Crazy - but that's how it goes

[lizblackdog]

Mum's gained enough strength from the electrolyte drip to start being irritating. That has to be good news, doesn't it?

She woke me up this morning phoning from the hospital. She wanted me to spend the afternoon at Grimmauld Place waiting for the NTL people to come and take away the cable/broadband box. If I'd had a bit more than half an hour's notice (Mum was quite sure she'd told me, but she was wrong there) and if it hadn't been brutally hot* I might have agreed to do it. As it is - sod them. I already have to go shopping for her and bring her more things and feed the cat, but I can do all that this evening. I felt guilty even as I was saying it, but fuck them. They'll just have to turn up some other time.

Took the dogs for their morning walk and ran into Spike's girlfriend Ella and her mum out in their front garden. She's tried to register at LJ but hasn't yet found a username she likes that someone doesn't already have - I hope she does, it'd be way cool to have a dog person here that I see in Real Life. Her evil cat, beautiful yellow-eyed Rio, teased my dogs by popping in and out of the bushes at the side of the house**, and he and the dogs caught me at a bad moment and pulled me over... I didn't let go of the leashes (I never do) but I have a lovely bleeding scrape all down my left arm. We told dog-related injury stories and bitched about flexi-leads and yucca plants. I love Ella, she and Spike are two of a kind and I can't wait to show pictures.

it's way too fucking hot today. I've decided to do the hospital-Grimmauld Place run in the easiest way possible, which is from here to the hospital by bus, back to Grimmauld Place to feed and pet Maisie and walk home from there. This means leaving my dogs alone here for longer than I ever have before, and I already feel guilty as hell about it, but I don't have the harness yet, Mum's doctor said this morning that she'll likely be in for several weeks. That means I need to save my strength.

just had a long phone call with sister T. she's not in a happy place. her sprog is due in a week and could appear any day now. she isn't allowed to visit the hospital, she's having trouble driving and she's in the middle of moving house.

We've decided that Maisie needs to be temporarily rehomed while Mum's in hospital. I don't think it's fair to her to be alone so much for so long - she's an affectionate cat used to lots of attention and she misses Mum terribly when she's gone. Also T. says the extra effort walking there every day is too much for me. I'm quite prepared to do it but I have to say I'll be a great deal happier if I don't have to. It'll make it easier to burn Grimmauld Place to the ground do a serious spring clean and de-junking anyway.

We've elected our sister E. to be the cat surrogate. She has a nice place in London and she quite wants a cat (she's been considering having one of our kittens) and her partner works from home and although Maisie'll have to get used to living somewhere new, at least it'll be with familiar people. This is important. Maisie's a shy cat and takes a long time to trust new people. T considered asking her in-laws to take her, but Maisie's never met them and they already have cats - Maisie's a small wussy cat and her relationships with other cats usually consist of being bullied by them.

T. asked me if I'd looked up Mum's symptoms on the 'net yet. I haven't. At the moment I'm scared of what I might find out. It's not like I can do anything about it anyway.

*anyone who tells me I don't know what hot is and it's much hotter where they are will be slapped with a wet fish and possibly defriended. I'm REALLY not in the mood.


**yes, they are indoor/outdoor cats. I don't believe that necessarily makes someone a stupid pet owner, depending on the cat and where you live - and she lives at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac where the cats are on a first-name basis with all the dogs and people who live there and the only road nearby is a dead end where nothing goes faster than 5mph. Would I let my cat out if I lived there? I don't know. I do know that she generally knows where they all are. It's another argument I'm not prepared to have in my journal today, in any case.

Comments

[cottonmanifesto.livejournal.com]

It's definitely a good sign that she's well enough to be cranky!! :)

[wychwood]

Are indoor/outdoor cats supposed to be a bad thing? All of ours always have been...

I hope your mother feels better soon! And that it cools down. It's properly warm here, today, about 16C, and my temper is already fraying around the edges.

[arkady.livejournal.com]

Bollocks to anyone who says you should keep cats indoors. Cats need access to the outdoors, and keeping one indoors all the time is cruel to them. Personally I feel that if you don't feel you can give your cat adequate outdoors access, maybe you should reconsider getting one. You wouldn't keep a dog entirely indoors; why should you do the same to a cat? Cats are perfectly capable of taking care of themselves; they're far more independant than dogs and should be treated accordingly. Hell, my cat chases foxes on a regular basis just for fun.

My cats are all indoor/outdoor cats, and I intend to keep them that way.

[gordynate.livejournal.com]

At least waiting for NTL is probably better than waiting for BT, right? :-)

[joeljenkins.livejournal.com]

Liz - I hope your mum get's better soon. I tried to convince my mum to get a journal, but thinks she would never write in it.

It's about 10C right now. *Hugs*

[(Anonymous)]

I'll have your heat. It's still quite cold here - a little too much so!

Definitely a good sign when people start getting irritable.

Have you considered some sort of prtoective padding, similar to that used by skateboarders? :D

What's wrong with yuccas?? The name alone is brilliant.

[ghost07.livejournal.com]

I don't see any reason for a cat NOT to be an indoor/outdoor cat...

The only reason mine stay indoors is that I live right next to a pet-killer road...If I ever get to that new apartment...there's a lot of fields and woods in back of it, and it's set a ways off the road...which means that once I'm sure he'll be able to find his way home, I'll let Julius go out if he wants to. After all, he's been nuetered, so it's not like he'll stray very far.

Giddy probrably won't go out...she's terrified of the outdoors...

Ever since I was small, our cats always went outside if they wanted to.

[bloolark.livejournal.com]

Hugs to your Mum and you. Get that new harness already -- good grief, they pull you over! Can't be great for your busted arm either.

(Sorry for the brief discussion of cats outside. :))

[peaceful-fox.livejournal.com]

As you can tell, I am way behind in my journal writing. :-/ I am glad your mother is doing better now. I'm glad to hear she was on an electrolyte drip.

I am of two minds about having indoor/outdoor pets. As an American, I feel squeemish about it. As you know, Arrietty was in a cat fight the other day. It really bothered me, but I know it sounded much worse than it was. We live on a very quiet cul-de-sac with a huge garden. I prefer to not let the cat out, and we only let her out when we are home to keep an eye on her. She is busy enough in our back garden and doesn't go further. Kevin has always had indoor/outdoor cats and I've always had indoor cats. I guess it depends on the cat/location/risks. At least you don't have rabies here, thank goodness.