperation.) But if you're interested in making a donation -- or if you're just Larrycurious -- please click HERE. 

The Trouble With Larry

Donate HERE.

   The latest vet update on Larry is not good, so I've done something I never thought I would. Please have a look at my GoFundMe and donate if you can. I figure if Bernie can buy the world on donations of less than $27, maybe we can get to the bottom of what is killing my little guy. xo 

Helping Damian with his thesis.

My Idiopathic Kitty

Wanted to say thanks to everyone who contacted me to wish Larry well -- and for all the tips, articles and medical recommendations. He's begun his new low(er)-fat diet along with the rutin supplement the doctor prescribed. The vet said it will be a month or so before we know if his case is receptive to this treatment, but I can say he has been slightly better than he was before he had the fluid drained from around his lungs. Will keep you posted -- and thanks again! xo

On Cloud Nine (Lives)!

A little Larry news for you. The past six months he's been having some wheezing/coughing fits that I had originally thought were hairballs. When the remedy did no good, I hunted around online and started to think he had asthma. The X-rays and vets agreed, so he began taking steroids and a bronchodilator -- only that didn't seem to help, and sometimes seemed to make it worse. So late last week we took him into the vet yet again, and this time they found his lungs were surrounded with fluid (a condition called pleural effusion), which the vet said was all but certainly the result of late-stage heart disease or cancer. Spent the weekend in deep mourning -- with him gasping for air and seemingly on his death bed, and Damian and me in and out of tears -- before getting a call that the analysis of his fluid showed he had chylothorax, a type of pleural effusion that is indeed frequently associated with heart failure and cancer but can also be from an infection or an undetermined cause (idiopathic). Suddenly there was hope. (Larry's only 8.) On Monday, we visited a wonderful cardiologist in Hell's Kitchen. And after having a great lunch at Bacon Bar, we returned to the pet clinic to find out his heart is actually in great shape and that he doesn't seem to have any kind of infection, so his chylothorax was indeed idiopathic. This was GREAT news -- and expensive news at that! -- but now we are in the next phase of the situation in that he is still wheezing (like he's dying) and we're treating something that has no known "cause." In short: We are THRILLED that he is not dying, but we are so upset that we can't seem to help him get better. Wondering if any of you have had dogs or cats with idiopathic hylothorax and what kind of luck you had treating it. The vet is preparing instructions for a low-fat diet and giving him a homeopathic supplement called rutin. I'm eager to start, but have already read that this isn't always successful -- and if Larry is anything like me, the straightforward solution won't "work" on him! 

Hunting for Deductions

Larry is always eager to help at tax time.