Adventures of a Non-Binary Author – Weekend is here again
Friday, and it’s hard to get a real gauge on how Zelly is doing. The first time I see her, she’s tired, but otherwise normal. The second time starts the same. But when she goes for more food, she keeps leaning heavily to one side. She doesn’t manage to pick anything up either. Soon after she goes back to bed. Next time I see her, she’s popping her head up next to me. The door to the enclosure is open, in case she’s strong enough to come out. She just seems to want to say hello though. Instead of coming out to play, she goes for a drink and some food. She appears a lot brighter than the last time I saw her. I watch her until she heads back under the sawdust again. Her final appearance of the day is at bedtime. Once again looking bright eyed, and sleek-furred. Both signs of a healthy gerbil. No obvious signs of instability or weakness, as she gobbles up the meal worms I’d scattered earlier. She has a little more to eat, and another drink after that. Potters around for a little bit, before going back under the sawdust.
My partner and I discuss. She might have had a second stroke. Presuming that was the issue the first time. If not, this odd behaviour may still be down to the first suspected stroke. It might have caused a little brain damage, which has created more erratic behavioural patterns. This may well be how things are going forward. That we may need to expect a more sudden death from her. She’s four, and her bright appearance, eyes and fur, suggest she’s not in any pain. Her ears are also perked, and not close to the body. Again suggesting, when she’s not listless and dazed, that she’s not sick. There’s not a lot a vet can do for strokes and seizures. And I’m worried how the stress of the visit will effect such an old girl. We can keep her comfortable, fed, warm, and hydrated. We can keep a close eye on her, without putting her through an ordeal. If and when things change again, we will re-evaluate. But a visit to the vets for advice we’re already following, could kill her. It’s by no means an easy choice to make, but, for now, this feels like the right one.
Saturday, our viewing is at ten, which means a shortened version of my morning routine. We make it into the city center with time to spare, but that’s not a bad thing. The place we’re viewing today is literally within sight of the one we’d put an offer in for. No personal driveway, but there is off-road parking for residents. We mean to ask about that, for the sake of our friends and family, but forget. Our first question to the estate agent is about the tenants. We’d never want our future home to come at the expense of anyone else. The estate agent lets us know they’ve got somewhere to go. In fact, they’re the ones who helped them with it, since this property was rented out through them. Knowing their future is safe and secure makes us both relax a little.
This house and the new cottage are technically cookie cutter houses. Same basic design, with rooms being in the same basic location front to back. But little changes, like position of the doors, and covers over the radiators make a difference. You can get all the same stuff in, but you can arrange things differently. Having furniture in place, also makes it easier to feel out the true size of the rooms. You can see where things could go, because similar things are there now.
Admittedly the condition isn’t as nice in places. We’d definitely need to redecorate sooner rather than later. But the larger garden offers us more options. And we already know we like the feel of the place. We put in an offer before we leave. Before the end of the day we put in our best offer. We won’t hear anything more until Monday. Instead we enjoy the escape room we’ve booked, before heading home.
Once there, we focus our attention on Zelly. Little by little she’s more active as the day goes on. Eventually coming out to play for a short while, before going back to rest some more. It feels like positive progress, but you can never tell with small pets.
Sunday, we decide to do the Mystery Adventure book we have. So we pack a lunch, and set out into the city center. The day is warm and sunny, without being too hot. The adventure itself takes us to some unique locations, and we take a few selfies to remember the day by. We arrive back home around half-three. As my partner says hello to our landlord’s dog, I open the enclosure’s door. Zelly doesn’t take long to appear. Less time again for her to come out for playtime. Her behaviour is almost back to normal. Obviously we can’t take anything for granted. But it feels nice to go from the deep concern of last Sunday, to feeling a little more optimistic. Hopefully she’ll be with us a little longer. Maybe not long enough to see our next home. But, for now at least, she remains the immortal gerbil.
My week off is officially over, even if I have one more day off before going back to work. That day off is simply one of the three I normally get, falling coincidentally on a Monday. But will Monday bring our house search to an end? Will our offer be accepted? Or will we be asking this question again with a new property in the next few weeks?
To be continued…
