Curse Of The Tax Return Part 1

Mr Kitty 

This past week has been one "crisis" after another.  While I am very grateful for the things we are blessed with, such as family, a house that is big enough (just barely lol) for us all, Kris' job, and our generally good health, when something comes in to burst the little bubble that I call my life I tend to forget these things.

Things had been going along pretty good, almost too good if you ask me.  Kris is starting to enjoy his job more, Autumn's behavior got better, and the other kids weren't hating school.  I had a bit of a handle on the housework and was getting out more.  Clinical depression tends to make me hermit-y and I've been trying to fight it.

When you build yourself up the devil will knock you down.  Yes, I believe in evil.  I believe in Satan.  How can I not if I profess my faith in Jesus and my belief in the Bible as the inerrant Word of God!  One thing I do not want to be is a hypocrite (so hard).  And I do feel that once and awhile a thorn is sent to my side to keep me and my ridiculous (and mostly secret) ego in check.

The things that have happened to me this week are not life threatening, they are not disastrous or devastating (well they are starting to make me feel that way but they really aren't) and in the grand scheme of things they really do not matter any more than a drop of water matters when it disappears into a lake.  But unfortunately things always seem worse when the little stuff piles up and makes a big mess. 

Where is the snow???  Its February in Vermont!!

My front "yard"

Last Friday after the third of a series of 40+ degree days here in Vermont (its supposed to be WINTER) the small bit of snow melted, and it rained heavily.  Our house is apparently a low spot for the immediate area and all the water running down the sidewalk and sitting on the ice that fills our front yard started to channel towards our house and directly into the large well window in our basement.  That window can only drain so fast, as it has gravel at the bottom, and it overwhelmed the seal of the cement and poured in.  Just as I was texting my friend about how we were lucky so far our basement hadn't--oh crap!!!

Seriously I was walking down the basement stairs writing that with my thumbnails when I stepped in and splash!

We had gotten cocky, comfortable even, after the flooding of 2011 Spring had given us 6 weeks of a living hell (again, not nearly as bad as the real Hell).

Last Spring's fiasco

We had to go out this time and buy a utility pump.  $100 later I was standing out in the driveway pumping water from the large pad of ice to the backyard as far as it would go.  Wearing blue rubber boots with red tomatoes on them.  Sexy.  My toes kept going numb as I stood out there with my garden shovel, hacking channels in the ice to try to divert the water away from the house.  You may be asking, "Where was Kris?"  Well I will tell you. He was furiously trying to get everything off the basement floor and back into the garage just like last year.  I was quite enjoying myself hacking the crap out of that ice. Sure, I couldn't extend my forearm completely for about 4 days but you should have seen my biceps.  No flap underneath!! 

The basement was only the first little issue.  That resolved within 2 days.  The water actually drained out through the cracks in the floor and we shop vac'd the rest.  During the watery part of the incident we had to purge out my sister's cat that we had decided to take on as she moved to Virginia suddenly and couldn't bring her along.  She had been hiding in the basement for 3 weeks from the circus that is my life.  I'm a bit jealous.  She came upstairs to the chagrin of Shadow and Mr. Kitty and at first things seemed like they would be tolerable.

Kitkit, the former basement cat

Then on Wednesday morning Alicia said, "Mom, the couch smells funny right there" and pointed to the cushions on the right arm of our beautiful 2 year old sectional.  There was a large wet splotch that covered half each of 2 cushions and also had soaked into the upper cushion flap that you lean against.  It smelled like girl cat pee (yes there is a difference) and it was a very large amount so I knew it was not our 6 month old kitten.  Kitkit (basement cat) apparently had decided to mark her territory.  I always thought only males did that.  Now I know better. 

Shadow, the mostly innocent cat.  Pretty sure she peed on the first pee though...can't prove it!

I decided to deal with it later as I had to get Alex to his morning band practice.  I ran upstairs and immediately could smell something foul.  I kept saying to myself "please not on my bed anywhere but my bed".  And there it was.  A steaming pile of cat shit right on the soft blanket on my as-of-yet unmade bed.  I screamed obscenities, flushed the pile of crap down the toilet, and dealt with the blanket later.  A few hours later I walked into the living room.  There was a smaller fresh pile of cat pee on the same spot (but where the cushion had been, as I was washing it) and another pile of cat shit on the throw rug.  You can see where I'm going with this. 

Kitkit had had an appointment with the shelter all set up when we decided to try taking her into our home, and I'm glad we did not cancel it.  We really wanted to keep her as her personality is great and she's super sweet...but three cats is too many.  On top of all this I came down with a nasty head cold that required me to keep a tissue shoved up my nostrils at all times or disgusting things would flow out of my nose.  You could say I'd reached my breaking point.

Even with Kitkit gone Mr Kitty continued to pee on the couch.  The couch has been torn apart for 1 week now and our bedroom has become the new living room, with Autumn saying to me "Mommy sit on couch with me" and pointing to my pillow.  Last night I had to brush pretzel crumbs out of my sheets.  Not cool!!!

Too be continued...