random thoughts – Day 1,554 – (Thursday) – calm in the storm

It was hot outside again today, so I stayed inside, which was easy with it being a remote work day. It was comfortable in the house all day, until the A/C kicked in with full force around 4:30 and then I was freezing. After supper, I went outside to the deck to warm up because my feet were frozen and when I came back in I grabbed the couch throw. I need to pull out the manual and adjust the thermostat.

Storm rolling in.

The weather was changing. Thunderstorm watch alerts popped up on the weather widget on the phone and by 7:30, the house was as dark as it is at that time late in the year. Outside, the trees swayed wildly in the wind, thunder rumbled in the distance, and the streetlight came on across the street. The clouds over the house were gray, but a lovely blueish gray color and not the angrier mean gray color.

By 8:00 the rain had swept in which worked out for me and the parched flowers out front. I’m good at noticing things like droopy, thirsty plants, and even better at completely forgetting about it by the time I walk back inside to the watering can and hydration source. In barely eight minutes, water was pooled at the foot of the front stairs, the gutter over the front door resembled a waterfall, and a rainwater lake had formed at the usual spot at the end of the driveway. Lightning flickered. The air was noticeably cooler and refreshing. The weather app says it will rain for two hours, and it’s scary sometimes how accurate the app is.  

Unlike the many rain storms last fall and all winter, this one doesn’t make me nervous. Recent commutes over the river used the time stopped in traffic to look at the river and analyze the water level. There was excitement at seeing the rocks, which mean lower volume. When the Merrimack is low, so is Beaver Brook. When Beaver Brook is low, my basement is dry.

Stair princess.

During the storm, Kiki lounged on the stairs, where she had been all day. The stairs have replaced the armchair and behind the couch as the preferred daytime hangout spot. Later at night, she camps out under the dining room table.

Except for the one terrible time I chased her with the carrier to take her to the vet and the two times I chased her with the squirty syringe for her roundworm medicine, she is a mostly calm house princess. It seems the trauma of the vet visit and medication have been either forgotten or forgiven. Either way I am okay with it.

Kiki no longer runs and hides every time I am enter the room she is in. She greets me with a meow in the morning and approaches to let me stroke her face. At night, she lets me feed her treats. Treat by treat, stroke by stroke, and day by day, we are making progress. And in a thunderstorm, she is as cool as a cucumber.