The Drama Never Ends

Partly outdoor kitty drama, partly home project drama.

The abandoned cat I've been feeding for a year+ is not happy to see Niko on my door step now. He keeps coming to eat, then won't eat. I suppose that's because Niko growls and hisses at him all the time, though that's all he does. And to the credit of the abandoned boy, even though he's unneutered, he's not inclined to get into a fight with Niko. (Though I have seen him fighting many times with another unneutered male.)

Niko's  "I'm not impressed with the interloper" face.

Here's the interloper. He let me pat him today, was quite cuddly, even while Niko was in his "house" on my step. This is not a feral cat. Actually, it was the first time I've touched him, and I definitely was wary, but he didn't show any inclination to bite or scratch. He just wants to be loved, I think.

He gave up and walked away after the umpteenth time Mr. Handyman went in and out of the house, scaring him. And when it became clear he wasn't going to be allowed inside.

Poor boy is really rough looking. And look at his expression...broke my heart as he headed off to who-knows-where. He looks so sad, so forlorn. What if he's sick? He doesn't usually hang around like this, he normally eats and takes off.

I don't know what to do about him. Even if I could get him in Chumley's old carrier (I don't use it), I don't know if  a taxi would take us to my vet. No one wants a cat spraying or otherwise making a mess in their cab. And in spite of how much food he was getting from me this winter, he's so bony. He and Niko actually hung out on my step this afternoon, while Mr. Handyman was here. Niko in my house, this fellow right on the welcome mat. Maybe he wanted Niko's company? My two boys were shut up in the basement at the time, thank goodness.

The other "drama" involved the damned closet organizer. NEVER buy one like that! I thought all the pieces were adjustable (i.e. the rods) and easy to install, but they're not. Mr. Handyman fiddled with it for three+ hours before coming down to tell me he cut the vertical rod too short, by a couple of inches. Well, hell. So I either need a new vertical rod, if I can get just that piece, or an entirely new closet organizer. Which Mr. Handyman will pay for, of course.

This is pretty much all I have at the moment.

So while Mr. Handyman was working on that, and taking forever (it seemed to me), I started to sand the kitchen ceiling. The handyman finished it. He had to touch-up two small spots, so I'll have to sand those tomorrow or whenever. What a god-awful mess, that drywall dust. And that was the "low dust" stuff!

Trust me, it was worse than it looks here (below). And Mr. Handyman tracked it everywhere via his boots. It was a hell of a job to clean up, in spite of my draping the entire kitchen, ceiling to floor, in plastic drop cloths.

I'm nursing a beer right now, need to jump in the shower shortly and wash the dust and grime off me. Man, house projects, even seemingly simple ones, just don't go smoothly, do they?

Here's hoping everyone's had a drama-free day.

Blessings and Light to All Beings.