The Linda Letters by Gabriel O'Sullivan: "And . . . You'll Sprout Little Cat Ears Too!"

06 June 2022

1071

R. Linda:

It seems like Halloween. I guess that's because me mother-in-law is here, fresh off her broom. Yesterday, the weather was lovely (except for the tree pollen), so we finally got to plant Mam's Mother's Day rose garden. The Dragon Lady was out supervising unasked, on what we should be doing to ready the space. We were busy bringing the rose bushes to "the space" and trying not to offend her by paying very little attention to the commands.

We got the roses in under a barrage of Dragon chatter that we weren't doing it right, and WE were rather knackered after the exertion. I was hoping Dragon's mouth would be knackered too, but nah she kept up the incessant stream of words until I lurched off to bed.

This morning Tonya left early for school, her class had a field trip, so Mam was in charge of getting the youngest ready and off to his bus. As I wandered into the kitchen I did not see Mam, but I did see the Dragon (which gave me a start -- she had cold cream smeared over the scales on her face and hair in pin curls with a fleecy bathrobe that looked more like a bedspread). ANYWAY, I shuttered at the sight and went for a cup of coffee. The wee one was at the kitchen counter as Dragon asked him what he wanted for breakfast. His answer was he didn't know.

She opened cabinets and suggested cereal, breakfast bars, eggs, sausages, toast and every breakfast combination one could come up with and he still didn't know.

She stood there thinking when Bob our cat came up and rubbed up against her leg (the traitor).

"Oh, Bobby boy you want food?" She crooned leaning over to pet him. He actually answered her with a meow and off into the mud room they went to where the cat food lives. She got a can and a cat food bowl and dished Bob out half a can.

She was going to put the other half in the fridge when she looked at it, and then at the wee one and said, "How about a nice bowl of cat food?"

This woke the boyo up as he screwed up his face and said, "Ewwwwww!"

"Oh come on now, here is a pretty pink heart dish right here that I can put it in."

"I dunt wan no cat food!" He was adamant he was.

"You don't need a spoon just your tongue," she smiled at him. "You'll pop whiskers out when you're done and be the talk of your school." And she held the cat bowl and food up.

His mouth was hanging open and he believed her.

"Okay Bud," I said walking over to the cabinet where the oatmeal was, "how about strawberries and cream oatmeal?"

He nodded enthusiastically and so I got his breakfast for him.

SHE grinned and nodded in approval I did me job all because of her.

It be little things like this that add up as the day goes on that by the end of the day I be at me wit's end.