On a side note I HATE how they reduced Angelina’s lips in this promo photo.

I was looking at an old Vizionz post. It was about this song, from this movie and I realized I love this song still. I love the movie still. Gloria is an underrated vocalist. This post is not what you think though.

My name is Nicole and I am a cat lady.

My little one has a cat and a turtle. She loves her animals. I love her. After both our lives blew up spring of 2022 she needed time to figure out what her life was going to look like. She owns a home on the East Coast and has business there she needs to handle and manage from time to time. Trekking a cat and turtle cross country is not as possible as one might think. The demographics of her apartment community changed and she had no one to look after her animals. I volunteered as tribute.

It was a small thing I thought. One thing I could do to support her as she supports me. Listen, she’s spent many a night listening to me and still loving me through the chaos I could feed a cat right? I had her pack up the kids and bring them over to my place.

Along the way though, the kids changed and so did I. The turtle loved the open space here and my patio. He’d walk for hours out there and sit in the sun and be happy turtle. The cat got a perch and could sit in the window and watch birds and squirrels.

I’d said I didn’t want to be responsible for any other living creatures. I was still low key annoyed she’d gotten me a plant I had to water. That plant is still alive though go figure. I didn’t want pets, but I wanted my little one to have the freedom SHE needed to plan her next steps. Over the past year and a half the pets have spent about half their time here at my place. If you follow me on IG or the clock apps you have seen my #AdventuresinBabysitting hash tag and the numerous videos I’ve created of my step kids.

It seems I’ve done such a good job babysitting that it’s allowed her to make a move I knew was coming but doesn’t sting less now that it’s happened. It also seems I’ve done such a good job in babysitting that I love those animals. The little one is here for a few weeks before she heads east again and I didn’t want her to be by herself in the apartment. I have reasons and they are good ones so I packed up some of the cat’s things and headed to the city. Now this cat doesn’t listen to me at all, does everything I tell her not to, does not respect my authority…you know she’s a normal cat. I spend a lot of time telling the cat no, don’t do that, its not time to eat etc. The cat doesn’t cuddle, and is not terribly affectionate.

I felt a way though as we got closer to the little one’s apartment. I also noticed that the cat had peed in her carrier. Without hesitation I pulled over, let her out, and brought her onto my lap. I closed my jacket around her and instead of picking up the food I was planned headed to the little one’s place. I called her and asked her to bring down a blanket, our daughter was wet and cold. I would go get food after but we needed to take care of Micah first.

I literally drove through the streets of the city, with a cat on my lap. I whispered in her ear and as traffic lights allowed pet and soothed her. I told her it was all going to be ok. I also looked cute AF. I was wearing all black and my favorite cropped jacket. When we pulled up at the apartment, I was covered in cat hair and smelling like cat pee and all I was worried about was getting her into the house and out of the relative cold. When we got into the apartment I bathed her. Have you ever given a cat a bath? Listen, that was all the cardio and yoga I need for a week. [I still hit the bike and did PT this morning though]

I stood in the bed room as I finally got out of my hairy and pissy clothes and admitted I love that cat.

I am an old cat lady.

And yes I would rather scoop shit twice a day than deal with the fragility of mediocre men, and I am unapologetic about that.

The one exception to that is the man who wants me to come up to Sac for the week. I am considering it even though his days will be full of team meetings and practice and games. He talks about his native country with such love and said he wants to show it to me. I didn’t tell him I don’t have a passport yet, and that I promised the first stamp to someone else. A girl has to be able to keep some secrets, but the fact that I love my step children is not one of them.