Dear, dear...
So, um, we'll start with good news. One happy thought, right? I have officially helped my first Cabela's customers, and I've already been told that I'm "very helpful," so go me! Admittedly, I need a bit of polishing, but, for a first day's work on live customers, pretty good. ^_^v
In lesser, more neutral news, I am freaking over verb tenses because I decided to dork out and add tenses to Mirlivas that English doesn't have (yay, aorist!)! I just hope I can remember them all. Stupid conjugations. ^_^; At least the elves aren't into declining nouns...
Onto something slightly more sucky, Adrian appears to have caught a cold, and I'm fairly sure he's managed to pass it on to Dad and me both. Bleh. Fortunately, it's not a bad cold for any of us for the most part--easily managed with a little decongestant and the occasional ibuprofen.
And now for the part that has me most nervous.
As some of you are aware, there are three cats in my house: Marbles, Sebastian and Freja. Marbles is the most temperamental of the three. She's a one-human cat, and I alone am that designated human. For pretty much everyone else, she tends to shy away/hiss/growl if they come too close--and this includes Adrian. Because of her attitude, Dad doesn't like her, and I swear he's been looking for an excuse to get rid of her for years. I think he only lets her stay because I love her, and she hasn't really done much to warrant losing her home here. Nonetheless, one thing Dad has been saying going back as far as my pregnancy is that, "If she bites the baby, she's gone," because, no matter what the circumstances, "there's no reason for her to bite him--it's completely uncalled for."
...and today, she bit Adrian.
However, let me explain the circumstances, and let you all play jury.
See, Adrian loves animals, especially those his size (like, say, cats). He especially loves to give them hugs, which tends to involve him pushing them over and laying on them. Now, while they don't like it much, Sebastian and Freja tolerate this behavior fairly quietly, but Marbles won't have it. She always growls, though she never really retaliates.
Anyway, Adrian had gone into the parlor to play the piano as Dad had let him do (he likes to play--it's cute), but then he left him basically unsupervised in there. We were just in the next room, but no one was directly watching him at the time. Next thing I know, I hear a growl, and sure enough, Adrian has gone behind the loveseat in there and is hugging Marbles. She manages to wiggle away without incident, and runs to hide under a curio cabinet of sorts in the opposite corner--a favorite "escape" place of hers when she doesn't want to be caught. Unfortunately, Adrian chased her there and dove under the cabinet to hug her more, effectively trapping her. Marbles was already less-than-happy with Adrian, and now she started to freak out a little because her special safe spot was being violated. I tried to pull Adrian off and was telling him (in a raised voice) to let her go, but if I pulled him too violently, I was likely to crack his head on the cabinet skirt, PLUS he was digging his fingers into Marbles' fur, grabbing it tightly, and pulling it, especially when I pulled on him, trying to get him to let go before she nipped. Well, Marbles really didn't like that, and so, yes, she turned and bit his arm at least thrice (I could see at least three distinct scratches), and, yes, she did draw some blood. Not much, but some.
Adrian did cry a little, but I think he was more upset by being taken away from the kitty and all the commotion than suffering pain from a cat bite, which was pretty shallow overall. I did wash them up with soap and water and put Neosporin (though no bandage) over the marks, and he seemed to not pay any attention to them the whole time.
Meanwhile, Dad rushed in and grabbed Marbles, who had tried to escape under the loveseat again, and started striking her (I think on the back or top of her head) yelling "YOU DON'T BITE THE BABY!!!"
And, yes, due to this incident, Dad then told me that "it's time to get rid of her." He said we'd have a "family discussion" about it, but was also saying that he'd try to see if her vet could find her a new home, because any shelter he'd take her too would probably euthanize her because she's so mean to people who aren't me. He says that Adrian's safety comes well before any "damned cat," and especially since there are now three small children in the family--it's just not safe to have her around.
Now, yes, Adrian's safety IS a higher concern than any pet ownership. Animals can come and go, even if they are part of the family, but children are for a lifetime. However, the injuries he received weren't bad scratches--I've gotten worse from Marbles myself, and I remember getting plenty of bites and scratches as a small child from a previous cat we had named Muffin, and I have the scars to prove it. Adrian didn't even seem too concerned about the injuries, and Marbles is a healthy indoor kitty. Besides, Marbles is a good twelve years old, nearly thirteen, and she was gotten mostly for me. I was there when we got her from the pet shop as a kitten. This is the cat that comes and sleeps on my bed for at least a few hours every night, and cries to get into my room if I'm in there with the door closed. For her to be taken away from me... She'd be so miserable. She'd probably die soon after. Yes, of course, I have concerns over my child's safety (and that of my niece and nephew), but I don't want to lose my beloved cat. I'd rather try and use the incident as a teaching tool of "Be NICE to animals and let go when they say so, Adrian, or else see what happens!" Unfortunately, I don't know if Dad will let me. He talks like it's a done deal that she'll be leaving, and I'm not expecting much support from Mom since she usually ends up taking Dad's side in most "discussions" between him and me. ;_;
As soon as possible, I want to take Marbles and Adrian and get us our own home, but this probably won't be feasible until February at the earliest. I become eligible for benefits in January, so it'll probably be February before I really have a good idea of whether or not I can survive independently on Cabela's alone after all the necessary deductions. I could try to find a second job, but my schedule's already getting fairly full with other obligations I already have, and finding babysitting would be a headache--not to mention it took nine months to become re-employed after Nelnet let me go. Another possibility is seeing about Ryan and I finding a place together for our little family and make it as a two-income household. We've not discussed this idea deeply, but we have talked about it. Doing it now would be quite a bit sooner than we had been planning (it was more something for a year or two down the road), but if I'm to keep my family intact, I may not have much choice.
...I just hope everything will turn out all right.
In lesser, more neutral news, I am freaking over verb tenses because I decided to dork out and add tenses to Mirlivas that English doesn't have (yay, aorist!)! I just hope I can remember them all. Stupid conjugations. ^_^; At least the elves aren't into declining nouns...
Onto something slightly more sucky, Adrian appears to have caught a cold, and I'm fairly sure he's managed to pass it on to Dad and me both. Bleh. Fortunately, it's not a bad cold for any of us for the most part--easily managed with a little decongestant and the occasional ibuprofen.
And now for the part that has me most nervous.
As some of you are aware, there are three cats in my house: Marbles, Sebastian and Freja. Marbles is the most temperamental of the three. She's a one-human cat, and I alone am that designated human. For pretty much everyone else, she tends to shy away/hiss/growl if they come too close--and this includes Adrian. Because of her attitude, Dad doesn't like her, and I swear he's been looking for an excuse to get rid of her for years. I think he only lets her stay because I love her, and she hasn't really done much to warrant losing her home here. Nonetheless, one thing Dad has been saying going back as far as my pregnancy is that, "If she bites the baby, she's gone," because, no matter what the circumstances, "there's no reason for her to bite him--it's completely uncalled for."
...and today, she bit Adrian.
However, let me explain the circumstances, and let you all play jury.
See, Adrian loves animals, especially those his size (like, say, cats). He especially loves to give them hugs, which tends to involve him pushing them over and laying on them. Now, while they don't like it much, Sebastian and Freja tolerate this behavior fairly quietly, but Marbles won't have it. She always growls, though she never really retaliates.
Anyway, Adrian had gone into the parlor to play the piano as Dad had let him do (he likes to play--it's cute), but then he left him basically unsupervised in there. We were just in the next room, but no one was directly watching him at the time. Next thing I know, I hear a growl, and sure enough, Adrian has gone behind the loveseat in there and is hugging Marbles. She manages to wiggle away without incident, and runs to hide under a curio cabinet of sorts in the opposite corner--a favorite "escape" place of hers when she doesn't want to be caught. Unfortunately, Adrian chased her there and dove under the cabinet to hug her more, effectively trapping her. Marbles was already less-than-happy with Adrian, and now she started to freak out a little because her special safe spot was being violated. I tried to pull Adrian off and was telling him (in a raised voice) to let her go, but if I pulled him too violently, I was likely to crack his head on the cabinet skirt, PLUS he was digging his fingers into Marbles' fur, grabbing it tightly, and pulling it, especially when I pulled on him, trying to get him to let go before she nipped. Well, Marbles really didn't like that, and so, yes, she turned and bit his arm at least thrice (I could see at least three distinct scratches), and, yes, she did draw some blood. Not much, but some.
Adrian did cry a little, but I think he was more upset by being taken away from the kitty and all the commotion than suffering pain from a cat bite, which was pretty shallow overall. I did wash them up with soap and water and put Neosporin (though no bandage) over the marks, and he seemed to not pay any attention to them the whole time.
Meanwhile, Dad rushed in and grabbed Marbles, who had tried to escape under the loveseat again, and started striking her (I think on the back or top of her head) yelling "YOU DON'T BITE THE BABY!!!"
And, yes, due to this incident, Dad then told me that "it's time to get rid of her." He said we'd have a "family discussion" about it, but was also saying that he'd try to see if her vet could find her a new home, because any shelter he'd take her too would probably euthanize her because she's so mean to people who aren't me. He says that Adrian's safety comes well before any "damned cat," and especially since there are now three small children in the family--it's just not safe to have her around.
Now, yes, Adrian's safety IS a higher concern than any pet ownership. Animals can come and go, even if they are part of the family, but children are for a lifetime. However, the injuries he received weren't bad scratches--I've gotten worse from Marbles myself, and I remember getting plenty of bites and scratches as a small child from a previous cat we had named Muffin, and I have the scars to prove it. Adrian didn't even seem too concerned about the injuries, and Marbles is a healthy indoor kitty. Besides, Marbles is a good twelve years old, nearly thirteen, and she was gotten mostly for me. I was there when we got her from the pet shop as a kitten. This is the cat that comes and sleeps on my bed for at least a few hours every night, and cries to get into my room if I'm in there with the door closed. For her to be taken away from me... She'd be so miserable. She'd probably die soon after. Yes, of course, I have concerns over my child's safety (and that of my niece and nephew), but I don't want to lose my beloved cat. I'd rather try and use the incident as a teaching tool of "Be NICE to animals and let go when they say so, Adrian, or else see what happens!" Unfortunately, I don't know if Dad will let me. He talks like it's a done deal that she'll be leaving, and I'm not expecting much support from Mom since she usually ends up taking Dad's side in most "discussions" between him and me. ;_;
As soon as possible, I want to take Marbles and Adrian and get us our own home, but this probably won't be feasible until February at the earliest. I become eligible for benefits in January, so it'll probably be February before I really have a good idea of whether or not I can survive independently on Cabela's alone after all the necessary deductions. I could try to find a second job, but my schedule's already getting fairly full with other obligations I already have, and finding babysitting would be a headache--not to mention it took nine months to become re-employed after Nelnet let me go. Another possibility is seeing about Ryan and I finding a place together for our little family and make it as a two-income household. We've not discussed this idea deeply, but we have talked about it. Doing it now would be quite a bit sooner than we had been planning (it was more something for a year or two down the road), but if I'm to keep my family intact, I may not have much choice.
...I just hope everything will turn out all right.