The most exciting thing to happen in my life recently was getting a new vacuum. My old vacuum had fallen apart the last time I used it. The hoses had holes in them, the roller had stopped moving, the handle had come apart, and the suction was extremely minimal. Throwing it away was a simple decision. Picking a new vacuum was my new decision. I did my usual research, made a choice of a cordless vacuum, and went to the store to buy it. Patti was with me at the store and convinced me that the cordless vacuum was not right. It would be convenient for some things, but inconvenient for most things. In the end, I got the same vacuum as the old one in a new model.
I haven’t talked about Archie in a while, so here I go. Archie is our outside cat who many times looks like an outside cat because of all the dirt and other items in his fur. The other day, I decided to try to brush some of the crap out of his fur. I got the cat brush from the house and brushed his back. It’s always a safe place to start. His tail is long and fluffy. Sticky burrs cling to it as if attracted by a magnet. To brush them out, I must watch that I’m not pulling too hard. If they don’t come out by just brushing them, they might have to be cut out. This is hard enough with an indoor cat. Outdoor cats will attack you if you pull too hard. Archie’s favorite trick is biting when he’s had enough, or he feels like you’re playing with him. The bite from play feels the same as an attack.
The almost impossible place to brush any cat is his undercarriage. Just touching a cat’s belly can only be done when the cat is sleeping. Some cats like to lounge out with their bellies fully exposed. If you know the cat can take their belly being touched, you can approach. Otherwise, it is a dangerous area to get to. Being an outside cat means that Archie’s belly gets dirty, but it also means he is wary of anything close to his stomach. I try to distract his head while brushing what I can get to of his belly. He quickly becomes disinterested in the distraction when he feels the brush touch him. Most of the time, I must give up after brushing what I can.
We still haven’t tackled the last big job in Patti’s kitchen remodel, which is the sink. On one of my days off, there were a few minor jobs to work on. One was a spice rack that slides out from beside a cabinet. It works, but it’s still flimsy. We bought more wood so I can secure it more. The hard part is finding places to screw it in. I secured parts but blocked my access to other parts. If I must, I’ll unscrew the spice rack and add the parts I should have to secure it. Sometimes, you need to step back to advance forward.
Yesterday, I was sick. It has been years since I can remember being sick. I woke up in the middle of the night and my stomach was hurting. Attempting to get up, I knew that puking was a possibility. My whole body was aching. I took off my eye mask to see the clock and saw the world was not stationary. I tried to focus but my vision kept sliding endlessly. When I was close to getting up, Patti came back from the restroom. I asked her to get a bucket. She did, and I held onto the bucket as I slowly got up.
I walked with the bucket shakily to the restroom. I made it without puking. Sitting on the new squishy toilet seat I got recently, I worked on trying to get my eyes to quit recreating an earthquake. I could focus my right eye, eventually. My left eye took longer, but it stopped shaking. I went to the bathroom before I left. I went back to bed without further incident. The whole thing took about an hour and a half out of my sleep. I did not go to work the next day. The problem probably has something to do with my diet. I’ve added more salt to my diet but should add more. Most people get too much salt in their diet. I went for many years with no salt in my diet. It’s a work in progress.
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