As people are leaping out of bed to romantic surprises, rushing to the mailbox to check for large red envelopes or heading to work in eager anticipation of a delivery from the florist, I am contemplating another valentine’s day on my own. Actually, that’s not totally correct as I do have a new love in my life but it’s quite a volatile relationship. He’s also proving to be a bit of a taker and pain in the arse which will no doubt wear thin on the ground with me in time. That said, relationships are about compromise so hopefully as time goes on and he matures and gets to understand my needs better, there will be mutual benefits and respect develop for each other.
Three weeks ago, Reg came into my life. I don’t normally go for the scrawny, emaciated types but I have always had a soft spot for anything abandoned believing that love is the answer for everything. I can relate to a wild side and feral behaviour so when the backpacking travellers handed me this small pathetic looking creature they had found abandoned in their travels, I was immediately hooked on the challenge of taming him and getting him to fall in love with me.
What I underestimated was the patience, tolerance, time and financial commitment required when forming a new relationship – particularly with a self-absorbed male. Now his health is better and energy levels have picked up, he is showing many traits I am having to adjust my solo lifestyle to. He is demanding at times, then lulls you into a false sense of security when he leaps on your lap and purrs loudly briefly before returning to his bad, destructive behaviour. He is running ruck shod over the place and our relationship has reached the stage where I have to step up and put some ground rules in. It’s not ok to use my leather settee as a scratching pad, to use the coffee table as a skate park or to use the kitchen table as a launch pad to attack other members of the family.
His diet has suddenly become high maintenance as he has acquired a taste for only the best. My recent payrise appears to be disappearing into special kitten milk and upmarket cat food. Don’t forget a constant fresh supply of cat nip mice and lavender kitty litter. I reckon this week he has cost me $60.00 for all that alone and I haven’t even taken into account the damages. I wonder how sustainable that is on many levels!
Briar thinks Reg is a prick to be truthful. He is annoying at best and needs to learn his place, but I assure her that her 13 years of loyal devotion will never be forgotten, and that the rush lust of the new relationship is fast getting old. I tell her that we will have the last laugh – in a couple of months (if he lives that long) his nuts are going to disappear, and I expect that might cause a significant attitude adjustment. I have seen this have some effect previously and past experience would tell me that anything with nuts is best managed with caution. So when I walk into the office today, I won’t be watching for the florist to arrive, I will be relishing some space from the latest furry parasite in my life and wondering what I will be coming home to. If you are lucky enough to have a valentine, then make a fuss today because the cynic in me says nothing lasts forever!
