So today is my last day of vacation before heading back to work (and then on to an interview to see if I still have a job at the end of the summer...ugh!). I've been off for the past two weeks, and have enjoyed every moment; perfect weather, lots of time for vegetable gardening, cleaning up my front yard, getting the bunny room cleared up, and many long, wonderful walks with The Dog. So, since this was to be my last day off before heading back to the office, I figured I would spend most of it relaxing, sitting in the sun, taking one last long stroll, and vegging out (once dishes and washes and stuff are done). However, as with everything in life, things never quite turn out the way you expect.
I usually get up around 7-7:30 in the morning. Today, however, I slept in (not intentionally) and The Dog woke me up at almost 9 o'clock. So I rolled out of bed and looked out the window. Ugh...rain. It's soggy and grey outside...so scratch the long walk off my list. Ah well, no worries. So I go into the bathroom and get ready for the day. Whilst I'm in there, The Dog (who normally has taken to heading back to bed when I first get up) comes to the bathroom door, telling me in her squirmy dog way that she has to GO. So off to the back door we head, and I leave the door open just a crack so Kaya can let herself back in if she wants. In the meantime, I head to the bedroom to get dressed. Of course on my way there I hear the frantic clawing of Yofi, trying to tunnel his way through the wall since he doesn't yet possess opposable thumbs (darned those doorknobs anyway!). So - not really thinking - I open the door to the rabbit room, let Yofi out, and head to the bedroom.
A couple of moments later it sinks in: Yofi, loose...back door, open. I scramble from my bedroom, tripping over items as I'm trying to get a danged turtleneck sweater over my head, not able to see anything, and call "Yofi! Yofi!". I get to the back door, turtleneck still only partially on, in time to see the Yofster's hind end hightailing it into the (wet) backyard. Out I run after him, yelling at him to get his fuzzy little bunny butt back into the house. Rain is now splashing down on my arms as they flail in a desperate attempt to pull sweater over head...unsuccessfully, of course. What follows is roughly three or four minutes of me running through the grass in pursuit of a rabbit who is now kicking up his heels, "Yeehaw!!!*ing himself in and out of shrubs and undergrowth. Finally, just as I am about to abandon hope catching the little rotter (who did this on purpose, I'm sure), he stops, looks straight at me, and then casually hops himself back indoors. I follow closely behind, feet and pants now, of course, thoroughly wet.
I take a head count, satisfying myself that everyone who should be inside, is inside, and then I go back to my morning...making my breakfast. This should be easy, right? Just as the eggs hit the frying pan and I begin to scramble them, I hear a sound that is most definitely not music to the day-offer's ears: "Rowrrrr...rowwwrrrr..."
It took me a moment to realize what this was...and only a moment more for it to grow in desperation..."ROWWRRR....ROWWWRRRRRRR!"
Fritz! I run from room to room, searching for my elderly cat, locating him (of course) in the middle of my bed, with that all too familiar "I'z gonna frow up. Mom" look on his face. So I whisk him off the bed and then begin dashing through the house, looking for a suitable (and close) place to set him down so he can 'frow up' in peace. Finally I opt for the bathroom floor - since it is in dire need of a scrubbing anyway - just in time for him to toss his hairballs. And that should be the end of it...but no, wait, there's more...once Fritz finishes vomitting there, off he runs to the hallway to repeat the process again...and then off to the kitchen for a third and final performance. In the meantime I'm trying to follow him, taking note of where he 'frows', at the same time desperately wondering what I did with the roll of paper towels. But this can never be enough. No, The Dog decides to join the party, also following Fritz ('hey, what's he leaving on the floor? Is it edible?') while I yell at her. This, of course, piques Yofi's curiosity as well, and I see him dash from the bunny room to also join in on the fun. So now it's me following Cat, noting his points of hairball deposits, scanning the horizon for the elusive paper towel, and yelling, "Kaya! No!! Don't touch! Don't eat!" and "Yofi! No!! Get away from that! Watch your feet! Go away!!!" In the end I did manage to get it all sorted out; no wayward rabbits binkying in the rain and mud, frowups cleaned, nothing eaten that shouldn't have been, nothing tromped in (or ears dragged through) that shouldn't have been, and carpet and bed safe from harm.
This, however, is not how I'd planned to start my last day off. Maybe next time I will sleep in, just a little bit longer.
And the funny thing about Anna's ears...when I adopted her, they were upright; but ever so slowly, after I got Yofi, Anna's ears headed downward, almost as if she were copying the Yofster's style. (I suspect that Anna is secretly a diva who just *has* to sport the latest fashion trends.)
