About two weeks ago I was on the floor petting Java. There he was, lying on his back, all four legs up in the air, when I noticed a large mass in his abdomen, just beneath the rib cage. He's a lumpy old man full of little, harmless tumors called lipomas. This one felt very different. It was larger than any of the others and it appeared to be in his abdomen, not on it. Not good.

Last Friday we saw our vet who took blood, urine and x-rays. The vet confirmed that there is a large mass of unknown origin in his abdomen and referred us to a specialty clinic for a more thorough diagnosis. Of course, all I could think of is that he has a terminal disease or something that would reduce his quality of life, making last weekend quite unhappy in our house.

On Tuesday we went to the vet at Georgia Veterinary Specialists. After more blood work, an ultrasound and aspirating the lump, it turns out to be nothing more than another lipoma. Cheers all around, Java is a healthy old man after all! And now he has a very expensive funny haircut - shaved belly with very uneven edges - to show off to all the ladies...

Java, its time for you to get a job and start paying some of the bills around here! Maybe you can tour with the Black Eyed Peas singing about your lumps. ("My lumps, my lumps, my big ol' fatty lumps... check it out!")