Continuing with the ABC challenge, I am on J today. All last week and this week, I felt that I was scrambling to catch all the balls flying in the air. I am writing for two groups, trying to finish my second memoir and keep my blog up to date and interesting, plus all the incidents happening at home. This week, I got both my writing projects finished in time, wrote a piece for the Garden Teas I will be doing in the coming months, visited a couple of friends, and tried to eat dinner regularly. My neighbor was kind and provided one on Tuesday night, a lifesaver. And then there is the management of my two dogs. That shouldn’t be too difficult, I hear you say. It isn’t, until you have a morning like this one!

Here’s the story.

It is raining this morning. It has probably been raining all night. I have been reading for two hours, or to be really truthful, I’ve been reading and dozing. As I doze, stories invent themselves in my head. These are not stories I am writing at the moment but ones stored somewhere in the recesses of my brain, which I believe I will write one day, and publish a brilliant novel. This is my dream anywhere, and it keeps me from going crazy when I can’t remember any of those ideas I had.

I am warm and comfortable. Henry and Daisy are fast asleep and will stay asleep if I don’t move. It is 9:30 a.m. the phone rings. I look first at the clock and wonder who is calling on a Thursday morning at this time. I check the phone. It is a call I should take. “Good morning,” I think I say brightly. The person tells me their name, although I have it on caller ID, and it is the only reason I have answered. They talk. I listen. I am thinking of the context of the book I am reading. My silence seems appropriate. The reasons for calling are defined, and I respond. All is well.

I hear a thump. Daisy’s sleepy head has fallen against the wall. I moved. She is awake, and so is Henry. Before my feet hit the floor, I know I must use the bathroom. It is urgent, and if I attend to Daisy first, my puddle will be worse! I hurry, but by the time I am done, Daisy is also done, and Henry is out of bed looking at me for reassurance. I hesitate for a moment, wondering what to do first, then I pat the bed, and he jumps up with my help. One crisis was avoided. He is safe from walking in the puddle and transferring wet foot marks over the kitchen floor.

In my scramble out of bed, my glasses have disappeared, and I have not put on slippers. I step gingerly over the wet pee pad and fail to see the puddle that has missed the second pad and seeped underneath. Before Daisy can turn around and walk back through it, I scoop her up, hopping slightly, and deposit her in the kitchen, shutting the living room door so her wandering is curtailed to one area.

I return with the scissors, wet cloths, and disinfectant. I cleaned the floor and cut away the area of the pad that was wet. I am an economist. Yes, I hear many of you go, eew! But the pads are expensive, plus I am thinking of the landfill. Why throw away a pad if only half is used? With my bedroom now clean and smelling fresh, I reach for the coffee pot. Ah! There is a nice big cup left, just what I need. While I wait for it to heat in the microwave, I hear Daisy clattering around between my shoes and Henry’s food bowl in utility. As I reach for the broom to sweep the kitchen floor, she gets between me and the broom and almost gets bumped on the head.

 It is now an hour later, and my day is about to begin. What will I do? It is still raining, and both Henry and I dislike walking in the rain. It is unproductive and stressful if we try. He has taught me to realize that he would prefer to hold it until there is a break in the clouds.

There is so much I could do, the artwork waiting upstairs, finish sweeping and washing the floors, Daisy makes a mess when eating. Maybe even take a shower and get dressed. Or I will sit at the computer and write because inspiration has just hit. It is done. Now, it is time for the shower.

And, just in case you don’t understand me yet—this is meant to make you laugh or at least smile and see the funny side of my day.

Thank you for reading and being part of my juggling life this morning. EJP