The Road Taken

After a particularly long day at work yesterday, I left to come home.  I had to stop for gas.  So, I decided rather than to go back to the interstate, I would take the long way home.  I just didn’t realize how “long” it would be.  LOL…. I’m not complaining.  The drive gave me a chance to see some of the countryside and to enjoy the scenery and a cause to pause….

I decided to take 115 from Troutman to Davidson.  I was driving along, with my mind on other things.  See, I am still learning this vet stuff at work.  Just when I think I might have made it about half way, fate steps in and shows me just how much more I have to learn.  However, this time when I was called to the Principal’s office, I made it through without getting “detention”.  The whole thing went well…. I gleaned some things from the lecture I received that I could put to use.  With every opportunity, there are chances to learn if we don’t become defensive.

Anyway, I was driving along, with my mind on things from work.  I was following the person in front of me, thinking about when I would need to turn left to stay on 115 to make it to Davidson.  When the car in front of me veered left, I went with him.  It was much like you see sheep follow the leader.  It took a few minutes to realize that I had taken the “wrong” left. 

By the time I realized that I had taken the wrong left, I was on the other side of Mooresville.  I knew the road was going in the general direction of east so, I “went along for the ride”.  Before I knew it, I was out in the middle the farming community around Mooresville… It was beautiful!  The rain we have had recently had made everything especially green and verdant.  Here and there were cows and horses enjoying the early evening out in the fields before being stabled for the night.

I had no idea where the road really went since I had never been on it before.  After a while, we came to a crossroad that indicated it was highway 3 and went North/South.  I took a turn and went south in hopes of hitting another crossroad that would indicate just where Davidson was from where I was.  Still, I was enjoying the scenery and was not a bit afraid that I would not find my way home. 

Soon, I saw the name of a road that I recognized and took it heading back towards civilization.  The ride home actually took me about 45 minutes.  That is 30 minutes longer than the usual 15/20 minutes the interstate takes.  I had actually made a big square.  The time was well spent in changing my frame of mind and showing me a part of this area that I had not seen before.

The boys were busy last night.  Evidently, after I went to bed, they decided to throw a party.  When I got up this morning, things were strewn everywhere.  And, to top it off, they had been in the plants and had spread dirt and debris all over the floor.  Of course each of them was busy trying to blame the other for the mess. 

I had to get out the vacuum cleaner to get up all the stuff off the carpet.  That scared them both and they went to the bedroom to hide.  I guess that is enough punishment for their misadventure.  I have a soft heart and they know it.  Both of them have tried to make nice.

The funny of the week from work….  We sent one of our vets out to look at a mini horse that had been limping for about a week.  The owner stated that the horse seemed to have a split in its front hoof.  The vet showed up at the appropriate time.  The owner had not coralled the horse for examination.  So, they chased the horse for about 30minutes trying to subdue it in order for the vet to give it an exam.  Notice I said chased….They never caught the horse.  It has never had a halter or a rope put on it.  So, it was not in the mood to be tied up for an exam.  Guess it was not lame…. I just do not see how a mini horse could outrun three people and not get cornered.  I just wish I had been there to see the rodeo!

This, That and The Other

For all of you who haven’t figured it out yet, I am going through a separation.  That means basically, that I have ups and downs and some inbetweens.  Moving from a 31 acre piece of land to a 600 square foot one bedroom apartment is not easy.  Not because I have too much furniture to put in the space but because I miss the land the house and mostly the dog.  (Sounds like the beginning of a country song, doesn’t it?  LOL)  Really, I miss sitting on my porch and hearing all the birds and frogs singing with my faithful mutt by my side. 

This past week, I had to go to the Dentist to have a tooth prepped for a crown.  I warned him that I metabolize the pain medicine quickly.  He told me not to worry and he really did take good care of me.  Except….the temporary fell off.  Not once but twice.  After the second time, I decided to leave it off until the real crown is in place.  The Dentist said I could if the tooth was not too painful from hot and cold.

The “boys” are fine.  I woke up the other night and found one of my bras in bed with me.  MoJoe had brought it to me out of the laundry basket.  He brings me lots of things.  That is the silliest one yet.  I can’t quite picture how he got it out the laundry and up on the bed without tripping himself up. 

They both come to me and want me to rub and love up on them.  Seems like all animals need contact and love.  They are sweet and funny to watch.  Right now, is nap time.  Usually, they are running around like maniacs.  Sumo wrestling is their latest sport, along with some smooth smack down moves. 

I got to see RangerDog this past week too.  He was really happy to see me.  I got to sit on the porch and have him sit in my lap.  He misses my loving up on him very much.  Don’t think Mr. Greenhouse gives him the time of day.  So, when I come over, I try to hug and love on him as much as I can.  I come home smelling like him.  I love it bu the boys don’t like the smell of “dog”.

Still working for the Vet.  Still learning a lot.  We still get weird calls.  I find them amusing.  We neutered two potbelly pigs this past week at the office.  They were 8 weeks old and were brought in in the same cage.  When the door was opened to extract one of the piglets, the other made a run for it.  He came flying out into the office area and it was a scene from a greased pig race at the rodeo.  The pig was squealing and people were scrambling to get it before it got out the door.  Do you have a picture of that in your mind?  It was really funny! 

Afterwards, the owner of the pigs gave them each a cookie.  Let me tell you if someone did that type of operation to me, they would have to give me more than a cookie to calm me down….  LOL

My counselor asked me if I was ready to date yet….I almost jumped out of my skin!   That really scared me.  She said, that I have to corral those “people” in my head that might cause “panic” and realize I need contact with the human race just like anyone else.  After all, it would only be for coffee or dinner or a movie….  Yeah Right…..  What do you think?

Blessed Live Vs Charmed Life

I know we have all heard both terms when we meet someone who seems to be very lucky.  Let me tell you though, there is a difference between having a blessed life and havind a charmed one.  I will agree there are many simularities between the two.  The difference?  No one ever said a blessed life would be and easy life.

The sermon today was about God giving us the gift of blessing our lives and how we are to extoll Him at all times no matter what.  There is also a passage or two in the Bible that says that we should rejoice in our sufferings because that means that God is, in the term of The Shack “especially fond of us’.

I do lead a blessed life.  I know that the hand of God is at work constantly in my life.  I don’t have it easy and I don’t take what I have for granted.  Some times, I have to sit back and look at where I was and where I am to realize the blessings that have occurred in my life.  They are there.  Plain as day.  I just have to think about it and I can see God’s work and His loving protection of me.

I would guess that my many members of my family would agree that they have led blessed lives.  Many of them have had harships and sorrows along the way.  Still yet, they found time to rejoice and praise the Lord for holding them fast during the especially rough times.

That being said, there are times when we go through unnecessary suffering.  Those times, God uses the instance to maybe discipline us.  Other times, the suffering helps us to grow stronger and to be able to help others along the way.  That is when God blesses our life.

I can tell you beyond a shaddow of a doubt that I would not be where I am today without having to go through some of the roughest parts of my life.  I would never know the wonderful people who are now my dearest friends and support group if I had not suffered through some really hard and awful times. 

Next time you are having a really hard time of it….Think about whether God is blessing you or teaching you or both.  But….never hesitate to rejoice when you come out on the other side!

Boys will be boys.

I don’t think I actually understood that phrase until I got these two furry things.  I feel that there must actually be something to the above.  I have seem “human” little boys act in ways other than “human” little girls did.  And, I attributed it to genetics and to “monkey see, monkey do”.  Meaning that other boys picked up their aggressiveness and daredevilishness (my own word) from others in role playing. 

However, now, I am convinced there must be something more to it.  Why?  Well, because my two “male” cats don’t have role models and they are acting rather “maleish”.  Meaning they tear around the house, running at breakneck speeds, jump from the cat tower onto each other, and in other ways too numerous to count act like little tasmanian devils.

I know that all cats from instinct must hone their hunting skills.  And, that means they have to practice on each other.  These two seem to be particularly agressive.  What starts out as play some times ends up being quite serious.  (Like two little boys who start out playing and end up fighting tooth and nail.)

Their ears go back.  They begin circling each other with tails twitching.  Each one waiting for the other to make a move.  Then….BOOM!  They are rolling and tumbling all over the place.  Then, just as quickly they are up and running over anything and everything in their way.  Nothing is sacred or safe when they get in combat mode.

They have also developed a rather annoying habit of boxing with the springy door stops in the apartment.  It is like they are practicing on a boxing dummy.  This goes on all hours of the night.  You can imagine that I don’t get much sleep!

They say the average cat sleeps 16 hours a day.  Must be the 16 hours that I am away from the apartment because they are at full tilt when I am here.  Their latest escapade was to open the pantry door, which did not latch the last time I got something out, drag out the unopened bag of cat food and proceed to open it up for me just in case I did forgot to feed them.  They actually drug it out of the pantry and out of my line of sight to perform this delicate operation.

The Poor Pitiful Me’s

Linda Ronstandt sang Poor, Poor Pitiful Me.  And on Hee Haw they had a song called Gloom, Dispair and Agony on me. 

I have been in a funk for about a week now.  So the above songs keep rolling around in my head.  Of course, I am no different from anyone else.  We all get a case of the poor pitiful me’s every so often.  But, this one seems to be hanging on.  My grandma would say that the Devil had a toe hold and was not going to let go. 

What’s wrong?  Well, I have to have a crown put on a tooth and I don’t know where the money is coming from.  I am barely making ends meet now.  I also need to have the oil changed and the radiator flushed and the car inspected.  I have to pay half of an appraisal fee to get the house and the property appraised.  Yada, Yada, Yada.

Add to all that the fact that last week, I could not seem to do anything right at work.  Seems like every day I was in the principal’s office for some thing or another.  I need to be more professiona, I chose the wrong medical test (that one cost me 2 hours pay), I talked too long to a customer, I did not get enough information about an injury.  You name it, I could not do it right last week.

That scares me because I need this job.  My soon to be Ex is not forthcoming at all with any funds to live on.  So, I am having to try and make ends meet with what I make with my part-time job.  I either need more hours or a raise and I can’t seem to get anything right.

So, then all this stuff starts running around in my head.  I get worried when I should just get on my knees.  I know that God will provide.  Now that does not mean I can just sit still and expect things to come to me.  I have to do my share of the work too.  But, God will provide.  I just need to leave it on his to-do list and things will work themselves out.

I know things will be better soon.  I just need to keep plugging along.  And, that pint of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream helped a little bit too!  Now, I have to go out and work that off!  LOL

Favorite Thing

As I sit here watching the cats, I am being amused by MoJoe and his antics with his favorit toy.  Rather than choose one of the balls that McGyver fetches ever so readily, he has chosen one of the mice toys.

Right now, he is flipping and tossing it in the air.  He is doing and intricate dance with many moves.  He is pure poetry in motion.  And, he is enjoying every minute of his scampering and capering.  All that is on his mind is play….

McGyver, too, is mesmerized by MoJoe and his “hunting dance”.  Rather than jumping in the middle and taking the mouse, he is watching his sibling enjoy the thrill of catching and throwing the mouse.

MoJoe has even taken to bringing the mouse into the bed at night.  Sometimes he wakes me up with his cavorting.  When he does, I take the mouse and throw it out the room.  MoJoe scampers off the bed to retrieve his prize.

Often when I am making the bed in the morning, I will find the mouse tucked under the other pillow on the bed, a hidden treasure for another time.

This morning, I was scanning my emails when I felt a nudge on my elbow.  MoJoe has a way of doing that when he wants to get some attention or to get into my lap.  I spoke to him not taking my eyes off the screen.  He kept nudging  me until I looked down.  There is was, his beloved mouse.  He had brought it to me.

McGyver will play fetch if I initiate the game.  MoJoe brought the mouse to me, initiating the game of throw.  Both know that they can engage me in a game.  However, they both go at it differently.  They both shake with excitement when I throw things for them to hunt and catch. 

I am not really sure what McGyver’s favorite thing is.  He plays with everything.  He is not too fond of the mice.  Why?  They don’t roll.  If he bats them, they just move and plop again.  Balls go rolling about.

My favorite thing.  Right now?  Well, it is waking up in the night with both my boys suggled beside me in the bed.  It gives me a sense of safety and security.  It makes me feel good that they want to be with me.

My least favorite?  Well, that would be when they decide that it’s time to get up and feed them.  NOW!!!!!

Bed or Trampoline?

These days, I am part of the traveling daredevil show for McGyver and MoJoe.  They try out all their new tricks on me before being ready to go on the road with them.  Lately, they have been performing extrordinary feats on the trampoline.  (Well, I call it a bed.  They think otherwise.)

About 3:00 or 4:00 in the morning, the boys start to warm up for their early morning practice.  First, they practice their jumps and landings from the trampoline to the floor.  This goes on for an hour or two before they feel they have mastered their landings.

Later, they practice jumping from the trampoline to dizzying hights.  First it is to the dresser.  Then, it is to the amoire.  The other members of the audience are on the armoire.  There are three bunnies and a bear.  The moma bunny has on Mardi Gras necklaces which the cats try to retrieve when they do their jump to the armoire.

The most important part is the jump down from the armoire.  They have to “stick” that landing or they might fall off the trampoline (bed) and onto the floor. 

If I happen to fall asleep during a part of the “show” they make sure the landings or the take offs are especially bouncy.  Afterall, they do need a cheering section.  And, after they have worked out, they do need a hearty breakfast.  So, of course, I have to get up and eat with them every morning.

After the trampoline, well there is a hearty breakfast.  Then, they have to work that off.  So, they do wind sprints around the apartment.  Occasionally, they stop and wrestle to practice new holds they have been working on.  Then there is strength training by raising and lowering the mini blinds in the bay window over the window seat.

There is also the climbing of the “tower of terror”.  They always facinate me with the walk across the high heights of the entertainment center.  The best is the climb to the top of the cabinets where one can survey the whole apartment.  After that, the morning nap.

By the way, I need to ask the question…. What is it about my undergarments?  First the dog would take my panties.  Now the cats take my bras.  They find them where ever I put them and drag them across the floor.  They like to do that after I get out the shower and am trying to get dressed.  I don’t know if they are trying to include me in the act or trying to get my attention.