Ravings of a Textual Deviant

For some time now, I’ve had it in my head to get myself a cat, partly because Minx seems to have been lonely and partly because, after 35 years of being pet-free (fish don’t count; they’re decor) I’m ready.

I hied myself out to the Land Beyond the Airport, to a home where a very nice lady fosters cats from the local humane society. She had nine in a large enclosure, so I went in and sat down. It didn’t take long for half a dozen to converge upon me, all sniffing and rubbing my ankles, and competing for lap space. One little guy was just too cute and cuddly to pass up, and I ended up taking him home with me.

Mags (short for Magnolia) is a gray and creme tiger kitty, just about a year old and about half Minx’s size. There’s been a little mutual hissing, and Mags is hiding out a lot, but he did consent to emerge for a vigorous round of petting this evening.

I sense more than a few unbearably-cute-cat posts in the Reading Public’s future.

My air-conditioning has been out all weekend, and not wanting to pay holiday-weekend repair rates, New Housemate and I stuck it out. My house has many fine qualities, but “built for good air circulation” sure isn’t one of them. I was so relieved when I called the repair company and was told I’d get a call after 7:00 AM today to let me know when they’d be there.

Well, 9:00 AM rolled around and I hadn’t heard a peep, so I checked in. Turns out that the company’s answering service booked 150 appointments on today’s calendar, and there was simply no way they’d be able to get to my house before 2:00 PM tomorrow. Not physically possible, the nice man on the phone apologized.

So, here I am looking for a silver lining. And I found one.

At least the toilet seats aren’t cold.

Thanks (I think) to Ari for pointing me to these sites, which in turn led me here. There really is a site for everything.

No, but my master bathroom is—a brilliant turquoise with white trim. New Housemate is painting the master suite for me, and I am all a-tingle with anticipation of the re-decoration. The bedroom will have one turquoise accent wall, and the rest of the room will be a pale ivory with white trim. I have a new light fixture in the bathroom (brushed nickel and alabaster glass), new cabinet and door hardware (brushed nickel), new curtains (ivory, as the window’s in proximity to the accent wall), new towels (turquoise and lime green), a new bathmat (lime green), new bed linens (turquoise and lime green), and new-to-me dressers and a nightstand that’ll be painted turquoise and pale ivory, respectively. I’m planning to do a couple of custom shades for the bedside lamps. I’m cleaning and purging the contents of drawers and cabinets. I’m going to have the carpet cleaned. And when it’s all done, I’m going to have exactly what I want.

Did I mention that I’m all a-tingle with anticipation?

New Housemate found out a couple of days ago that a longtime friend is going to be in town for the weekend, and volunteered to pick her up from the airport.

Me: You know it’s going to be a zoo.
NH: It’s an airport; they usually are.
Me: It’s Race Weekend. [Local ordinances require initial capitals]
NH: Oh, &%$#.

At work this morning, the fire alarm—”not a drill”—went off just as I stood up to go to the ladies’ room.

I had forgotten what it’s like to get a really good night’s sleep and wake up feeling rested, rather than less exhausted. Fortunately, I seem to be moving in that direction. Imagine the trouble I could get into fun I could have when I’m feeling 100%!

Monday, 5/15: Slept in. Unpacked, did laundry, tried to cope with chaos in house.
Tuesday, 5/16: Back to work, me. Group of Wonderful Friends helps Ed move out. (Thank you, Wonderful Friends!) 30 minutes later, Future Housemate arrives from Louisville, ready to move in. Rearranging of furniture ensues.
Wednesday, 5/17: New Housemate starts stripping wallpaper in master bath before breakfast, shampoos carpets, cleans up, and generally makes himself indispensible. (New Housemate may not be allowed to move out after he passes the bar exam.)
Thursday, 5/18: Much excitement and many meeting at work regarding new opportunities. Taught yoga; only one person showed up to class and she was 10 minutes late. New Housemate and Sean help move furniture back into areas that have had carpets cleaned.
Friday, 5/19: Less excitement and more meetings at work. Went to yoga class. New Housemate and Sean help clean up kitchen and breakfast nook. Am exhausted just watching them work.
Saturday, 5/20: Gorgeous weather! Slept in, went to yoga class, ran errands, did nails. New Housemate and Wonderful friends gently herd me outdoors so they can get ready for party. Garden party for my birthday is amazing—big hats, little sandwiches, tea, and croquet. Came in second (after and exciting comeback at the turning stake) behind Sean, who proudly proclaims “You’ve finally found a sport I’m good at. It’s a sissy sport, but I’m good at it!” Late dinner at Japanese restaurant with New Housemate, Alisa, and Kristine.
Sunday, 5/21: Slept in. Ran errands with New Housemate, including visit to Lowe’s for more bed/bath remodeling supplies. Just realized now that I completely forgot to put curtain rod on shopping list. Ed brought over my new computer and set it up; data migration planned. Wrote thank-you notes from party. Made necklaces commissioned by Amy last week. Ben’s D&D game at my house this week as a result of technical difficulties at his.

Things are indeed a-changin’, and quickly.

I spent the weekend in Louisville for my future-housemate’s law-school graduation, which was very nice, but not as much fun as the party afterwards…at least, not for me; I won’t presume to speak for the graduate.

Getting out of the house was good for both Ed and me, as Ed managed to do quite a lot of packing for his move later this week without me in his way. He has done a lot of work in a short time, and full credit to him for it. Especially as I came back with a load of Future Housemate’s assorted possessions in my car.

Tomorrow is the other part of my birthday present to myself—a four-day weekend, I’ll run a few errands, but not before I’ve slept long and late, and I’ll probably take a nap afterwards. I’m letting go of quite a stress load, and although I knew it’d be tiring, I had no idea. Things are moving ahead at full speed…but not ’til Tuesday, for me.

Today is my 35th birthday, and I’m happy to be here. Thanks very much to everyone who wrote, phoned, emailed, sent cards, and IM’ed.