friday countdown

I came home yesterday to find a card from the sheriff’s department… once again looking for Michael regarding a civil lawsuit. Unpaid debts. Again. Hard to believe this is the same guy who refused to marry me until MY debts were settled! I guess that’s all part and parcel of the massive deception he had going. I called the sheriff’s department and let them know that I left him to escape an abusive and dangerous situation and that I was not able to contact him without fear for my health and sanity. They were terrific… very kind… I gave them the name and address of the company where Michael works and they were going to have the papers served there. They told me to let them know if I hear anything from him – especially if he tries to retaliate for me giving them his whereabouts. Good times.

And then….Austin disappeared again last night around 9pm. I drove the neighborhood for awhile trying to hunt him down… called all of his friends houses… it’s just aggravating and frustrating. Made me really want to hurt him. I passed a bunch of police cars at his ex-girlfriend’s house – there was drama there but she’s a young girl so I won’t go into details here. It’s not my story. I passed some State Patrol officers at the local convenience store- they had a few cars pulled over. I drove slowly to make sure Austin wasn't in any of them. It was nerve-wracking. I decided it was too stressful. I gave up the search and headed back home- and was met in my driveway by a pit bull. It took a few minutes for me to scare him off so that I could get out of my car. I was not happy. Austin was right inside the door. He knew I was mad. I screamed myself hoarse and then collapsed in exhaustion but couldn’t sleep for hours. So frustrating. He just doesn’t get it. He thinks he should be able to come and go as he pleases. The really sad thing is that for the most part I let him come and go as he pleases. He has been restricted this week because of his disappearing act over the weekend. And he didn’t like that I refused to let him go anywhere… so he faked like he was going to the kitchen… and slipped out.

It’s rare for me to need the alarm to wake up but I was close this morning. Instead of my usual hour ahead of the alarm, it was more like a few minutes. Bitty Kitty protested… he knew we were sleeping great when the time came. He even gave me kitty kisses trying to convince me to sleep a little later. It was tempting.... I got up. I got a slow start but since it was Friday, I rallied. Fortunately Austin is cooperative in the morning. Thank heaven for small favors.

On my way to work today I had to stop and take photos of a home we’re going to insure. I knew it was going to be a little more taxing than usual because the homeowner was out of town and they have a chain blocking their driveway. He said I’d have to walk about ¼ mile from the gate to the home. Ok. I can walk a half mile… on a lovely spring morning in the mountains, especially! I love field trips! What he neglected to tell me was that the driveway was such a steep grade that there was no way my little car would make it up the hill. And that ¼ became nearly a mile… nearly straight up. I am not sure what possessed me… but for some reason I thought my fat butt could travel a hill that my car could not. It could not. My lungs were screaming and my feet were killing me and I slipped a few times (but never fell) before I even caught sight of the chain. I decided this was NOT a good idea and turned back… without the photos.

Once I got to work I realized that traipsing off alone in the wilderness at a good distance from my car was a really bad idea. Even though crime is practically non-existent in our area, it does happen. I was so far off the beaten path that if I had fallen, I wouldn’t have had a cellphone signal to call anyone. The nearest house was ½ mile down a winding dirt driveway. And there are also all kind of lions and tigers and bears around. Or maybe just bears. But that's bad enough. I think I had best retire from the photography side of my business.

We have a busy weekend on tap and I'm so wiped out... planning to head to the southside of town again for the second time this month. It's a long drive with a lot of road construction but I'll soldier thru. Just pray for good weather and safe travels... (although I think we're expecting major storms. Yikes). Hope y'all have a great one! My lunch is over now... love and hugs!