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Crazy Cat Lady Chapter 4 - The Aftermath
Comments
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Hello
Thank you so much for all the birthday wishes - very much appreciated. I'm not going to lie - I had a stinking hangover yesterday so barely did anything, and did absolutely nothing on the laptop at all. I took ds with me to collect the afternoon tea from my favourite eating place in town. We walked the long way round to make it a walk worth doing, and I was pleased to see it was the owner I was collecting my food from. She's a lovely woman and the brasserie is an amazing place (I had my divorce party there in the summer) and I wanted to make sure I was supporting her as much as I possibly can in the current circumstances. She gave me a bottle of wine as a gift from her and her husband, so I started drinking at about 4pm on Tuesday. I'm always a bit wary about drinking in the house on my own having spent all those years with ex and watching his deterioration with alcohol - and I really don't want the kids to see both parents relying on alcohol... However, dd insists I'm a hilarious drunk - I drank the whole bottle over the course of the evening, and got very hung up on the fact that my socks turn themselves upside down during the dayNeedless to say I was very much worse for wear yesterday (another reminder why I rarely drink). I did manage to get out for the daily walk to try and clear my head - with dd yesterday. We did 3 miles and I was shattered by the time I got back.
Couldn't face the thought of working at a computer so I did some required reading (school stuff) as my work yesterday along with helping ds write a biography about Van Gogh and dd write chapter summaries of Jekyll and Hyde. It was good to know that I could just 'enjoy' being hungover without and serious consequences.
I wish I could report that I'd slept better last night, but the cats are currently on 'do-I-want-to-be-in-or-out-all-night' mode. Three of them are no bother at all, but the other three sometimes want to be in, sometimes want to be out and whichever I do it's the wrong one so they'll yowl or run about and disturb me one way or the other. By 6am when I got up today I'd already done 5 of my 12 hours of standing according to my watch (you have to be up and active for 1 minute to get the hour marked off) so that's an indication of how poorly I slept. Also have a bit of pain in my lower back - probably from working from the sofa rather than at my school desk...Today I need to do a full day of schoolwork (or as much as I can) - both kids are still sleeping so I've been getting on (just having a break now). I'm going to get out for my daily walk as well - that has become so important to me now I can't come and go as I please.
I've also done my April budget. The collapse of the world meant that I had lost track of my budget over the past couple of weeks but I've managed to get that back on track as well. It's tight for April and beyond with the loss of exam money but we will manage - just means no overpayments for the short term.
Right, I'd best get back to it then. Thanks as well for all your kind words about my ramblings - it keeps me sane.
Not giving up
Working hard to pay off my debt
Time to take back control
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6290156/crazy-cat-lady-chapter-5-trying-to-recover-from-the-pandemic/p1?new=117 -
Belated Happy Birthday! Glad you had a good time xx"Good financial planning is about not spending money on things that add no value to your life in order to have more money for the things that do". Eoin McGee9
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CCL
I don't think I twigged till just now that you have SIX cats! I've only had the one, sadly no longer with us. She had numerous hilarious habits; one of the best was lying on my chest, on top of the duvet, and purring so loudly that she drowned out conversation. She was so bulky too (arrived that way from cat rescue) that I could hardly breathe. I appreciate you may not want to share their names in case it blows your cover, but could we please have a description of each, with their habits? Pretty please? Humdinger x11 -
Gosh Humdinger - I could go on for ever about the cats... We had seven until recently, when Tuxy cat left us. All 6 are either from rescue or from people that were looking to get rid of cats. We have 2 naughty torties - NT1 is our oldest (we think) and we fostered her and her kitten from a cat rescue but then I couldn't bear to get rid of either of them so we kept them both. She is absolutely tiny, but rules the roost. I can't get her insured as she has a long standing health problem that the companies used as an excuse not to pay out - but she has cost me an absolute fortune in vet fees over the years we've had her. Luckily I love her so much and she's not in any pain or suffering - because she had her broken leg fixed, teeth done twice and two lumps removed. She worships dd and spends most of her time in dd's bedroom. NT2 is a proper pet - she sits on your knee and comes for cuddles all of the time. When Tuxy died she followed me literally everywhere - kitchen, living room, toilet... She will sit outside the house when the school at the bottom of the street finishes to get as many cuddles as she can from the kids on their way home.
We have two black ladies - one is absolutely huge but very timid. When it's just me and her she will come and sit on my knee or snuggle with me, but not when the kids are about. The other black lady is our youngest and was given to me by kids from school a couple of years ago as an unwanted kitten. She has the most attitude - fights all of the other cats and follows ds everywhere when she's in the house - but prefers to be out and about. Then we have kitten (NT1's son) and the Ginger Ninja - he was our first cat and is a big ginger and white Tom. He should be in charge, but he's definitely second to NT1. He's the only one that gets on with all of the other cats without too much fuss and he's really yowly and talkative... but when he wants to play he's quite big compared to the others. Kitten is also a Tom - silver tabby - but smaller than the Ginger Ninja, and he's always up for playing. The boys like to be out and about a lot as well.
See - told you I could go on for ever.
So - haven't gotten up to that much today although I feel as though I've been busy. Got up a bit later than usual - thought I was awake for the day at 6 but decided to try and get back to sleep, which I managed until half eight. Got up, pottered about the house doing the daily jobs - dishes, washing, rubbish, feeding cats then sat down with a cuppa and a couple of hours of work. Then went out with dd for daily walk but needed to go into town for a couple of bits so we did a long walk around and into town, then queued outside Bee Emm for a few minutes (figured that was our best bet for what we needed) and managed to get everything we needed. I was a bit dismayed to see how many people and cars were out and about today - I think it's the busiest I've seen it since the lockdown started. I don't know if people are becoming complacent or just that Friday is a busy day as it's payday for some...
Limited work by the kids today which gave me a good chance to get a bit of my own stuff done. It's officially the Easter holidays now but I think I'll still be doing a couple of hours a day just to keep in my routine. It's hard not being able just to pop out and do your own thing - I'm grateful that my kids are old enough to entertain themselves a lot of the time to be honest. It must be hard having younger kids that need a lot of entertaining and not being able to be out and about.
Anyway, I'm going to sit this evening with a bit of tv and some crochet. It's pretty much like a normal Friday night for me but without the exhaustion of a normal school week.
Stay safe everyone - those numbers on the news are starting to get a bit scary now...Not giving up
Working hard to pay off my debt
Time to take back control
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6290156/crazy-cat-lady-chapter-5-trying-to-recover-from-the-pandemic/p1?new=118 -
Really enjoyed reading about your cats, CCL. In fact, it took my mind off those big numbers in the news for a few minutes. You're right, they're getting proper scary now.
F x2025's challenges: 1) To fill our 10 Savings Pots to their healthiest level ever
2) To read 100 books (36/100) 3) The Shrinking of Foxgloves 8.1kg/30kg
"Life can only be understood backwards but it must be lived forwards" (Soren Kirkegaard 1813-55)13 -
Morning.
Where is the justice in waking up with a stinking headache when I haven't been drinking? Well that's what has happened this morning. It's taking me a little while to pull myself together and I'm not feeling it today at all. Both of the naughty torties are sitting here with me. NT1 wants attention and dd is still asleep so I'm a second choice, much to NT2's disgust because she's been with me for hours on the sofa.
I've worked out that it's Saturday so school work is not required today if we're not feeling it. I haven't worked out much else - I've taken a couple of paracetamol and had a cup of tea and am hoping for the best. I'm also dressed, and teeth cleaned and thinking about what to do for the day. I need to drag ds out on the daily walk today and I need to think of a route where I don't think we'll see many people because I don't have a lot of faith in people staying home on a sunny day like this. Although I hate gardening I am very grateful that we have a garden that we can get out and sit in for a few hours. It needs a good tidy up though in terms of picking up rubbish - the windy weather blew a lot of rubbish in there over the past couple of days. Not that I'm bothered. We have garden chairs and we have a garden. That reminds me actually - the wind smashed our outside light the other day - blew it down. I don't suppose that's a priority at the moment so I won't stress about it. Took the bulb out and cleared up and just left it like an empty light fitting - switched off. So today I'm already grateful that we have a garden even though I hate the gardening.
I think I'm going to read a bit today, once I've done the bits about the house. I really need to think about getting on with decorating the bathroom. I've done the nasty bits of cleaning it - just need to do the actual painting now. Not today though - not painting with a headache. Also have lots of crochet on the go at the moment. Plenty to keep me busy if I can find some motivation from somewhere.
Have a good day everyone - stay safe
Not giving up
Working hard to pay off my debt
Time to take back control
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6290156/crazy-cat-lady-chapter-5-trying-to-recover-from-the-pandemic/p1?new=112 -
CCL
Thanks for my furry fix! Do you have a collective name for them? One friend who was down to just the bare three called them the posse when they were acting as one; my mum (who had a barely visible two) called them the chubby fubsters on occasion....9 -
The trick with gardens is to only do 1m at a time. Unless cutting grass. As in, today I will do that one meter of border and then that is it for today. After 1m stop, have a cup of tea, feet up, look at that bit. Ignore the rest. Slice your elephant. Tomorrow is another 1m. It is supposed to be enjoyable. 'doing the garden' in one weekend is just a recipe for hating gardening forever.
4/10/22One Year Mortgage Free Yay!
NSTurtle # 55 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢🐢🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 No Turtle gets left behind.[/b]
******PROUD MEMBER OF THE TOFU EATING COALITION OF CHAOS !!!******13 -
No Humdinger - I just call them the Kitties as a group... not very imaginative. NT1 has gone off to find dd, and NT2 went into the garden to bask for a few minutes but is back in with me having cuddles again. Haven't seen any of the others since they had their breakfast - either sleeping upstairs or sunbathing in the garden.
Thanks for the advice foxgloves - still don't think I'll be getting on with gardening any time soon but you never know. These are strange times and strange things have been happening. First task would need to be rubbish removal I think. I can't think what's worse - painting the bathroom or picking up litter in the garden. No wonder I have no motivation
Headache has cleared. Still no sign of dd but ds has made his way to the Xbox. I'm no further forward than when I last typed on here...
Not giving up
Working hard to pay off my debt
Time to take back control
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6290156/crazy-cat-lady-chapter-5-trying-to-recover-from-the-pandemic/p1?new=112 -
Agree with Foxholes. Big tasks like gardens need dividing up. One of my methods if I'm not feeling the love or my hands are sore is to take the kitchen timer outside with me & set it for 55 mins. I work steadily on my chosen job for that time, then take 5 mins putting tools, etc, away. It works!
F x
2025's challenges: 1) To fill our 10 Savings Pots to their healthiest level ever
2) To read 100 books (36/100) 3) The Shrinking of Foxgloves 8.1kg/30kg
"Life can only be understood backwards but it must be lived forwards" (Soren Kirkegaard 1813-55)13
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