I think we both cried on the phone, at least I know I did. She was pretty shaken. I couldn't stop pacing after I got off the phone with her. It was a good conversation, but I know I threw her for a loop, because she never knew my name or anything. She didn't even know for a few months whether I was dead or alive, because the police wouldn't tell her. It was only through a mutual friend that she found out I was okay.

She apparently had a really rough time, went through depression, was put on medication, and still can't drive at night. She kept apologizing to me and I told her it was a freak accident and we definitely harbor no ill will. I was glad when the traffic report came back saying she wasn't at fault, because we didn't want the insurance to go after her; we were completely fine with leaving her out of it. She said she just kept thinking what an awful Christmas present she gave to my parents, because she thought she had killed me. She didn't see me until she saw my body flying off her car. I can't even imagine having that image stuck in my head.

She did piece together a little more of the accident for me. I presume she got the detail from the folks in the other car because she knows know them. Or it was somehow relayed to her at the scene by either the folks in the other car or the cops via the folks in the other car. Anyhow, she said I was crouching down in the middle of the road on the other lane. (That must be the distinct memory I have of petting the dog.) She said that when the other car came, it startled me and I stood up and backed into her lane right as she was coming.

She said that she's open to meeting in person. She actually hasn't gotten her van fixed and is okay with me taking a picture of it. I was worried she'd think I was morbid for wanting a picture, but she was worried I'd think she was morbid for not fixing it.

I know that I went through a lot physically, and some mentally, but I can't even imagine the mental trauma she went through, and will continue to go through.

Wow...

It's time for my yearly fundraiser. When I lived in Las Vegas, I joined the Walk to Cure Juvenile Diabetes every year for 5 years. I hadn't picked up a new cause when I moved back to California until last year, when I participated in the 2006 Relay for Life for the American Cancer Society. It's certainly a good cause, and it's one that hits home for me. My dad died of a glioblastoma brain tumor on March 6, 2002. My grandfather is a survivor of pancreatic cancer (a true rarity!). A dear friend of mine is a survivor of ovarian cancer. And most recently, my step-brother died of esophageal cancer on March 6, 2007.

The 2007 Relay for Life begins at 9am on Sept 15th and ends at 9am on Sept 16th. Each team will camp out for the entire 24 hours, and must always have at least one member on the track. Each member must only walk a total of two hours (this can be separated into half hour intervals throughout the day) - although I'm sure many will walk more.

I am asking for your support in this important cause. Money raised through the Relay for Life supports the programs of the American Cancer Society (Research, Education, and Services). I'm kicking off my own fundraising by donating $100 total - $25 each in memory of my father and step-brother and $25 each in honor of my grandfather and friend.

Any amount, big or small, is greatly appreciated. If you can't afford much, even just $5 is a big help. It all adds up. Last year, I had an official goal of $500 and an unofficial goal of $1,000. I ended up raising $785, which is more than I've ever raised in a fundraiser. I'd like to at least stay in the same ballpark as last year, so I'm setting my official goal at $750, but I still have an unofficial goal of $1,000.

If you are interested in sponsoring me, you may submit your donation online:

http://www.acsevents.org/relay/ca/lancaster/photoninja

However, if you prefer to pay by check, please contact me and I'll give you an address where you can mail it.

Thank you very much!

-Rebecca

They were so tiny and so cute. Little did we realize that would be the only time we would be able to pick them up or pet them again. At the time, we thought it would be best to put the two kittens we picked up back with their sibling. We went away for the weekend and when we returned, there was no sign of momma kitty or the kittens.

A couple weeks later, we found momma kitty and her kittens in our backyard again. This time, we saw 5 kittens! A few days or a week later, a big kitten showed up and was adopted into the family. We wonder if he was part of a previous litter. None of them would let us get near them. They would scurry off under our porch. We decided to start feeding them, hoping that we could make them people friendly and adopt them out.

I would stay outside with them when feeding them, but they were always too scared to eat while I was around. One time, we were gone for the weekend and they didn't have enough food to last the whole weekend. When we got home, we put food out and they were so hungry that they didn't mind us being out there while they ate. After that, they stopped hiding when we'd come out, but still wouldn't go near us or let us near them.

Eventually, I was able to pet momma kitty. I started to feel confident that I'd be able to catch her and get her spayed, but I got scratched and bit when trying to put her in the pet carrier. I had to go to the doctor and get a tetanus shot and be put on antibiotics for possible infection.

That weekend, I did some research on the web and contacted over 20 organizations soliciting help. One lady responded to give me the number of a local lady who traps feral cats all the time to spay/neuter and release. I called her and she made several trips out to my house to trap all 7 cats. She works with an organization called The Catherine Fund, who pays for all the spaying and neutering of feral cats.

Momma kitty was already pregnant again when they took her in, but they still did the spay. Unfortunately, we haven't seen momma kitty since the day she was brought back. Our best guess is that she popped some stitches while jumping the fence and died somewhere. This makes me very sad because she was the only one I could pet and she was really sweet. I was looking forward to having her around. For a while I would still look for her every time I went outside to feed the kittens. I'm very saddened by the loss, but I know I did the right thing in taking her in to get spayed.

A small part of me hopes she'll just show up again one day months down the road. One small bit of hope is that we found a dead rabbit in the backyard about a week after they were all fixed. When momma kitty was around, she was an excellent hunter. We kept finding rabbit parts in our back yard (skulls, legs, spines, etc.) So either momma kitty left one last offering to her kittens before taking off or the kittens (probably "big kitten") picked up the skill. That was almost two months ago though, and we haven't seen any rabbit parts since. So I guess there's hope she's still alive.

We still have all 6 kittens (her 5 and the "big kitten"), although they are getting very big now and won't be "kittens" much longer. We feed them twice and a day and give them fresh water. We've also put out a cat scratcher, a chair with pillows, and some blankets since it's getting cold. We can tell they want more than just food, but they still won't let us pet them. I've been able to touch a head or two a couple times while they're eating, and Mike was able to pet gray kitten a little bit a couple nights ago.

Here are some pictures of the kitties with the following description by Mike:

"These are neutered strays we have adopted. There are 6 of them, but only 4 are present here. Before we befriended the mother, she taught them to be afraid of people, and it's a hard habit to break when taught so young."

I am asking your support in this important cause. Money raised through the Relay for Life supports the programs of the American Cancer Society (Research, Education, and Services). I'm kicking off my own fundraising by donating $50 total - $25 in memory of my father who died of a glioblastoma brain tumor on March 6, 2002 and $25 for my dear friend who survived ovarian cancer. I may donate even more before the event.

Any amount, big or small, is greatly appreciated. If you can't afford much, even just $5 is a big help. It all adds up. Ideally, I would like to raise $1,000 all by myself (our team goal is $6,500). However, I don't want to set a goal that may be too unrealistic, so I'm still aiming high, but hoping I can surpass it by making my goal $500.

If you are interested in sponsoring me, you can submit your donation online:

http://www.kintera.org/relay/ca/lancaster/photoninja/

However, if you prefer to pay by check, contact me and I'll email you my address.

Thank you very much!

-Rebecca

On a bright note, the timing works out that I will get off my last patch the same time I go on vacation, so that's good in the sense that I won't have to deal with work while getting off of it, but
bad in the sense that it'll probably put a damper on my vacation.

One of the first questions he asked me over the phone after we got the appointment scheduled was if I was seeing him as part of a litigation process. I found that amusing. I'm guessing he wanted to know whether he was just seeing me to try to get stuff documented for a settlement of some sort or whether he was seeing me because I am sincere in my issues and want help. Theoretically, he'd provide me with the same level of treatment no matter what my answer was, but he probably just wants to know exactly what kind of case he's dealing with. I told him that I have no intention of pursuing the matter with the person who hit me.