making do

*disclaimer: this is just a story about a realization I had, however, if just reading words like throw up makes you queasy, please don't continue. I don't want to be accused of making someone sick just from reading my blog...

it's nice having cats rather than kids sometimes. they go in the cat box, they eat and drink when they want to, and I can leave them at the apartment all day long without having to worry. of course, I still have to clean out their cat box, and feed and water them, but for the most part it's generally easy. I've only been really stressed out about them on a few occasions. like when I got them both fixed (and declawed in rory's case...poor kitty); when I left rory with someone else for the very first time; when I left both of them at home for a week when I went to utah (I had a friend coming to feed and water them); when fitz realized that he could jump on the railing on the balcony and walk around (I thought he was going to get onto the neighbor's balcony or worse - into the tree right next to mine; or when rory got out of the apartment or got loose from her leash (yes, I do walk them outside sometimes). but it is really stressful when they get sick and there is nothing I can do for them. for the most part they just throw up and then they are fine, which is good, because then I just have to clean up the mess they've made on the floor. but I still feel bad. I've realized that I can tell when one of them is about to get sick, and I'll spare all of you the description of the noise that they make. anyway, fitz has made that noise a couple of times over the past few weeks, but I've always gotten to him a little too late, and then I get to clean up the mess. but today, I heard him make the noise and promptly put him outside. he got sick all over the balcony, but instead of being more formed, it was pretty watery. and now I am in a pickle. I can't just spray it off with water because of crazy dude who lives downstairs. I could try and clean it up with rags, but then I have to do laundry, and it's not cheap to do laundry here, especially for just a couple of rags. I could clean it up with rags and then rinse them out and hang them outside to dry, but for being on my way to becoming a nurse, I really hate throw up. a lot. I was wishing that I had that magic power throw up removal stuff - you know the stuff that you put on the throw up and it dries up, then you sweep and vacuum it all up? well, unfortunately I don't have any of that here. so, to the point of this entire blog. I was reading my email and other peoples blogs, contemplating how I was going to clean the mess up, wishing that I had something that would make the watery mess clump, when I realized that my cat had used the cat box. (realized=smelled, yes smelled). and then - TADA! my cat litter is the kind that is supposed to clump. so I quickly put some cat litter over the mess outside, and now I am just waiting to see what will happen. yeah, it's more like I really wanted to share my amazing thought with the world, but also if it doesn't work, I wouldn't have anything to blog about, and then you would all miss out on reading this long and slightly disgusting rant/realization about nothing really. so I am off to go clean, and whether or not the cat litter clean up of 2008 really works will be a mystery to everyone but me.