There are times when the stresses of the day or anxiety for the morrow conspire to rob me of sleep . Despite calcium and warm milk...despite essential lavender oil , sniffed and slathered ...despite everything I can think of... there is no dozing in Mudville ! After several successive nights of such joy , I found myself "hitting the wall " one afternoon and decided to try to nap . All the directions for the success thereof were duly followed...quiet , dark , warm , comfortable , calm !...aaaand ...we're off...
Sometime later , unwanted consciousness came in the form of hot puffs of fish breath . Prying up the edge of the sleep mask ( remember ? DARK !) , I found myself face-to-face...okay , nose-to-nose...with the Ever Expanding Cat . She'd taken her usual running start from the hallway , launched by a flying leap onto my bed and was checking to see what I was up to . The implied conversation went something like this :
" Grammie ? Grammie ?? What are you doing , huh ? How come you're not moving ? Aren't you going to pet me ? PET ME ! At this point , she forcefully head-butts me and seems surprised when the subject of her attentions burrows further down into the covers to avoid her advances .
Cats , who can seem obtuse by human standards at times , are not stupid . She suddenly realizes the spot she occupies next to me is now warm and cozy , and decides to take advantage of the situation . There is much circling and kneading , adjusting the area to her specifications . What follows is not a slipping into sleep , but a full and thorough bath...complete with slurping and snuffling !! It is maddening to restrain myself , but wisdom dictates absolute stillness or the whole process will repeat itself !
She finally is satisfied with the results of her diligence and goes to sleep . Somehow , I am more exhausted than when this all began ! My eyes close and the blessed drifting begins...almost asleep... at the edge of consciousness , there is a persistent noise....she's snoring !
Hehehehe.
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