Day 37 of 100, Thursday 29th November

I just could not get to sleep last night, no particular reason. Mewly and Lady came to lie next to my legs and then Mewly attacked Lady Jane to wash her head thoroughly! It was too darling to watch – he is such a lover boy!

Another late morning – I’m getting really tired of it! At least the weather has improved, still windy but at least it’s sunny. I heard Rose arriving, so I went down for a chat – hadn’t seen her since the weather turned! She cleared up the mystery of Lady Jane’s upset tummy: Her Ladyship had got hold of a bird egg and ate it! That was before the throwing up started, so – silly girl eating everything she finds, upset her own tummy!

It’s not really too late to go shopping, but I soooo don’t want to.

Sigh, I had just saved the above when the power went out! It was just after noon, seriously? Turns out that our government decided to surprise us with another load shedding session! No warning, no announcement – just: poof! Oh and just to make it interesting, instead of the standard two-hours, they decide this time power is off for two and a half hours! Isn’t that just lovely? Oh and it was on the news only AFTER it started! And just to add more fun to the mix, apparently geysers will be switched off from six to half nine tonight – so: geyser off from 8:00-10:00, like every day, then off again from 12:00-14:30 due to load shedding and again from 18:00-20:30.

I decided to go shopping while the power was out – only, I couldn’t operate the manual garage door opener. I think I should have pulled harder, but I wasn’t sure – after all I had only one demonstration, when I moved in. I was afraid that if I pulled harder – but didn’t have the strength to pull hard enough – I’d end up disconnecting the automatic without being able to open manually. Better safe than sorry, and I’m still not desperate for groceries, so: no worries.

Oh dear, Lady Jane just came in and threw up! Again! Only, this time she was sitting on the chair … okay, so the one cover got soiled, no problem. Only, then she takes a few steps backward and throws up again! All in all, she soiled both the blankies and the carpet! So … blankets in the machine, wash, hang up to dry. Poor girl was upset about the mess she’d caused and stayed around to ‘help’ with the washing and hanging up – afterwards she cuddled for a long, long time! I went downstairs and: Lo and behold, the rest of that egg is gone! Silly girl just doesn’t learn, does she? Now she’s staying right by me – mostly under my feet, though!

I washed the dishes and then started dinner. I chopped the cucumber in the Twista – which gives unevenly sized pieces, something I cannot do manually. Why? I just can’t help myself! You can ask a friend of mine – first time she saw me cutting chives she couldn’t believe her eyes: they were all the exact same length! She looked around for the ruler I was using … Ha Ha Ha

Anyway, I chopped the cucumber, two tomatoes, added a tin of shredded tuna, the juice of a lemon and the left-over sour cream, cooked some spaghetti, and: viola! Dinner is served!

Day 35 of 100, Wednesday 28th November

Mediocre night, but no bright ideas as I was going to sleep. The weather is still the same, bouts of hard drizzle, some sunshine and cold winds.

I could, but just don’t feel like going shopping. How do I cope so long without groceries? Oh, I have all the groceries I need – what drove me shopping every week was bread, and since I stock & freeze, that’s no longer a driving factor.

Lady Jane has me a bit worried, she’s been throwing up all morning. Nothing in there to show why – just the FIT32 pellets, some Whiskas, a few strands of grass. I took a walk outside to see if there’s something from the trash-crowd behind me – nothing. Couldn’t find Mewthos and he didn’t come when I called – I got quite worried … then he’s suddenly rolling by my feet! After that he went into aggressive ‘I want lovies’ mode – throwing himself at my legs, reaching as high as he can! Good thing he is a cat – any larger animal would be toppling me on a regular basis!

While I was outside, I decided to cut carnations. I’ve taken to cutting the twisted ones short, leaving just a short ‘stub’ above ground and as each bush is reduced to basics, I can remove my sticks one by one and the plants can keep growing. Maybe I should remove them and give them either to Rose or plant them where they won’t be mowed down. Maybe I should try to put some into my flower pots and take them with me? Well, I went seed-collecting as well and got lucky – I even managed to get some Vieruurtjie seeds! Not many, and quite small ones, but still – better than none.

I should start filling the various pots with the plants I want to move, give them time to settle before they go on the long trip. So many ‘I should’s and I just don’t feel up to any of them. Fortunately I’ve made good progress so I don’t need to worry about finishing in time. Sigh, and now I’ve got Romeo caterwauling in my bedroom!

And poor Lady Jane is throwing up again! That’s the fourth time today, like she can’t seem to keep any food down! What came up is the Whiskas she’s eaten since the last time she threw up – when all that came out was just bile, there was nothing else left. She’s been around me most of that time, so I’m pretty sure all she ate was the Whiskas and she drank some water from the bathtub. Yeah, I had to run a little water into the tub for Ziva – don’t ask, I don’t. She sat in the tub looking at me, looking at the tap – so I put the plug in and trickled some water in; Ziva was happy! Lady Jane joined her. Right now I’m surrounded by four cats, all in ‘rest’ mode – funny thing, Ziva is settled with the pink feathery bird-chirpy toy at her bum – looks like she’s the pink Easter bunny! It’s only six, and I’m not ready to shut the door, especially not with Romeo inside.

I’ve been watching MacGyver lately, since I have all the seasons as well as the movies. It takes a few episodes to settle to ‘80s’ pace, which is more relaxed and I can actually follow the plot. The newer shows are too full of the latest technology, more artificial than human, the motives, too, are often beyond me. Anyway, I’m quite enjoying MacGyver and go to thinking just how clever that series really is, how diverse; it covers such a variety of scenario from archaeology to espionage. It’s simple, light entertainment.

I’ve also started watching Alfred Hitchcock Presents, half hour tales with a twist. Equally diverse, though far more captivating! Unlike MacGyver, you don’t want it running in the background or you’ll miss something. It’s quite humerous at times, too and the introductions by Alfred Hitchcock are entertainment in themselves!

I’ve given the mippies their nightly treat – in light of Lady Jane’s troubles, I opted for a sachet of Royal Canin Kitten food. I watched her eat, she didn’t gobble it down but ate at her normal pace, even left some, just like she always does.

Over an hour has gone by and Lady Jane has kept everything she ate. I hope that whatever caused her trouble is finally out of her system for good! Poor girl, she’s not been quite herself today, while I was looking for Mewly she was under my feet mipping to be picked up all the time! I’d carry her over my shoulder till she wanted down, then pick her up again when she mipped, etc. Now she’s sleeping with her brother on the sleeper couch.

Day 35 of 100, Tuesday 27th November

Mewthos woke me by taking a stroll on me from my legs up to my head! Casual stroll, mew, mew, mewling all the way. You know? Mew-stroll! Ziva was curled up by me as well, washing herself.

Got up, opened the door – it’s wet, windy and overcast outside. Mewly is not happy about it, I see him holding his paw off the ground – just like the rain hurts Rose’s knee, it hurts Mewly’s wrist, where he damaged his growth plate. Yet he still chooses to go out. He doesn’t need to, he wants to. They have everything they need inside: two scratching poles, a clean sandbox, and lots of toys. Yet they like to go outside, even when it’s raining.

I had breakfast – under close supervision of Ziva, who liked the smell of what I was eating. Very much so, she watched every bite I took with interest. They’re spending most of the day inside, using anything for entertainment – I’m their favourite toy! Lady Jane took an unintentional somersault when she stuck her head in an empty box from atop the printer, the box tumbled down taking Lady Jane with it! It was hilarious! Right now Lady Jane is chasing anything that moves, climbing on the scratcher, chasing a leaf, playing with toys – she’s clearly frustrated by the weather.

Clearly I didn’t go shopping – again. I woke up late, though earlier than yesterday, and I see no reason to go out in such cold, miserable weather. I’m not like my mippies, ha ha! I considered doing some … well, crafting. I don’t like that term, though, it’s mostly associated with expensive arty decorations. The German word ‘basteln’ is more making or building something, sometimes decorative – like models, but mostly something to be used, something that has a function. ‘Basteln’ is more associated with building something using inexpensive materials, whereas crafting uses expensive supplies.

Whatever the term, I considered spending some time on one of the ideas I had during my many failed attempts to fall asleep. I just don’t feel up to it, though. I’d have to clear the rest off the table first – and I just don’t know where to put what’s on the table. I’ve gotten into the habit of using it to store odds and ends. A habit I should make every effort to break in my new home. It wasn’t always like this, at first I did keep it clear and used it for dinner and hobbies – but when I lost interest in indoors, I just started cluttering it.

Mippies are driving me crazy all day, coming in, going out, playing ‘catch’, zooming around, climbing in boxes, bouncing off the walls. They are joined by Romeo, moping and wailing, then settling down only to start grunting and wailing again. Then they go outside and come back wet again. Ziva comes to sit on the Ottoman next to me only to projectile-vomit onto the carpet. Fortunately I adhered to the advice never to feed a cat anything that doesn’t match the carpet – Lady Jane comes running to sniff the warm yums on the floor, but I clean it up before she can.

I’ll make it an early night tonight, though. I’m feeling somewhat dazed from lack of sleep, not quite myself. And now I’ve got Mewthos growling and meowling at him whily Lady Jane is parked under the scratcher looking at Romeo and Ziva on the Sleeper couch.

Sigh, they may be running outside in the rain, but they sure aren’t crapping in it! Just had to clean the litter box a second time today – and I can hear industrious scratching going on in it right now! Lady Jane, I think.

And here’s Romeo, settling on the window sill yet again. It’s half seven, I’d like to bring my mippies in so I can take a bath – and here’s Romeo!

Near seven I shut the door, then searched the flat in case Romeo had got shut in – luckily he hadn’t! Gave mippies a single treat, and now I’ll have my bath.

Now I have seen everything! Would you believe this: while I was in the bath, Ziva came to investigate; it’s been quite a while since any of them joined me while I bath. Well, after a while Mewthos strolled in and Ziva and Mewthos started playing catch! In the bathroom! I expected a splash at any moment, and then? I watched Ziva fish something out of the litter box … she had one paw in the box, and was fishing for something … next thing a brown you-know-what comes flying out and the two of them start playing with it, as if it was a feather or a marble! Seriously! I have really seen it all, now! After a while Ziva sniffed it and promptly tried to cover it. I guess I should just be grateful it didn’t come flying into the bath!

Well, never a dull moment with my mippies, eh?

Day 34 of 100, Monday 26th November

Sigh, no luck. I went to bed around half two in the morning – so tired I just fell into bed wanting nothing but sleep.

My brain had other ideas! One idea, to be exact. Something about a spice rack solving the problem of sunlight and space. Neat idea, too! Kept me busy for quite some time …

So, poor Ziva did her best to wake me around ten – only to find the outside all wet! Well, they did their outside running and came back to nap. I meant to get groceries today, but not in the rain. Since it’s not urgent, I’ll wait till tomorrow.

Since the day was a bust anyway, I spent most of it re-designing the city I created accidentally – game city, that is. I had neglected that city and got stuck a bit so I needed a plan for the next couple of weeks. Done now.

Romeo is hanging around again, it’s so heartbreaking to see the longing looks he gives my mippies – like he wishes he was welcome! Yet he also doesn’t like to stay in one place for long, just like Ziva when she first moved in. She has come such a long way though – it is heartwarming to see how happy she is! Whereas she used to dread having to come indoors to spend the night, now she waits for the call and comes bounding at top speed! No more drama from her to go out after the door is shut, and no real drama in the mornings anymore, either. At worst she mips at me for attention – she loves to get attention on my bathroom mat, for some reason! And every time we go there, Mewthos soon follows wanting lovies, too! And then Ziva leaves in disgust, ha ha! All in all, everything points to Ziva being happy. Very happy!

I can’t decide what to do about dinner today. I’ve got steamed potatoes, a cucumber, some tomatoes and two eggs, oh and some Bockwurst grillers. I guess I’ll just fry some potatoes with sliced grillers and the eggs over the lot.

Dinner was as mediocre as it sounds – the only excitement came from the mips, who still believe that any food in the kitchen should be for their bowls!

No early night for me … again.

Day 33 of 100, Sunday 25th November

I woke up even earlier – but turned over and slept later than ever. When I went to bed last night, Mewly came to curl up under the duvet with me – he is such a lover boy! He left after a while, but this morning he was curled up on top of the duvet again.

I had an idea this morning, when the mippies arrive at our new home, and we’re all shut in the bedroom – I can use the damaged boxes to build some tunnel-toys for them! That would keep me busy, and busy with something constructive – plus they’ll love it, I’m sure! Just one question: how much time will that take? How long can I build cat tunnels before I get bored?

Well, washing dishes again – not much, but the muffin tray & such take up a lot of space. And I’m starting to like seeing a clean kitchen again – something I haven’t cared for since I’ve moved in here. I directed my energies towards the garden rather than the kitchen, here, and later to my mippies.

I’ve looked up some treats for cats – but I found most of them somewhat suspect. There is too much controversy regarding what cats can and can’t eat, I really need a reliable source of information. I’ve looked online at university books – there are quite a few so I think it would be best to ask a vet to recommend one. Or even better, ask several vets.

Speaking of cat treats, I left them out till just after seven tonight – I only had to call Ziva once and she came running at top speed! It is such a joyful sight! As if she’s just waiting for the call to come bounding home!

For a change, she’s joined the mippies on the sleeper couch rather than staying on the chair by herself. She comes for lovies more and more frequently now – quite confident, which is really heartwarming! She was so upset yesterday, when we were playing and she accidentally sank a claw in my finger. She understood that she had hurt me, even though I neither cried out nor showed any stress whatsoever. I stroked her and spoke calmly saying how it’s okay – but she was clearly upset, she wouldn’t play any more at that time.

I have also indulged in some DVDs, I shopped online. It was meant as a treat I could afford since I had not spent much the whole month – only I had forgotten about the broken router, the shoes, etc. Ah well, I indulged, I didn’t splurge. I had some Dr Who on my wish list, but opted against them – I’m looking for old, cheap entertainment, Dr Who is too popular (even the very old seasons) to fit the ‘cheap’ category. Worth it, but not what I’m in the mood for at this stage. I wanted maximum time for minimum buck – so I got myself three complete series. A relatively obscure Sherlock Holmes series from the 50s, the 80s series based on Sue Townsends Adrian Mole books and one I’ve wanted for a long time: Upstairs, Downstairs. It’s such a pity that DVD prices are dictated by popularity rather than quality; fortunately I mostly prefer content to visual assault, which is mostly not popular.  Except when it comes to Science Fiction, I’m afraid – like the old Dr Who series. Those are popular even though a lot of them aren’t even moving pictures, but stills with sound.

I’m trying a different approach to sleep tonight, I’m staying up until I’m ready to fall asleep, hopefully foregoing the whole ‘tossing and turning’ thing.

Day 32 of 100, Saturday 24th November

I woke up earlier still, so clearly I’m getting back on track. Still somewhat listless, not sure why. It’s quite a hot, sunny day today, mippies are out – and in to cool down, then off outside again.

I’ve baked up a bread and some muffins at the same time – turns out I stupidly bought chocolate discs instead of chips, so I crushed them as much as possible before adding them to the dough.

I saw Rose in the garden and came down for a chat – Mewly was being a real Mewsance, rolling under my feet (I’m afraid I stepped on his paws by accident) and over my feet when I stand still. It’s too hot outside, though, so I just pick some seeds and come back upstairs.

Someone caught a gecko and brought it upstairs, it’s now hiding under my drill-case with Lady Jane in vigil – the instant it comes out she’ll pounce!

Did a load of laundry, packed a couple more boxes. Pantry is looking quite bare now, but the kitchen still shows the least sign of the impending move.

I also started clearing the table with the hope that I’ll be able to do something creative inbetween this chaos, just to keep my spirits up – as much as that is possible.

Day 31 of 100, Friday 23rd November

Well, I woke up earlier than yesterday and for some strange reason I feel better. Could it be the ice cream I had last night?

What do I do with my energy? Silly me, I do some cleaning … including picking up feathers. So, what follows? I had just put the last feather into the bin, when Ziva comes running in with a dead mousebird! Once I made sure the bird is indeed dead, I shut Mew & Lady into the bedroom, since they were threatening to take Ziva’s prey from her again. When she goes running out with it, I open the door – I’m scared Mew gets through the fanlight and falls again! Ziva ‘guards’ her trophy and both minis guard her! Right now, Lady Jane is running around the garden with the bird in her mouth followed by Mewthos – whereas Ziva is sitting at the top of the stairs looking sad. Ah, because Lady Jane is ‘playing’ with the bird on the landing! Twice she tries to bring it inside – and twice I’m running around like a bat out of hell chasing her back outside!

I did a bit of research into sewing and learned that the real problem isn’t the difficulty of the actual sewing, but the space to move the material around. As in, sewing curtains, for example, is a very simple process – but you need space for such large and heavy material. That’s something I didn’t think about.

I didn’t quite enjoy my dinner too much last night, so I decided to try something different today: I put it through the blender – and was rather pleasantly surprised by the result!

I made use of today’s energy to clean the kitchen, then considered using it – but ended up helping myself to more ice cream instead. I spent most of the day picking up mippies strolling by and cuddling them till they ran away!

Day 30 of 100, Thursday 22nd November

Even though I stayed up so late, I still struggled to go to sleep. And I had no desire to get up till really late. Poor Mewthos was sirening through the bedroom to be let out! I dragged myself out of bed to open the door for my mippies and then considered climbing back into bed. But I do need to get myself out of this mood, so I made myself coffee.

Not really motivated or energized to do anything, I went and carried some more boxes upstairs then decided to spend some time in the garden. I cleared some dead flowers and tended to some of the more desperate carnations. I need to get into the habit of cutting the flowers when they’re in bloom – carnations apparently don’t like to be left to grow. They twist and turn like a roller-coaster designed by a drunk engineer, if left to themselves.

I decided to take a nap, despite strong protests from Lady Jane. She was not impressed with the idea of sleepy-time in the middle of the day!

I did not wake up refreshed, just cold and still sleepy. I got a bag of sand to re-fill the litter box and put dinner on. Just rice with greens. Mippies and Romeo decided that activity in the kitchen meant munchie time – so I gave in, big softie that I am.

I let them stay out later and later these days, sort of trying to make up for the time they’ll be shut in a small place, away from me. It doesn’t work that way, of course, but it makes me feel a little better. I’m also hoping that in our new home, they can come and go, day and night, as they please.

It’s been a total ‘meh’ day. No energy, listless, bad mood. Sigh, maybe I should have tried chocolate? I just wasn’t up to making muffins, though.

Day 29 of 100, Wednesday 21st November

Another one of those nights. I’m clearly resisting the move subconsciously – by creating a vicious cycle! Well, it’s not working, it’s slowing me down, but that’s all.

I woke up very early this morning with Mewthos curled up against me – who could possibly get up? Not me! So I turned over, and only got up after eight. It rained quite hard this morning, looking at the garden, I see the path washed over somewhat, where the trench crosses it. I’m just wondering how nobody ever thought of extending the ditch in all these years? I guess because it wasn’t a simply ‘jump’ to the conclusion – it required a bit of actual thinking.

Sheez, am I in a foul mood or what? So I went into the garden, seed collecting. Mewthos was under my feet the entire time, throwing himself as high up my legs as he could reach, then rolling on the ground under my feet. Of course he got a lot of attention, eventually I picked him up and held him for quite some time.

My PC shut down again twice this morning – no apparent reason. Strangely enough, it didn’t upset me in the least. Right now I’m checking the boxes in the top wardrobe in the spare room – mippies help! Ha Ha, they managed to drop everything I had set out in a loud clatter and all three came shooting out the room! Mini’s only as far as the lounge, but Ziva went halfway down the stairs before she stopped and looked at me enquiringly! Even though I calmly told her it’s okay, she wouldn’t come back.

Okay, that’s another box-set complete. Still have some DVD’s out, which I acquired here. I’ve also decided to use one of the drawers for cat toys, etc. and one drawer for items precious to me, nothing heavy, though.

I was planning a rice dish for dinner tonight, but I just don’t have the energy, so I took out a spatchcock chicken out of the freezer. It’s not a heavy meal, yet it’s quick & easy – just fry it in the pan. Ziva clearly approves of my choice – though, for the life of me, I can’t tell how she can ‘smell’ what’s defrosting in a sealed bag?

I think I should take a day completely off from this whole depressing situation – I just don’t know how. Ideally it would require time away from the place, but that would be unfair on my mippies, who also deserve a day off from crazy mommy. Art? That’s time out, indeed.

And yet, I should set the carpet cleaning thing in motion. And get all the boxes from the garage up here, to avoid any further water damage.

I’m up late again, I just don’t feel like going to bed, even though I’m tired. I guess it’s a matter of taking the body and the mind should follow. I think chocolate should be involved. And ice cream. Chocolate chip muffins with ice cream? Hmm, that sounds really good! I’m smiling now, something to look forward to!

Day 28 of 100, Tuesday 20th November

I struggled to fall asleep again, though this time, I can’t quite tell why. Subconscious mind must have been busy niggling away at some problem. As a result, once again, I woke up somewhat late. Actually it was another MTN-harassment call that finally woke me. I’m so sick and tired of that weekly harassment – so I just put the phone on the nightstand, let him talk to the air. Apparently he realized, hung up and called again – I didn’t bother to answer.

I let the mippies out and had my morning coffee. By the time I finished, the mippies were all back inside, it’s awfully windy again, today. So, I got dressed and went to get the socks & ID photos – only Ziva was clever enough to realise I was leaving, and she came outside with me! Clever girl!

The socks were a bust. I went back to Greenacres Cape Union Mart and couldn’t find them, so I looked around for an assistant … nobody interested. Then a black lady came in and looked at the socks, suddenly a sales assistant was there! So I sort of grabbed her. She took a quick look at the shelf and told me the ones I want aren’t there. WTF? If they were, I wouldn’t need assistance, would I? Well, she just stood there looking at me, clearly not the least interested in helping me, so I walked out. Very different attitude from the East London branch!

The Kodak shop was more successful, and I got my photos for my drivers licence and temporary licence (I hope I got enough!). While I was waiting for them to be developed, I checked whether Checkers had Litter Sand (they did) and tried Torga Optical for an eye test – only R50, but no luck, the Optometrist would only be back after one, so I tried SpecSavers. They explained that they could only issue an eye test for drivers’ license, if I had done a full test done within the past two years and a full test would cost R500. Not worth it, since I’m not going to get new lenses in PE, if at all. I have to say, though, that I appreciate the ethics SpecSavers showed. First by not giving a certificate unless it has real value (although that could be a money-making scheme) but also by giving me all the info I needed. I don’t know what would have happened, had I returned to Torga Optical after one.

Checkers was satisfactory. I got 4x 15kg cat litter at R36 – online price was R45. They had strawberries at quite a decent price, unfortunately they had mishandled them so badly that they were all squished and bruised. Even in their spacious bubble-layered container. Well, that shipment was mishandled, the previous one (same price, but today’s sell-by date) looked better. But I didn’t want to have to eat them today – I’d treated myself to a mixed fruit salad for breakfast.

When I got home, only Lady Jane was sitting on the scratcher – no Mewthos? For a minute, I feared he might have run out when I left – but he was just napping behind the sleeper couch! Goofball! Ziva also didn’t welcome me home, as she normally does. I’m feeling neglected!

Sigh, I wish I had more energy today. I’m feeling quite tired, no clue why. I’m having my fruit salad for breakfast, maybe I should get some protein for dinner – a nice juicy steak, he he.

Right, two of the heaviest jobs done: took the rubbish downstairs and tied up the bookshelf planks and carried them to the spare room. Ah, yeah, that’s another thing I got at Checkers: rope. Cheap plastic rope to tie around drawers, so no numbskull tries to tape them shut again! I still have to repair the chest of drawers from the last move! Although I’ve actually decided to get rid of it. I made a mistake when I bought it, it was within my budget and I had wanted one for the longest time! It’s made of cheap press-wood, and every time you open a drawer you struggle to close it again. That’s why it was within my budget, ha ha! Well, it’s useful and I can’t afford a real one in the near future, so for now I’m keeping it.

I decided last night that I’ll clear the flat from here on, room by room, starting with my bedroom. I’ll pack what I’m not using at all, and what I may still use, I’ll pack but leave the box open. That should include the bathroom. But I’m so tired, so low on energy …

So what do I do? I start in the kitchen! Well, I had a large box and the spice racks all fitted into it, so I packed them and filled the gaps with more squirreling. The pepper mill, the book ends, the place mats and some spare spices and stuff from the pantry.

Packed a couple more boxes, still not exclusively bedroom. Why? Well, I have the luxury of packing boxes to max, as in fitting bits and bobs into gaps any- and everywhere.

Strange … Shadow just came inside for a visit!? She never comes inside my flat anymore – yet here she is, hissing at Mewthos, or is it Mewthos hissing at her? I’m trying to have my steak – but Ziva feels that if she ogles me taking every single bite, she’ll get a share. When that doesn’t happen, she jumps onto the counter to lick the plate! Bad girl! She got sprayed with water for her troubles!

I’m really tired – yet again – so I’m set for an early night, also ‘yet again’. Well, I hope I have better luck sleeping tonight.

Day 27 of 100, Monday 19th November

Really, really bad night. As soon as I lay down my stomach started cramping awfully! And no, it wasn’t because I added the ginger to my dinner! It was really awful because I was so very tired, and instead of sleeping I ended up getting up to take more tissue salts (magnesium phosphate, which I’ve been taking against monthly cramps for over 20 years).

Well, after that bad night, I woke up really, really late – past nine! Poor mippies tried to wake me to open the door, though they were very sweet about it. Not insistent, just quietly trying to get my attention. So I got up and let them out … and they stayed with me! Ha Ha!

Ziva eventually went off on her rounds, but it is so windy, the minis are curled up inside. For myself, I’m not feeling too good. Somewhat queasy again and quite some pressure in my head, not exactly a headache, but unpleasant nonetheless.

Well, my plans for today fell through, courtesy of all this misery. I was chatting with a friend in Ireland and she was telling me how she does her grocery shopping online – that might be possible in Pretoria, too! I know that some stores here let you ‘purchase’ some items online, and you can either pay for delivery or collect at the store.

I’ve done some research and Pretoria North is not covered for delivery – that means I can’t have it delivered to my work, and most probably not to my home, either. But I CAN save myself some time by placing the order online, cutting the whole in-store time out. I could be doing that here, too, to some extent. I tried it once with DisChem, but you can only get high-priced items online – for the standard items, you must take a basket through the store. So, that’s no use whatsoever! But there are some options in Pretoria, which are not available here. Although it looks like online prices are quite a bit higher than they are in store!

I heard Rose’s gate, so I went out and we had our daily chat, albeit a short one today, since the weather is really miserable. Sunny, but oh-so windy! Rose had baked a chocolate cake and kept a piece for me – deeeelicious! I couldn’t resist nibbling it, till it was finished right then and there. Although I had to hold it down or it would the wind would have blown it off the plate!

Romeo is mooching around my flat, tinkling on every wall and surface – sigh! I don’t smell anything, though. I’ve discussed this with Rose as well and she says her porch often reeks of Romeo’s spray – but when he sprinkled the wall between us, the other day, while we were chatting, she also didn’t smell anything. So, I think he can turn off the ‘pong’ part of his tinkles. I was worried that maybe I had grown immune to it, so I don’t even smell it anymore – even though I still smelled it outside at times; but it would seem I have nothing to worry about. It’s not me – it really is him!

Well, the way I’m feeling, today has been pretty much a write-off. I haven’t done anything worth mentioning. At least I hope to get sleep tonight, so tomorrow I can make up for today’s loss.

Day 26 of 100, Sunday, 18th November

I don’t know, my mind just goes nuts as soon as I want to sleep! Would you believe I had more of those bright ideas? Rose showed me some crafting thing she was introduced to a long time ago, it’s similar to ‘knüpfen’, which is a type of knotting, where you basically knot strands of wool to make either wall hangings or carpets. Her crafting group was using old clothes, cutting strands from them. I could use the old duvet covers, dye them and make a carpet – as long as the material I use can all be washed at the same temperature ... Or I could cut longer strips and actually weave a carpet.

On tiled floor, in winter, some sort of carpeting becomes essential! I remember in the flat where I stayed before I first moved to East London, I’d have a mat under my feet plus socks in warm shoes – and could still feel the cold floor on my feet when I sat at the desk! But tiles are the easiest to keep clean – carpets are a nightmare! Wooden floors are a good compromise, but expensive. Especially when you don’t want to risk splinters!

Another idea came from a childhood ‘toy’ – it was called something like a lacquer deco. It got lost in one of the many moves. Basically it was malleable wire strips, which you’d shape around a form, something like flower petals or such, but always so it’s a closed loop. Then you dip that ‘loop’ into coloured lacquer, let it dry and you’d have coloured petals. Twist the stems together to make a flower. Or, instead of lacquer, you could tie dyed pantyhose over the loop. But I could think of no practical use for that idea … which kept me thinking for quite a while before I gave up!

And then, of course, there’s Makramee! The art of knotting yarn into mostly wall-hangings, but you can also make string bags or flower pot hangers with it.

Notice how my whole outlook, my whole way of thinking is changing? Adapting to the new life ahead? With no more long distance moves in my future, it’s a completely different paradigm – instead of minimizing my hoard, I shift towards ‘using’ what I have to beautify my home.

In a way it’s a step backwards, as I was in a similar mind-set when I first started this job. I bought furniture, which I stained myself – it was a start. I continued, to some extent, in East London – and then I ‘discovered’ East London itself! And started exploring, hiking, beach-walks, driving around the Easter Cape, researching it’s history and it’s architecture. The interlude back in Pretoria was mostly about recovering from the armed robbery – not so much personally, since I got over the trauma fairly quickly thanks to the experience I gained the first time, but financially, and all the data on those hard drives, I lost! I also started a bit of gardening on the balcony. And PE has been all about gardening and cats! No regrets, I’ve loved it all! Well, except Pretoria.

Pretoria holds far too many bad memories, and far too many graves for me. So I really need to work at not getting depressed that I’m going back to the one town I’ve spent most of my energy on trying to escape! I’ve really got to work at finding a good spin on the situation – so good, that I believe it, myself! Ha Ha, in a way, I’m selling myself a trip to hell in such a way that I look forward to the trip! Well, not quite hell, just my private one. At least I’ve outgrown the peer-thing. I’m quite happy by myself, I no longer ‘need’ to have friends. Friends are welcome, but not a necessity. Work provides all the human interaction I need.

So, with my head doing the midnight marathon – or should I call it thinkathon? – I woke up late again this morning. Sigh. Ziva woke me up, since it was time the door was opened for her. Clever girl! I got caught up with the online game, I’m afraid, and it was nearly noon before I made myself breakfast.

Then I sat down to write this, after which I went into the garden, collecting seeds to clear my mind. Mewthos and Ziva were in roly-poly rub-my-tummy mood – first Ziva, and when Mewly showed up, she stalked off in disgust. Well, she had already had a session with Rose just before I came down. And Mewly is such an insistent cuddler – who can resist? He came last night as well rolling over and over when I scratched his tummy!  He did his talking purr again, that’s how happy he was!

Back upstairs I washed the dishes and Lady Jane did her ‘surprise appearance’ act again! One minute she’s in the garden, then I turn around and nearly step on her! For some reason she ALWAYS wants attention when I’m washing dishes, lately! As I was carrying her on my shoulder, I thought: Lady Jane would LOVE me to do Makramee! Ha ha ha, can you imagine? Dangly white strings? She’ll be in heaven!

I’m not feeling up to much today, still that drain of my energy. I don’t have it in me to do any packing today, though I should. Tomorrow I want to go get those socks and ID photos. It’ll be tricky getting away, though, since I don’t want to walk around an hour again, so either keep the Mips in an hour longer, then trick them with a treat or hope they come in around nine and I can trick them with a treat and get away.

I’m chopping the celery for my dinner when Mewly come mew-mew-mew-sirening under my feet. I pick him up, he purrs … and carries on mewling! He is the only cat I know who complains and purrs at the same time! What a goofball! The two of them are tearing around the lounge as if their paws are on fire! It’s such a pleasure to watch them!

I considered taking another steak out of the freezer, but then decided to use up the last veggies while they’re still fresh. Well, sort of fresh, anyway. I’m just trying to decide what I want to do with the rest of the carrots. Hmmm, maybe dice them and give them a quick fry with the potatoes?

Okay, dinner just turned exotic! And when I say ‘exotic’ I actually mean weird, ha ha! I did the above, then chopped some anchovies in for salt … and when I put them away, saw the ginger. Yeah, I had some pickled ginger – can’t take it with me, so I did a taste-try: put a piece of each ingredient on a fork, added a slice of ginger and tried it. It actually tasted quite … well, I like it! Yes, really!

Oh crap, I just got a notification that Load Shedding Stage 1 is in effect. Apparently has been since noon today! I can’t find our suburb on the website, so I can only hope it means we won’t be affected. I called Rose to let her know as well, if she had known, she would have called me. But seriously, this is unbelievable! Sometimes I ask myself why not just leave? But then again, every country has its own problems – and bonuses! Africa is in my blood – I couldn’t be happy anywhere else! Crime, corruption and all.

Day 25 of 100, Saturday, 17th November

Man, what’s up with that brain of mine these days? It just goes into hyper-drive when I lie down, lately! This time it was a new design-idea for the project I was busy with, before this move-thing kicked off plus some idea about a barter-community. Yeah, don’t ask. Some of these ideas are as crazy as the one’s I used to come up with when I was drunk! But you know the old saying “When you sober up a drunken horse thief, you’re still left with a horse thief” – so I guess the crazy was always pure me!

So, not a good night, again, and also again, I woke up feeling queasy and with quite a headache. Not a migraine, just a headache. Or maybe a mild migraine, I don’t know. Still courtesy of that horrid menopause thing I’ve got going on. I remember one episode of ‘Waiting for God’ where Diana is in hospital and she pretty much summarises the male view of womens health – pretty poignant!

Anyway, for breakfast I had taken a loaf of bread out the freezer last night, and baked it up this morning. Lovely! Fresh bread! I’d also taken another ‘Aufschnitt’ out and for dinner I’ll revert to the simple ‘fried chunk of meat’.

I’ve just made a model of my project-idea and it works! Sigh, and I can’t really go into it now, I’ll have to pack it away for after this whole nightmare is over!

I should be enjoying my last weeks in PE – but when there’s a move looming over me, I can’t enjoy anything much! At least with three months I’m not in a packing frenzy, working myself to a heart attack, stressing about what I’ve forgotten, what needs to be planned, how, when, who … I’m packing at a steady rate, maintaining my household – including cooking – and most of all, I’m not traumatizing my family. They’ll have such a bad, frightening time ahead of them, the longer I can maintain normality for them, the better. I’ll have to start preparing them for what’s coming. Try and fake happy excitement, something to look forward to! I still need to research how best to prepare them, well, I’ve done that research already, now I need to refresh my memory and put it into action. I’m just so afraid of Ziva making a run for it … I’ll have to be very, very careful with her in the new home.

I went to visit Rose and we had our usual lovely chat. Lady Jane kept us entertained as well – she was quite inquisitively inspecting Rose’s flat! Rose says she only does that when I’m there. She is such a character! So lively and always busy investigating or inspecting something! Frankie was in a grumpy mood for some reason, though. But he, too, is such a character. He tip-tip-tips through the flat on those wooden floors like a ballerina! He’d look good in a pink tutu, his dark colouring would set it off beautifully!

Well, I fried my rump steak for dinner and appeased’ my mips – especially Ziva – with a sachet, now they’re snoozing again. Ready for action when I go to bed? Well, not lately – they seem to sleep through till morning these days.

Either that ointment works very well, or Ziva & Lady Jane have been busy cleaning Mewthos’ face wound – it’s all clear, no bleeding or anything. Just a bald patch. He, too is such a darling, though very different from Lady Jane! He is just such a loving cuddle muffin! It drives even Ziva nuts at time – he’ll come running full tilt to cuddle up to her and she’ll turn away in disgust! He does the same with me, when he stands up on his hind legs putting his paws as high as he can on me, or when he jumps up brushing against my leg. Or when he flops down in front of me when I go into the garden. He just loves to be loved! And I just love to oblige!

Rose was telling me how Ziva surprised her when she was in the garden, she came up to her and did her roly-poly tickle-my-tummy over and over again! She’d walk off, then turn around and come back for more! She has really come a very long way from the starving half-feral creature we’d spot in the garden from a distance occasionally! Like Romeo, she gets restless when she’s shut in – but over the months, she’s learned to tolerate it over night. Being shut in a room is going to be very hard on her! But if she gets out, the rest of her life will be hard – and possibly short, so I’ll take hard over that any day! Still, not something to look forward to.

Since the whole packing and planning of a move is such a stressful nightmare, I usually end up in such crappy places – not having the energy at that time to drive around for days looking at places. In Pretoria I picked the wrong place – I had looked at several, two of them on the short-list and I picked the wrong one. I didn’t do all my research first – the other place had recently been renovated, and really beautifully! That owner clearly cared for the place … I really shot myself in the foot choosing the other place! And then this place. I never even looked at any other places, I had just started searching and came across this one. I blame being a Vaalie (from the Inland province which used to be called Transvaal) – we’re all lured by the sea view! Ha Ha! And the garden here. Well, the place turned out to be badly managed – but the neighbourhood was an unexpected delight! And I got my mippies and really got a lot of pleasure working in the garden.

Anyway, this time I won’t be responsible for the home I’ll get, he he. And I’m not spending any time or energy really thinking about what I’ll get. When my mind tries to go there with some horror movies to play in my head? I shut it off! I’ll tinkle on that bridge when I get there. I just hope it’s not a Rondavel!

Day 24 of 100, Friday, 16th November

Not a good night, I’m afraid. I had another one of those ideas buzzing around my head when I wanted to go to sleep. This time it was to pack some of the last minute stuff into furniture, like the drawers. Can’t be heavy things, because the furniture itself is heavy enough already – but I was thinking the throws over the furniture (although, now I’m awake, those had better cover that furniture during transport) and my bedding. Maybe the cats’ toys, which are light. Or some clothes. Just light stuff I’d need early on in the new home. I usually cart my bedding in the car and limit my clothing to one suitcase. I could also put certain valuables in there, instead of risking them in a box. Boxes have disappeared during moves – but furniture hasn’t. Well, not in transit, only when I had to store it with someone I trusted. Oh, no malice, they didn’t steal from me – they just didn’t care enough to make sure when it was collected, that it all got collected. Oh, the mistake was entirely mine – I burdened people with a responsibility they had no obligation to take.

It’s a mistake I’ve made for the longest time, without learning. Most of my life I assumed that good people shared the same values I held; but just because they are good people, honest people, doesn’t mean their life experiences have resulted in the same viewpoints and values. For example, if someone accidentally breaks something belonging to someone else – some people feel that since it was an accident, they aren’t responsible. Others feel they should apologise, even though it was an accident. Some even feel fiscal compensation is appropriate. But that is as far as anyone will go. I’ve never heard anyone offering to actually replace the item they broke, accident or no accident. Especially not, when the item was either damaged or broken through careless handling. Yet those same people will whine about the time taken out of their lives (e.g. driving around to find a shop selling that specific item) to replace something of theirs, someone else broke!

Some people simply do not have the ability to see anything from the other person’s viewpoint – even when they’ve been there themselves in the past! Connecting those dots between the memory and the current situation is simply beyond them. The most ironic example was, when I overheard a co-worker during working hours on the work’s phone to a friend complaining about her domestic using her home phone for private calls – the irony that she was doing exactly what she was complaining about, simply did not occur to her!

I’m often denigrated for thinking so much about the past – yet at the same time just as frequently praised for my ‘wisdom’! It would be hilarious, if it wasn’t so depressing. Whenever I hear someone say “I’ve never thought of it like this” I just want to cry.

Anyway, I woke up later than yesterday and I’m not really feeling too good. A bit queasy and feverish. Courtesy of Menopause – yet again! Still, it’s merely unpleasant, not unbearable.

Ever since those no-water incidents, I’ve been rotating my 4 ½ liter backup bottles. Can’t let it go stale, stand for too long, so now I re-fill everything from those bottles, one after the other, then re-fill the bottles from the tap. A secondary benefit from this habit is, that I no longer get splashed when the plumbing acts up.

Today, I need to start tackling the kitchen. Tomorrow marks the quarter milestone, and I’ve packed more than a quarter of each room, except the kitchen. It’s about time I take that a bit further. I’ve done some, but I can do more.

I’ve kept a lot of the original boxes for kitchen equipment, so I’ve packed a lot of those boxes – items I use only rarely and can do without for the next 2 ½ months. Like the stainless steel cooking pots – I mostly use the ones that came with the Induction Plate, anyway. I’m also a great one for squirreling things away, Ha Ha! So when I packed the pots, I squirreled away a lot of spices and such in the gaps in and around the pots. The pantry is looking quite bare now. I’ve packed a lot of specialty foods, like Sushi rice. Yes, I still plan to cook some good meals for myself, but not quite that elaborate.

Rose has made the appointment for my driver’s licence application – unfortunately the earliest opening was on the 3^rd December. I’ll have to remember to ask what I need to do to give Rose authorization to collect it on my behalf – since I’m not sure it’ll be ready in time. They say 6-8 weeks, but with the year-end shutdown right in the middle of that, it may take longer. Oh, and I must remember to get two ID photos for the temporary licence. I think I’ll do that on Monday, when I go back to Greenacres to get more socks.

I also still need to book mippies for their booster shots & micro-chipping, but that will have to wait till after the next pay-day. Sigh, we’re talking another heap of money. I hadn’t planned on boosting their vaccinations this year, though I have been considering micro-chipping them – after what happened to Snoopy! Not that it will prevent anything happening to them, but at least I will know – I hope. It’s one of those things which are better to have than to need – always hoping you’ll never need it.

And then I need to get a quote for carpet cleaners – that’s part of the rental agreement. No past tenant has ever fulfilled that part of the contract – if they had, the carpet wouldn’t have been flea-infested when I moved in!

Mewly, Lady and Romeo were waiting for their evening treat – I called Ziva and she came bounding across the lawn, as always! First I filled the Whiskas outside, then put the Petley chicken outside for Romeo – Mewly and Ziva climbed into that … until they saw me get another sachet, ha ha! I had to carry Romeo outside again – he complains and makes quite threatening noises, but never so much as attempts to scratch me! Outside, he sat down to his meal – but his tail was inside! It actually fits under the door, that’s how big the gap is. He stayed just outside for quite a while, quietly for a change, but I can see his shadow. Also Ziva mipped to go out and play with her boyfriend. I had to sit with her for a while to quiet her down.

My PC started acting up in the evening, so I just shut it down … hence the late posting.