Mewthos was in full form this morning, he started mewling and walking over me even before five! I tried grabbing him, but he just kept eluding me, looking at me and mewling! Eventually I got up and gave them a treat, just to shut him up! Told you: he's a special kind of clever! They'll be happy to have me home tomorrow, I'm sure.
I've been thinking about that set-up I called yesterday. It's something I've been thinking of myself for quite some time - only, I'm not much of a people person. I just may be able to persuade mippies to wear bells ... but it's a maybe, I can't be sure. But there's also the 'cottage is small' - so, my furniture is likely not going to fit. The safety is very attractive, though - safety in numbers, that is. I wouldn't be alone, and if something happened to me ... and mippies would love to go walkies every day after work! In PE, they used to loved strolling along with me through the garden! Plus, I wouldn't have to fear them getting out and possibly run over ... but I just don't see them keeping collars with bells around their necks. They'll take them off ... although, Janey and Mewthos kept their Seresto collars? Ziva couldn't - but the Seresto collar has chemicals, which is probably what she reacted to, why her fur fell out.
There is just so much to keep in mind, to think about ... and that's JUST to finding a place. Once I have found a place, the next round of stress begins: telling my landlord, arranging the move, no ... mind going blank ... no thinking of that now!
Oh, gosh! I'm a little dumb-dumb! Public holiday is only next week, not tomorrow! Boy, do I have egg on my face now! Ha Ha Ha! And I've gone all out arranging milk collection for 2 bottles tonight, none tomorrow and the usual 2 liter bottle on Thursday! Big, fat egg on my face, now, eh?
Well, that does, however, mean, that I'm free tomorrow after work, to have a look at that 'Best of both worlds' set-up. Can't hurt to have a look ...
I quickly went to the Spar to hopefully get my cigarette roller and filters. No roller - they are struggling to get stock, but they did have filters. Quite a variety, I left the menthol filters but took the regular ones, not the slim ones, either. 2 packets of 8 mm and one 7.5 mm. Both are around the same thickness I have been using, so lets see how that works.
Of course, my meal planning has a little problem now: I don't have bread! Nor have I set dough to be made today. So, I think I'll bake muffins again tonight.
I just don't know what kind of place I should look for. Honestly! Oh, for just me - easy! I want an open plan kitchen with a large lounge, so I can get a gas stove & an upright freezer. I want a bath and a shower - the rest is irrelevant. I only need 1 bedroom. But, and this is where it gets really, really difficult: Safety! Truth is, nowhere is really safe. That's a simple fact in South Africa. And I'm looking at two types of safety: distance from traffic for my mippies - yet close enough to other people, in case of an emergency. Which gives me three options: 1) a place on a small holding, similar to where I stay now. 2) a garden cottage, or 'B' house. 3) A house with a garden.
1) On a small holding, I will once again be uncomfortably intimate with my landlord. Though it may be a landlord who has experience with tenants, so he/she may not be as much of a control freak. They may have installed water- & electricity meters, so they don't need to control my usage. It may be a house separate from the main house - though, as it's a smallholding and not a farm, it will still be close. They may also not be so bored that they micro-manage my life-style and my garden ... On the positive side, as it is a distance from the city, it'll be affordable and mippies will be relatively safe. Although there may be snakes and scorpions and possibly even ticks - but no traffic, and plenty of space to roam. Safety is an issue, though, as farm attacks take place at 'where-nobody-can-hear-you-scream' locations. Considering how my current landlord treats his workers and talks to and about his neighbours, plus the fact that he's now 'saving electricity' by not switching on the outside lights anymore ... I am afraid it's only a matter of time ... ? But the more people live on a smallholding, the safer it becomes. Though, of course, if the exact number is known ... well, like I said, no place is really safe!
2) Garden Cottage has the same potential intimacy issues with the landlord. They often advertise 'own yard' and 'private entrance' as well as own pre-paid electricity, so that shouldn't be an issue. Still, owners like to keep a beady eye on 'their property' ... understandable, when you hear some of the horror stories - but not nice when you're the one subjected to that 'beady eye'. They are a lot more private than they used to be - in the past they used to be advertised as 'Granny Flats', because they were usually garages converted into a little basic-needs home for mother or mother-in-law. Just some private space to call her own, without any of the 'real home' amenities, like a full kitchen or bathroom. But nowadays, they are mostly built FOR tenants (which is usually a problem - as practicality is considered optional, when you build for some stranger); but offer full kitchen and bathroom. Still, the 'own yard' is often paved or small ... and I mean really tiny. The same applies to 'B' houses. That's when a property is divided, with a smaller portion set aside on which a separate house is then built. It has it's own address, but is really the same concept as a Garden Cottage. Owners live in the big house, where they can keep a beady eye on tenants.
3) A free standing house with a garden. By all counts, that would sound like the best option - especially as I'll have all the privacy I could ask for! BUT: A woman living alone in a free-standing house is a soft target. And add to that my regular hours - there's nothing random about my coming & going, it's like clock-work. Every week, no change in routine. That makes me an easy target. And I have to confess, I'm rather wary of being held up at gun point in my own home - again! Twice was quite enough, thank you!
Okay, I've been keeping an eye on the Junkmail & Gumtree and a new ad just appeared for a 3-bedroom house on a small holding. Near the one I looked at Friday afternoon. Price is the same as I'm paying now. The guy I spoke to sounded quite professional - didn't slip in a 'sweetheart', etc. Apparently there are several houses he rents out, so it's not going to be one-on-one. It's the most promising rental I've come across today ... so, I'll go and have a look tomorrow.
I've got an appointment at 10 tomorrow morning, then at 5 tomorrow evening. Plus this one. Hold thumbs! I'm a knotted bag of nerves, here ...
On the way home, I told the milk farmer of my mistake - we had a good laugh! No harm done, though. Trial run for next week, eh?
We had to wait quite a while for Ziva again - and she also demanded lots and lots of cuddles, when I was trying to make myself more cigarettes. Well, gonna give her her cuddle cave just now.
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