About Harriet and the Construction of her House

2-15-11

I have never built anything before, except for a clock in Wood Shop when I was in 7th grade (or was it 8th?), and my lack of experience has really kept me in a place of fear, causing me to avoid fulfilling a dream I've had for about 3 years now. But, last Thursday, I decided it was time to face the fear of the unknown and venture on a journey to build Harriet a house far better and better-looking than the one she currently has.

Why?

Harriet won't come inside. She's incredibly weary of humans and has only ever snuggled with Ted (the calm man who can stay still for hours) and my other cat, Weasley. We found her as a kitten about 8 years ago when we lived in Soquel. She was in an open field opposite our fence, and we heard her meowing. Ted hopped the fence and lured her to him with tuna. She was really hungry. We came to believe she was either lost or abandoned, and she seemed to have been on her own for a while--hence, the "feral cat" title. She appeared to be young enough for us to try to domesticate her as much as we could, so we adopted her, got her spayed and vaccinated, and brought her inside our house. Then, she wouldn't leave. She wouldn't touch the outdoors. She hid under the bed for weeks, but learned to use the litter box quickly. Phew! Eventually, she and Weasley, who was still a kitten himself, became best buds. They slept together often and were very affectionate toward each other. As time went on, about 7 or so years later, I gave birth to Cooper and brought home a baby. Harriet wasn't fond of the crying, so she vowed to be an outdoor cat, and that's when I decided that she needed an outdoor place to sleep, so I turned a cat carrier into her home. She has now been outside for almost four years.

I felt bad about Harriet's situation, as her cat carrier just didn't seem to be good enough.  I started looking at buying a cat house. Expensive! Way too expensive! Then I thought a dog house would do, but they're all on the ground, and are also expensive. No good. That's when I started imagining building a cat house for her. But, I had a voice in me thinking, "nooo. You can't do that. You don't have any experience." That all changed on February 11, 2011, when I realized I didn't need anyone to hold my hand. I can go to the lumber yard with my kid, and I can buy my own tools. Hellloooo. I'm an adult!! lol. So, over a two day period, I took Cooper to Big Creek Lumber. Yes. It took a couple of trips, and a couple more to Home Depot. But, with a plan in place, some advice, and wood cut  to my desired lengths, we came home with enough wood, tools, and other fun stuff for Harriet's shelter. And, Cooper got to go to the lumber yard and both boys got to go to Home Depot with their mom who has learned so much in the past few days!

A Day of Surprises

2-7-11

The college semester has commenced, and Ted’s back to work full time, which means I have the boys three full days and nights (till 10 ish) a week all on my own.  Today was my first day back in it solo, and, well, let’s just say it was full of surprises.

AM: Cooper and I made muffins from scratch. It was a great time. While cooking, Riley took a bubble bath and thoroughly enjoyed blowing bubbles, soaping himself with them, and splashing around. I got him out of the tub and then convinced Cooper to take a shower before the muffins were done. He agreed. After some tub drainage time had passed, I went back into the bathroom, only to find that Riley had pooped in the tub. Surprise! You see, the bubbles had covered it up, so I never knew. I had a huge mess to clean up and disinfecting to do. Cooper, by the way, thoroughly enjoyed the process of clean up and commented on Riley’s poop: “There’s a carrot.” Gross! I doubt Riley will get e-coli poisoning, but I'll be watching him closely for the next 3 days.

PM: We had the best trip to Costco in a long time! The boys sat together and hugged rather than pinched, kissed rather than hit, smiled rather than yelled. We met our budget, ordered lunch, and were on our way home. As soon as I got Riley in the car, Cooper said, “I have to go pee.” Okay. I told him to just let me get all the groceries in and get Riley out of the car. He was semi-patient, hopping all about, saying, "I can just go here on this island." "No. Not in the Costco parking lot!" I rushed the boys back in, and Cooper made it, as I knew he would. Upon returning to the car, I went to open the door, and, surprise, my keys were sitting on my seat, the doors locked, and my groceries baking away in green house temperatures. I became cranky, and my Costco experience was demoted from "the best ever" to "what a pain in my...."

As I reflect back, I find the humor in it all. I’m blessed and thoroughly privileged to live this life.  Cooper’s sleeping in my bed right now. Our last words: “I love you Cooper.” “I love you, too. I love you a lot!” And then he gave me a giant hug. Sweet.