Sassy Cat Adopts New Humans...

Being petless for over 5 years now, we started surfing Petfinder to determine a suitable pet for us.  With condo assn limitations,a dog would have to be under 30# and no more than 2 cats.  One of us wanted a dog; but not a purse pup. One wanted a cat with very stringent requirements - declawed (also known as special needs cat - exclusive indoors due to our mated pair of bald eagle neighbors), mellow demeanor, quiet meow voice (not a Siamese yowl), soft fur, small size and interesting markings.  Tall order for cats up for adoption and not all things one can adequately evaluate in a quick meet and greet. 
We had a few near misses. 
Mr. M wanted a pair of litter mates... two cats... I wasn't even sure about a single cat. 
One cat looked great on paper, but hid in the closet the entire time we visited. 
Another had a prohibitive "rehoming fee" of $350. 
And a third elicited no response from the owners.

One evening, I surfed Craig's List - which is undeniably the pet rehoming source of which nightmares are generated.  After passing a few listings, I stopped at one that seemed almost perfect - 9yo black and white cow spotted cat, nearby was being rehomed due to Grandma going to nursing home and kid being severely allergic when the family tried to take Grandma's cat in.  After a brief email exchange, we had an address and a visit appointment.  We were going to see if Sassy Gal would like to adopt us... since we KNEW it wouldn't really be our decision, but hers.

Just prior to leaving, I was preparing chicken to marinate and bake for dinner - in retrospect a good cat attractant of raw meat juices on my hands.  I should have dabbed a bit behind each ear for good measure.  We located the home and the cat was immediately curious about us.  Very soft coat, mellow demeanor and looked like a go.  We had PLANNED to come back on Sunday and get her as we had a large family gathering planned.  Not conducive for new cat acclimation...  But her owner wanted to have her out of the house before the kids returned from school - so we loaded up her food, litter box and carrier and had a yowling, peeing, stinky ride home... her, not me or Mr. M.

We arrived at home and she promptly hid under the first bed she encountered for almost 3 days... then moved to the next bedroom and did the same... we had fleeting glimpses of her during those days.  She found her box, food and water with no mishaps.  We left her with all her accoutrements in the large bedroom for the duration of the large gathering... that way I also didn't have to clean that room! 
The next morning she was out and exploring the rest of the house, expressing her satisfaction with tail held high, purring and half-slit eyes.  All good signs according to all of the cat body language research I had been feverishly completing online.  She has now laid claim to the rocking chair and top floor landing of the stairway as her domain.  Queen of all she surveys.

With each move to a new area, I would grab her by the scruff and start her orientation from the litter box so she could explore at her own pace orienting from her familiar materials.  At some point, she decided by the scruff grab that I must be the alpha cat and has addressed me as such. 
Note:  I'm NOT typically a cat person... we got a cat so Mr. M would have company while he works remotely.  Mr. M is jealous...
I'm getting the company at bedtime.
I'm getting the leg rubs.
I'm getting the lap time with purrs and I have yet to clean a litter box or feed her. 
Your cat; your duties is our agreement. 
I guess I need to grab more folks by the scruff of the neck and show them who's boss...

Rule of Life?

Developing My Rule of Life - Lenten 1.0 project
Lent is the 40 day period in the Church year where we reenact the time Jesus spent in the desert

by determining our own desert - or journey to navigate for 8 weeks until Easter to improve our
relationship with self, others and ultimately our Greater Being.
We used to give up something like candy or skydiving, but this year the challenge was to spend 9
weeks with a small group exploring a program called The Way of Love. One aspect of this program
was to develop a Rule of Life... a rule of life is a guideline, if you will, to make sure your life path aligns
with true values.

Let me just start by saying, I’m kind of a rebel by nature.  So rules in and of themselves don’t always
appeal to me. I need to know the how and why to comply with rules.  I’m newly retired and having just
broken the rigid structure of the work day in my life - I am definitely in need of some guidelines to keep
me on track.  

In the course of our move, I found a Rule of Life I composed around 2012, and it was LENGTHY. Many
of the goals and aspirations remained the same - to improve care of self, cultivate healthy relationships,
and positively affect those around me in community, while continuing to grow on the inside and reduce
growth on the outside. I hadn't made much progress in that direction, truthfully.

THIS time, it was important to me that I be able to recall my guidelines on one hand with no more than
FIVE words for each objective.

My Basics are these:

Turn - Pause and Self Check Daily

Learn - Carry Forward Day by Day (or other pocket devotional books)

Pray - Jesus in My Passenger Seat

Worship - Be Fully Present at Services

Bless - Praise the Positive

Go - Speak Act and Live with Integrity

Rest - Make and Take Time for ME

Are these always easy to recall?  Some more than others - if I get at least one daily, I’m doing better
than I was before.  Am I doing them all well and consistently, not always. But I get each new day to
start over, and God knows I’m trying, and my God is OK with best efforts.

TURN - Pause and self-check daily - Is what I’m doing right now on or off my chosen path?

Playing internet games? Binge watching TV shows?  NOPE

Enjoying nature?  Spending time with a friend? ABSOLUTELY

LEARN - Carry Forward Day by Day - to reflect on or pass on to others who need it more than I that
day.  I know where to get another copy.

When I have to wait - I have a positive action I can indulge in to make me more patient and find a
take-away for further reflection.

PRAY - Jesus in Your Passenger Seat - Our group turned me on to two new prayer concepts; putting
Jesus in the passenger seat to talk about life and Popcorn prayer. If someone pops into your mind,
pray for them.  It can’t hurt and might help even if you don’t know WHY they popped into your head.

WORSHIP - Be Fully Present at Service - Believe it or not, I have been known to compile my grocery
list during church and not get a THING out of the whole service.  You get out of it what you put into it.
By reframing my focus, I find worship much more enriching. Cell phone off - even for texts from the
boys.  It can wait an hour or so.

BLESS - Praise the Positive - I have a hard time evangelizing and spreading the Word to others.  
I do much better to help people see their own good, and I’m trying to focus on the positive in the
world - some days it IS a real challenge. I recently called a friend brave for what she saw as a small
action.  She responded to that positive energy right away, it was enlightening.

GO - Speak Act and Live with Integrity - Don’t speak, act or live in ways that do not enrich my life
experience or the life experience of others.  Integrity is one of my favorite words as it encompasses the
goal for each day - DO what is really meaningful.

REST - Make Time for ME - In the safety talk on airplanes, remember the line “Adjust your oxygen
mask before assisting others?” That is great advice for life, too.  You cannot care for others when
depleted, burnt out, tired, hungry, irritable or impatient. Learning to say NO to some commitments and
keep your self-care time sacred is a hard lesson for most women, and men as well.  The housekeeping
and errands will wait while you take a short nap, get a haircut, take a yoga class or exercise.

These are not yet automatic.  They ARE on a 3x5 card in my wallet.  Some day they may BECOME
automatic, but I’m not on a race, I’m on a faith journey.