Attack of the cat toys!

Today  fun filled carpentry day. With three cats steps to be assembled and two more cat accessories on the way, I had my work cut out for me. We couldn't decide where to put the cat steps, especially because we didn't know where the cat tree was going to be installed, so we decided to get some more laundry out of the way and then work on her short stories.

Not to give too much away, but the world of aviation is exciting and scandalous! I ate every word of her story up. Of course, some of it was fiction, well, the names at least, but none-the-less it was intriguing. I'm excited to be working on this project with her. She has put her trust in me, with my background in communication, to help her edit her works. It started off as a memoir for her granddaughter, now it is a handful of short stories that she hopes to publish. From what I have read, it could become a best seller in the right hands.

While chatting about her stories, the delivery person came, this time knocking on the door, and I took out my tool belt. (Figuratively, although it would be cool to have an actual tool belt.) With drill in one hand and the wonderful wrench provided by the company in the other, I put together the first of three cat steps that will allow the kitties to climb up the walls to and hang out on the ledges in the kitchen and living room.

After 15 minutes of fiddling with everything, I got the first peg in the wall. I'm handy, but I will not be starting a cat accessory installation company anytime soon. After figuring out how not to freak out a bit once I squeezed the trigger on the drill, the rest was a breeze. 

We put one of the cats on the new step to see if he would climb onto the ledge. Success! But, trying to get him down was another thing. He figured out how to jump from ledge to ledge, only to get scared and refuse to go back the way he came. With the lure of chicken jerky and strategic climbing of ladders, chairs and counters, we got him down in a record half an hour. 

After that excitement, the animal care taker showed up and I realized how late it was. Syd told me to go home and get some rest, for tomorrow I get to install the rest of the cat's new toys. I hope no one gets stuck on the ledge tonight. I guess I will find out tomorrow. 

They didn't even knock

The rain hit the windows as Syd, four dogs, two cats and I sat in the office going through receipts and paperwork, all while keeping a sharp eye on the window waiting for the delivery person to drop off my project for the day, building cat steps.

It's nice to know that someone else in this world functions in the same kind of organized chaos that I do, piles of paperwork and box full of receipts littered her desk. We searched through them, it really was (not to sound too cliche) like searching for a needle in a haystack. 

With that project finished and no sign of the delivery person, we moved on to laundry. Even the most mundane of tasks becomes entertaining with Syd. I never cease to be amazed by her. At age 40 she became a pilot, overcoming a two huge milestones at once. She stood at the brink of being over the hill and started her life anew. The strength this woman has is infectious. I leave her house everyday believing I can take on the world. 

After laundry, and still no hint that the delivery person had come, we decided to take on her closet. A huge feat. The sliding door closet is filled to the brim with everything from shoes, purses, clothes, hats and scarves. This thing would make any fashionista drool. 

In the midst of trying to organize the closet, nature called and I had to let the herd outside. When I opened the door, and there, at the foot of the stairs, were the packages we had been patiently waiting for for three hours. Syd was tired, and aching a bit, so we decided to save the carpentry adventure for tomorrow. I just hope I don't mess up her house too badly. 

I couldn't even imagine

Today, while driving Miss Daisy around in the Hummer, Syd told me how she got injured and how she went from a sports car kind of girl to driving a tank. 

Years ago she and her husband were in a horrible accident. A young man had hit the end of their car so hard that it went airborne and upon its decent, the cars collided again. Somewhere during this time, Syd's seat was loosened from its tracks. She was left strapped in the seat unable to stop it from smacking into the interior walls of the car. She was free flying inside her own vehicle. 

As I hear her speak about her accident, I pay attention to my own driving, making sure to go slowly and check all my mirrors. With all her injuries: hip, knee, back, shoulder, etc, I could only imagine the therapy needed to recover from a traumatic experience such as that.Not only months of physical therapy, but mental therapy as well. I would be broken after something like that. Her strength amazes me and inspires me.

After the accident, Syd was no longer able to be a pilot, the constant shuffling of bags and other physical demands of the job were just too much for her to handle, so she had to retire. 

When she speeks to me about her days as a pilot, the things she had to go through, how there were few female pilots and how the good ol' boys saw them as a joke, there is this look in her eyes. I cannot tell if it is pain or maybe longing. I couldn't even imagine being on top of the world, literally, then being permanently grounded and struggling to regain motor functions. 

Yet Syd is happy to tell her tales, and even wants to write a book about her experience. I am one of the lucky few that has gotten to read some of her works and was asked to edit them as I see fit. So there are 3 stories in my hands that I must mark with my favorite red pen tonight! 

This woman never ceases to amaze me, I learn something new about her or from her everyday. I'm truly enjoying my time with her and cannot wait to see what tomorrow brings! 

First day on the job

The morning started out with a bang. Literally, the AC man had come to replace the unit on renters’ side of the duplex and was making too much noise for me to sleep. Thank goodnesss, because it was already a quarter to 9 and I had to be at work at ten.

Grumpily crawling out from my sheets, I emerged from my bedroom and found my Mom in the kitchen. She was already blabbing my ear off about something and all I could think about was my morning caffeine rush. Too hot for coffee, stupid South Florida, so I grabbed a Diet Coke and went back to the peace and quiet of my room to get ready.

I threw on a pair of jeans and a cute little tank top, thinking that today was going to be easy. Run some errands, feed the animals, chat and clean a little then back home. I emerged again a new person, ready and willing to take on the world. I said goodbye to Mom, hopped in my car, came a little too close for comfort to hitting the AC man’s truck parked inconveniently in the middle of the driveway, and took off.

I pulled up to the beautiful gated house, parked in the grass and left the gate open upon my entry as instructed by Syd. I got to the door and already could hear the dogs barking from the other side. I opened it just enough to squeeze in, but as soon as I set one foot in the door four dogs pushed past me and bee-lined for the streets. Thank goodness none of the cats got out. That would be all I needed.

The portly Beagle was huffing and puffing behind the others. By the time I got to the gate he had lost his ambition and lay down to catch his breath. At least one dog was safe.

Big Man, my nick name for the Anatolian Shepherd; Pippy, the other Beagle and Little Guy, a Shiba Inu, were frolicking down the street. First one I grabbed was Pippy, she was easily scooped up smelling one of the neighbor's flowers. (At least she knows to stop and smell the roses, even when she's being chased.) Acting as a bugle, she sounded the alarm for the others to come back. Thank goodness for the howl of a Beagle. 

Little Guy came running up within seconds and slipped right through the gate. Crafty little pup, I have to remember to keep and eye on him. Big Man came not too long after, galloping like a horse he flew right past me. We played a horrible game of "catch me if you can" as he ran back and forth on the outside of the gate. Finally, exhausted, hot and on the verge of tears, he walked right up to me with that puppy face that can melt the heart of the iciest person on earth, and allowed me to walk him into the gate. 

Syd met me in the driveway and I apologized profusely. Thank goodness shes one cool lady. With her forgiveness and about a gallon of water, I was feeling ready to take whatever she could throw me. Even driving the Hummer.

The rest of the day went smoothly and just like I thought. We ran some errands, got to know each other and planned out the next day's activities. I think I'm going to like working for Syd. I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings. Note to self, wear tennis shoes.

New job!

I have been hired to be Syd’s personal assistant while her husband, the mystery man I heard so much about during our first meeting, is teaching in Seattle. Her condition is not getting any better and she needs someone around to help her out with daily tasks. Basically, I am her legs. Her condition has not gotten any better, poor thing, and she cannot be up for long periods of time.

How exactly do you go about being a person’s legs? I don’t know for sure, but the job requirements included getting along with all the animals and being able to drive a Hummer. At 5’3’’ on a good day, the second task may be a little harder, but I think I can manage. If I get a booster seat. 

Things just got interesting

One of my Mother’s acquaintances called to see if she could help out while her husband was away. They had bonded over the experience of getting their hips replaced and my Mother had done some odd jobs for her before. I guess I should say that Mom is a CNA (certified nurse’s assistant) and cares for people in the area through a group called Granny Nannies. My mother, loving the idea of getting out of the house and giving me something to do other than tear her yard apart and sweep her floors, offered me up as a replacement.

Next thing I knew, we were at the gate of a beautiful house and my Mother was warning me about the animals on the other side, five cats and four dogs, one twice the size of me. Fearless, I walked up the drive with Mom scooting her walker behind me, and knocked on the door. I heard the barking instantly, deep angry barks, like a guard dog was waiting on the other side to rip me limb from limb.

The door opened, and there was Syd, she and Mom had matching walkers complete with tennis ball decorations, trying to hold back this monster of a dog. I introduced myself and allowed the miniature pony to bark my ears off and smell me up and down, all while using the eyes in the back of my head to make sure Mom wasn’t going to get trampled. After getting gigantor’s approval, we walked into the house and I immediately got to work cleaning up the massive amounts of cat and dog hair rolling around like tumble weeds on the floor.

An hour later, the floors were clean and I joined the “hippy ladies” on the couch to chat. After some small talk, Mom and I headed home. The 20 minute car ride consisted of Mom and I trying to recall the names of all the animals and figure out what breed they were. I was instantly fascinated by this Syd, and cannot help but conjure up some background story of how she got injured, why she moved from California to Ft. Misery and where she got all those animals. 

Investigations start now. I guess Cape Coma isn't going to be too bad after all. Time to sweep the floors, again. 

New beginnings

Welcome to my life as a college graduate. I have moved from my perfect little apartment in St. Augustine, Florida to my Mother’s house in Cape Coral, Florida. It’s a temporary home, hopefully, while we both get on our feet.

She recently had her hip replaced due to the recall of a defective implant. Her original accident which led to her first replacement occurred years ago while I was living with her and obtaining my Associate’s Degree. Let me tell you, those are two things I do not want to relive.

So here I am, in Cape Coma (a nickname I have lovingly bestowed upon this area right next to Ft. Myers aka Ft. Misery) trying to figure out my next move and taking care of my Mother. She is not one to be cooped up in the house. Her stir craziness has rubbed off on me in the most horrible way. Needless to say, we drive each other crazy. It'll do for now. That is, if we can survive each other.