The first, and probably the least consequential, is the 2 kittens I adopted almost a year ago.
We adopted them from the local Humane Society. I had planned to adopt only 1 kitten. But when I looked at kittens in the adoption center at PetSmart, these 2 were together in one cage. Every time I saw them they were playing with each other or sleeping curled up together. I didn't have the heart to split them up, so they both came home with me. (in a cardboard box!)
It was not an easy decision to adopt a cat. Our last cat, Lunch, died in 2008 at the age of 20. His was the first of many deaths we faced over the next 2 years. My husband and I were both a little anxious about bringing anyone else into our lives. The idea of becoming attached to anyone, 2 footed or 4 footed, and then losing that attachment was more than either one of us was ready for. But I found myself missing the companionship of an animal, and Pat said he wouldn't stop me if I wanted to adopt.
They went through a few names before we settled on 'Rusty' (the darker cat with the white nose in the back of the cuddler) and 'Pip Squeak'. If you could hear Pip try to meow, you'd understand her name. They are energetic and affectionate, and their very presence has made our home happier. In pictures they look like happy domestic animals. But they channel their wilder ancestors very nicely. Once they were neutered and had full-time pet door privileges, they decided they live outside and visit the house for food and a warm place to sleep when it's chilly. This makes cleaning the litter box a simple task. Instead we have to clean up mouse carcasses and organs, feathers and dead birds, and half an apocylpse worth of grasshoppers. They've brought us 2 snakes, several live mice, and a steady supply of big growling beetles. One day we found legs and a head that looked like a tarantula.
And within the last 2 months they've challenged us with a skunking, an abcess, a flea outbreak, and tapeworms.
The next change was my father's death in March. It was not a surprise; his condition had been declining for the last few years. But as I learned when my mother died over 10 years ago, expecting it doesn't make it easier. This took much of my time, energy, and attention this spring. There's more to be said about our relationship. But there's not much else I will say in a public forum.
I'd wanted to include a picture of him here. The only pictures I can find on my computer show him looking old and tired, not the Dad I remember.
And finally, I'm changing jobs. When I was finishing my training, I considered doing a fellowship to pursue a sub-specialty. Economics and exhaustion won out and I got a 'real job'. It pays well. However, over the years, the job seemed to take more from me than the work gave me back. As our finances go more secure, I thought more and more about doing the subspecialty training. So I applied, interviewed, went through one of the fellowship matches, and at 9 am local time on June 22 got the news that my life is about to change drastically. I hope it's for the better. I'll be moving, with the cats but without my husband, to Chicago. We lived there 4 years while I was in residency. But this time, I will NOT live in the suburbs and commute.
The reactions from my co-workers were in the range of 'congratulations' and 'how exciting!' I'd like to think they're supportive. I hope they're not just glad to be rid of me.
It's going to mean a huge decrease in pay for the year. And the cats will have to learn to live indoors full time. My work hours I don't know about. Since the end of my training, new restrictions on work hours have been implemented. I think as a physician in private practice, my schedule would violate some of the limits.
I hope to be posting more soon. I have a couple of hand-written drafts of things I realized while on retreat a few weeks ago. One of them is that I have to be more conscious of what's going on in my life instead of just giving it the least attention needed to get from morning to night, while spending most of my mental energy wishing for things to be better. And writing stuff down helps me to clarify what's real and what's possible.
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