My friend M married a guy she was crazy about. Then he left her. She took it very hard. She ended up taking too much time off from work. On a Thursday, they called to get her to come back to work the next day, Friday. She was still depressed and spending a lot of time sleeping, so she told them she needed off Friday and the weekend. She would come back Monday. They kept calling her, while she was trying to sleep. She ended up telling them she felt like killing herself. They called the police. Police took her to the mental hospital where she had to stay for a week. Meanwhile, the job fired her. M managed to get unemployment, but couldn't keep up the rent on her apartment. She and her husband, R, got back together, but he didn't have a job, either. They were getting traffic tickets, like crazy, because the license on the car was expired, her license was suspended, and he didn't have one.

One early evening, driving toward my house, M got picked up and taken to jail. R called me and asked me to help him bail her out. He had the money, but he didn't know how to get a bondsman. I arrived at the jail, and he picked out a bondsman from the list the jail had given him. I called the bondsperson, and she came and bailed M out. I followed M&R home.

M could not get hold of the friend that used to work on her car, so I asked a friend to fix the brakes. I paid him to do it, too. It took several days. Meanwhile, they didn't have a way to town, so I took her to donate plasma. I didn't realize how long that took! In the middle of the summer, hot as all get out, I waited for her in my car. I finally went to the park and walked around. When I finished, I went back to the center, and waited some more. I was able to get a good spot, but had to keep putting money in the meter. I watched a car get a ticket, so when the next people parked there and didn't put any money in, I told them they needed to.

Finally, the brakes were fixed. She took the car to get inspected. The people inspecting told her she had a bunch of things wrong, and it would cost quite a bit more to fix. I told her we would take it to where I get my car worked on. My mechanics looked it over and told me it would cost about $100, to fix. I told them to do it. It took a couple days because there was a part that needed to be ordered. Meanwhile, she was trying to get her license unsuspended. When the car was finally fixed, I picked M &R up and took them to get it. From there, we went to DMV and got the plates.

While I was on vacation, M was driving the car when it broke down. She called her friend who had worked on it in the past, and told him that he could have the car, it was sitting on the side of the road. The friend picked it up. After looking it over, he told her that it wasn't worth fixing, the motor was bad.

M&R needed to move, so another friend told her that his brother could let them stay at his place, a trailer, if they paid $65. a week. The trailer owners moved all the stuff to their trailer, and gave M&R a small room without a door. M&R had six cats. There were three adults, five children, a dog, and a cat already living in the trailer.

The first week, M paid $65. for the week, plus $30. for gas, to get a ride to places she needed to go. She got to go to the bank, and one store. Then, she was told the car had a flat tire. When M needed to go to court, she asked if I could take her. I decided to work through lunch, so I could do that. She and R weren't often allowed to take showers. They weren't allowed to wash their clothes (the washer and dryer were theirs). They had to leave the trailer several times for several hours. Their cats were also supposed to stay in that doorless room. One of the cats was put outside. Also, apparently, the trailer owners (they rent, but it's easier to call them owners) wanted R to put the gas in his name, because they couldn't get gas unless they paid a large bill - which they must not been able to pay. Finally, on a Friday night, R took a handful of sleeping pills. M walked him to the end of the lane and called 911.

R was taken to the hospital. M called me, the next morning, stating she could use a ride, if I could do it. I told her I would get back with her in the afternoon, because I had to be somewhere that morning. When I found out about the living situation, I couldn't take it. My house is very cluttered, and I have five cats, but I told her they could take the spare room for a week or so, while they figured things out. We went to the trailer where she picked up five cats, some clothes, and her makeup. I dropped her off at the hospital, because she thought they were going to keep R overnight. She called a bit later, and said they were releasing him, so they could use a ride home, or did I want her to try to get a taxi pass. Since I was working with my niece and her son, I told her to get the taxi pass.

So, M&R came to live at my house. Only two of my cats felt comfortable with strangers in the house; the others hid in my bedroom. One of the cats developed a nasty wound on his neck. I don't know how it happened, but I put salve on it and it seemed to be healing. M&R are both good young people. They have a habit of drinking a sugary soda pop, that if spilled, causes a lot of stickiness. Soon, the mouse for the computer was sticky, and I noticed the chair arm was also sticky. They used both my cell phone and landline to try and make contact with friends and relatives (their phones had no minutes left). They needed to put stuff in the refrigerator, so my stuff got moved around. They don't sleep during the night, so sometimes, they would be out wandering around at night, or sitting on my small deck. As I said, they are good kids, but I am not used to having people at my house, underfoot. The washer was put to use before I could tell them how to use it. It turned out that M didn't let it go the whole cycle, so it hadn't gotten a chance to do the final spin. Her clothes took several dryer cycles. My dryer is not real hot, so it normally takes two cycles, already.

I think it was Sunday that M said her father talked to his sister, and they could go live there. We decided we would go on the coming Friday. Monday, C from the trailer sent a text to M asking if she could take the inflatable mattress, M&R had picked up at Walmart, back because an emergency had come up. M explained that Walmart wouldn't give them money, they would only be able to get a replacement. The next day, I thought about it, and asked if they would be able to go on Wednesday. I was worried about their stuff being over at that trailer, and what they would come back to. It was decided. Tuesday, I called and made a reservation for a van. There were no trucks available, unless I wanted to get a U-haul and pay $.99 a mile. Tuesday, R had to go to court, and they were going to do some wrapping up of business before they left. It turned out that they weren't able to get to all the places they needed to be. The bus they needed was going to be two hours, and they didn't feel like waiting. They started walking home. Luckily, they got a ride after a mile or two of walking.

The evening before, I drank too much coffee. I tossed and turned and couldn't sleep until around 3:00AM. I was also upset that the kids didn't seem to realize the need to find all their belongings and get them together. M did realize she needed to wash some clothes. The load of laundry dried, and when I mentioned that it needed to be folded, they did other things. Finally, I folded the clothes. When it was time to go to bed, they decided to go to the end of the lane and wait for her best friend who might be able to come to town, so they could see each other before the big move. I didn't hear them come in because I was busy tossing and turning. When I got up again, I saw their shoes in the living room, and realized they must have gone to bed.

The next morning, I took care of my cats, took my shower, and got ready for the day. At 7:00AM, I knocked on their door and told them time was wasting; we needed to go pick up the van at 8:00. We actually got to Avis around 8:30. I went in, and they drove to Walgreens, to see if there were any sales. I got the van and drove to Walgreens. Because I used Hotwire to order the van, I also took the insurance option $18. At Avis, the guy told me that his paperwork didn't show insurance. Since my car doesn't carry full coverage, and I had no idea how to contact the Hotwire insurance, I took the Avis insurance, too. $27.95. All totalled, that was going to be a hefty bill - it was around 125.00 total for van and insurance - besides the original $18.

Once at Walgreens, they found that there were no sales, and I found a pair of sunglasses to fit my glasses. I was going to wear them on the trip. Of course, to get out of Walgreens is a trial. I finally pulled out and made a right turn, then backtracked through side streets, to get back to the road I needed. We dropped my car off at my home, and piled into the van, taking the rest of their dirty clothes, and enough quarters to use the Laundromat. We arrived at the trailer court where their stuff was. There were people milling all over. As we drove to the lane we needed, there was a fire truck, blocking the road, at the one trailer we needed to get to. The kids jumped out and ran to the trailer. One of the firemen yelled, "hey, you can't go in there, there's a gas leak!"

Not knowing what to do, except wait, we decided to go back to my place, get my car, and do the rest of the errands. As we were leaving the trailer park, one of the trailer owners, M needed to talk to, came driving by. M ran to her car and got her attention. She told her that they were leaving and needed to get their stuff. C told M that she owed her $65. and until she got that, M wasn't getting her stuff. She could get the police, and get a warrant. M said C was wearing M's coat, which M had dry-cleaned and hadn't yet worn. It should've been hanging in the closet of that small room.

We drove back home where M called the police and explained the situation. She wanted to know what her options were. The person taking the call told her that an officer would have to call her back, because they were all currently unavailable. M gave the home phone number.

Meanwhile, the following texting went on.

M: "we will give u 65 but i have to have the stuff as soon as the gas leak is fixed."

C: "its not 65 its 100 and i got three witnesses to a verbal agreement. possetion is 9/10 the law. im not stupid. u fucked me. you or the police cant come in my house without a warrant. Its a domestic and ull have to take it to court. also will be a no trespasing on my house. This is ur warning U will b arrested if u come on my property. Im sorry it had to come to this but u both know I went out of my way to help you."

We jumped into the car to take care of the rest of the errands and wait for the police to call. M called back and gave them the cell phone number. We went to DFS where M had to make further application to her unemployment and then reapply for food stamps, and R needed to get the paperwork to get his permit. R came back quickly, and we went to the DMV to get the permit. After a wait, he came back stating they gave him the wrong paper. We started back to DFS building. M was walking toward us, so we pulled over and she jumped in - she got the unemployment problem fixed, but the line for food stamps was so long, she decided to wait until she was relocated. R ran in to DFS building. After a while, he came back with the proper paperwork. We drove back over to DMV. He ran in and got his permit. A police officer called M and she again explained the situation. After asking several questions, he told her to not do anything until he called back.

Once those things were finished, we headed for the food bank, so they could pick up some food for their new home. They came back with enough food for a week or so. After they jumped in, a car pulled up so close to mine that it was a very slow and careful process to back up without hitting it. The passenger stayed in the car to make sure I didn't, I guess. Once I was safely out of the space, he got out and went inside (or perhaps, he was afraid of hitting my car with the door?)

Meanwhile, the police called M back, and explained that he had gotten hold of C, and M could now go over and pick up their stuff. If there were any more problems, she could call him back. After the police called C, the following text came through: "U can have it but u need to give me the 65...m I helped u wen no one else would. Im working on getting ur stuff out now."

M called C and assured her she would pay the $65. and would 30 mins be okay? C told her she could get her stuff in 45 minutes, as she and her boyfriend were moving the stuff outside. As we drove back to my place, C sent a text saying they could come over now. We got back to my place, and moved the food inside. We jumped in the van and headed over.

When we got there, we had to figure out where to put the stuff, because there were many large items. Finally, M and R had to make choices on what could go, and what would have to stay. They originally had 114 videos. All that was left was about 20. She told C that there were a bunch of videos missing. C said all the neighbors had been milling about and poking through the stuff, asking if they were moving. The neighbors must have taken the videos. Yeah, right! M asked about one of her cats, the one that had been put out and had come back, but after feeding, C put it back out, and now it was gone. It was still gone.

Anyway, after filling the van as full as possible, M&R decided they would search for the missing cat. I drove the van as they walked, searched and called. We never found the cat. We went to the Laundromat where we realized we had no detergent. M decided we could go to Walmart and get it. I drove the back way, took an alley, and found there was all sorts of construction in my way to get to Walmart. M realized she could go to HyVee, instead. She ran inside, got the detergent, then ran back inside to get the necessary things. R and I drove back to the Laundromat. We threw the stuff into a washer, and then waited. M came back with stuff in a cart. They emptied it at the van, and started moving things around, to make the back window available for my view. When the wash cycle finished, I moved the clothes to two dryers, and put quarters in. I walked over to the book store, and found it was no longer there. I walked back to the van. R took the shopping cart and moved it to a side area. I saw that it was close to HyVee, so took it to one of the corrals, then went inside. I was hungry. I bought 3 slices of pizza and a drink. I took the pizza back to the van. I took my slice and went back into the Laundromat.

Soon, M&R came in, too. They ate their pizza. Once we were finished, R and I started folding clothes. When we finished, we took the load out to the van, and headed back to my house. M&R gathered up their stuff, and put it outside by the van, then they started catching cats, and putting them into carriers. There were five total, but they only caught three. After moving stuff around, and looking in the places they thought the cat might be, we were very frustrated. M finally said, "if you find them, take them to the pound". I looked around, and decided there was one more place to look. Sure enough, they were both there...so far back that M had to crawl under to get them. Finally, we had everything ready to go. Once the cats were packed, we jumped in. It was now 3:30PM. I had planned to be out of town before noon.

After about 12 miles, M said, "what about your cat? He gets his shot at 6:00PM. Do you want to go back and wait until after you give his shot?"

"No," I yelled. "Let's just get this done!"

M called her friend, the brother of the guy in the trailer, and told him he would need to go over and get the items she left behind. He could sell them and send half the money to her. During the trip, there were several conversations and texts about it - all on my cell phone. Apparently, C told him that he couldn't have any of that stuff. M sent a text to her and itemized, with amounts, the things that needed to be picked up by her friend, otherwise she was taking C to court.

We drove and drove. By the way, the sunglasses were sitting at home on the computer keyboard. One of the cats made potty, and the smell wafted through the van. When I could no longer take it, we pulled into a carwash, where M and R transferred the cat to another carrier. M wanted to hold the cat and have R spray his feet, then spray the nasty carrier, but I told them we didn't have time. M put the carrier into the trash. She was smoking a menthol cigarette that caused her to cough profusely. She puked a bit on her hand. When we got back into the van, the smell was now of kitty pee, and human puke. M asked if I had any wet wipes or tissue. When I went in to HyVee, I had used the wet wipes, they provide, to clean my hands. I had two in my purse. They were almost dry, but I handed them to her. It made the smell a little less, but it was still very odoriferous in the van. M found a can of air freshener (which really wasn't the best of smells) and gave it to R to spray when the other smells overwhelmed him (he was in the back seat where the cats were). I told him not to spray the cats! He agreed that he wouldn't.

Mind you, I could have stopped at a gas station, and let M clean her hands. I realize that, so I really shouldn't complain. It seemed that all the stations were on the other side of the road, and I didn't want to have to make a left turn, then try to get back to the road I was on, plus, when we picked up the cats, the back window was covered again, and I couldn't see through it. I wasn't used to the van, and I wanted to get there before dark. I also wanted to drive home at an early as possible time, as Mango still needed his shot.

We drove south for a very long time, winding up and down curvy Missouri roads, finally getting to a little country store, near where M's aunt lived. Now, M had been trying to get hold of the aunt for a couple days, since the last time they talked when the phone cut out. M had to get the address and directions from the Internet, the night before. Luckily, she was able to find them. At the country store, they tried to call M's aunt and couldn't get hold of her. Finally, they gave M&R directions. We followed the directions down a country road, then another long rutty gravel road, and made it there. M's aunt was on the deck, and so were several other family members. M hadn't seen her aunt in many years, and was just now meeting the rest of the people there. M's aunt directed us to the small RV that was hooked up, ready for M&R to move into.

We took the cats to the RV, and unloaded all the rest of the stuff to the ground. Once that was finished, I headed for home. Ten miles from home, I called my neighbor and explained that I needed to gas the van, give my cat his shot, and could she follow me to Avis where I would drop off the van, and she could give me a ride home? She agreed that she could. I passed a gas station that had $3.09 a gallon, because I thought a closer station would have the same price. Nope, it was $3.15. I decided to get it there, anyway, I needed to get home. Almost $40. to refill the van. Behind me, there was a car filling up, and a woman came out of the store yelling about that black bitch inside. The store clerk came out, and a yelling match ensued. I needed no more drama. Apparently, the woman had thrown her money at the store clerk, and it hadn't been the right amount, anyway. The clerk said the woman needed to show courtesy, instead of being such a bitch. I heard "bitch" several times from both mouths. The woman walked toward the car, then turned back and started running at the clerk. The boyfriend (who had been quietly trying to get her to go to the car) grabbed her, and more yelling went on. There were several other bystanders standing around, so I figured I didn't need to be there. I went home.

The cat got his shot, my phone got wiped down, and I went to the neighbor's, using some wet wipes on the passenger side armrests and other things M might have touched with her pukey hands, on the way. My neighbor followed me to Avis, where I locked the van and dropped the keys in the drop box. We headed for home, while I told her about the wild day.

My cats are all out and about, now, and my stress level has lowered drastically. I'm not sorry that I helped M&R, but I'm not letting anyone else stay here for a very long time.

Labels: reality, writing exercise