Yellow House in the North Country: Thanksgiving

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My time off from work has all been used due to the neighbor abuse we experienced at the old house plus the move to escape that dangerous situation. There were many days that the neighbors prevented me from working. Not only did I have to use all my vacation time, but I had to take unpaid time off from work too. The harassment at work from the bad neighbors at the old house was so severe, it put my job in jeopardy. 

Thankfully, that is behind us now. We were able to leave the house where we were harassed daily and the neighbor’s attempted arson. However, there is still fallout from those events. Part of that fallout is that I had to work Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and the Saturday after Thanksgiving trying to make up time. 

Surprisingly, I did have a few invitations to Thanksgiving in our new location. I had to turn them down due to working and due to covid. N95 respirators only work to prevent covid if they are worn on your face properly. 

The neighbor right next to me – the first one to come over and introduce herself when we moved in – brought me a plate of food. I was so grateful that she was kind enough to think of me.

To be honest, I was feeling a little down about Thanksgiving. Even though we are safe in a new home, it just doesn’t feel like the holidays this year. It’s hard learning a new area after being forced out of an area I lived in and knew for 25 years. That is the reality of what happened – we were bullied and harassed out of an area we knew. Our lives were threatened. We are starting over somewhere new.

My favorite Thanksgiving movie is Pieces of April with Katie Holmes. There is a scene in the movie where she explains the meaning of Thanksgiving to her neighbors who do not speak English. To paraphrase, she explained that there was this one time when people just realized that they needed each other, and they came together due to that need. 

It was the plate of food that neighbor brought me and the kindness of another neighbor in the days after Thanksgiving that finally helped me to feel the true meaning of the holiday this year. 

When we lived 3 hours south in the old house, I used to say we would get nickel and dimed with snow – half an inch here, half an inch there. It was just enough snow to be annoying, but not enough to really plow or shovel or cause problems.

Here in the North Country, you get your money’s worth of snow and then some. To be honest, I am having culture shock with the snow up here and it is only December. I wonder if I am hardy enough to live in the North Country with the winters here. 

Yes, I’ve always said I wanted to live up here when I retired. Honestly, I had a very romanticized idea of what that would look like. I did not factor in the reality of three senior cats and being completely alone because we fled an abuse situation. 

We have been getting about 7-8 inches of snow every other day since Thanksgiving. There are constant winter weather warnings and travel advisories. The roads have been closed once already. It’s snowing right now, and when I went out to shovel, there is at least 3 feet of snow out front. I’m not exaggerating.

My weight is still low due to health issues I have been having the past year due to the neighbor abuse at the old house. I’m under 90 pounds, unintentionally. There is no way I can handle a snowblower.

For weeks, I have been calling every single ad I see for snowplowing. I have asked all the neighbors and everyone I see, from the librarian to the postmaster, for recommendations for snowplowing.

I call and leave messages. I name drop, saying “this person told me to call you.” No one calls me back. 

The Tuesday before Thanksgiving, someone answered their phone. I told them I saw their ad in our local flier for snowplowing and would like an estimate. He told me, “I don’t go to that town.” You have an ad in our local flier advertising snowplowing for this town, and you don’t come here? Well, thank you for answering the phone at least. I have left dozens of messages, and no one calls me back.

Knowing I cannot handle a snowblower, I did get an electric shovel. It weighs 20 pounds. I know I can handle it. My thought was that it is like a mini show blower. If I keep up on the snow it will be fine.

How very wrong I was.

That first big snowfall on Thanksgiving, I went outside after work. I can only shovel twice a day – before work and after work. By the time I got outside after work, there was already way too much snow for the electric shovel to handle. 

The neighbor across the street saw me struggling with the electric snow shovel. He came over and used his snowblower and cleared my driveway for me. He explained that he is retired, but his wife still works, so he keeps their drive clean. He used to help the woman who lived in this house before me (she passed away). 

Now he is helping me too.

I offered to pay him. He refused. At least let me give you gas money, that machine costs money in gas. He refused. 

His kindness has helped me feel Thanksgiving in a way I haven’t felt in a very long time. As it was said in Pieces of April, there was a time when people needed each other. 

I still need to figure out something kind to do for him for helping me. Even though he is helping me with the snowblower, I am still going out twice a day to shovel (unless he beats me to it with the snowblower.)

Having his help with the snow in the driveway and front has freed me up to be sure that my back deck is shoveled. I know to keep the snow off that due to the weight of snow. So I am shoveling the back deck when the neighbor helps me with the driveway.

Words cannot express how grateful I am for the help.

Even though I had to work on the actual holiday, our first Thanksgiving in the North Country is one for the records books. I am so thankful for kind neighbors. Even if they did not help me with snow and remember me on the holiday, just the fact that we are safe here and our lives are not in danger is the greatest gift. 

We are getting more snow now. It’s only December. We have 3 feet of snow. I’m sick of it. It’s going to be a long winter. I’m struggling to get the car out. I’m struggling to get my mail. I’m struggling to get to the grocery store, the vet office, and anywhere else we need. 

Even though I am struggling with winter, I am grateful that we are safe. We are together. We have neighbors who are not actively trying to murder us (truly, that is what the old neighbors did – they tried to murder us with the arson and other physical injuries they caused). 

We are forced to learn a brand-new area because we had to escape an abuse situation. This is the hardest thing I have ever done. Yet I’m grateful we are together and safe. 

Last year I had to deal with the 20-year-old child across the street having some sort of drug induced psychosis and driving his truck into the bushes and front porch of my house. 

This year, we are in a place where neighbors bring me a plate of food and help me with snow. 

Happy Thanksgiving from the Yellow House in the North Country. 

We are hoping the Yellow House in the North Country will be a new series on the blog.

Simple Joys

/ rachelgoes262 / 3 Comments

When we fled the old house in August, it was under extreme duress. We were being harassed daily, prevented from sleeping and leaving the house. All visitors were harassed as well. I left with the cats and with what would fit in the trunk of the car. I ended up having to go back for all my belongings, but at the time we left, I did not expect there would be a house to take belongings out of.

We were in temporary safe housing for almost a month before we were able to purchase and move into our new home several hours away. That time in temporary housing was a refuge for all of us. We were safe. We could sleep. There was no gunfire or attempted arson. 

I was very fortunate that we had a full kitchen with my multiple food allergies and the duration of time we were there. It was nice that the kitchen was stocked with necessities. There were pots and pans for cooking, a cookie sheet for baking, and dishware. 

Opening the drawers to see what utensils were available, I was surprised and delighted to find an ice cream scoop. With one of my multiple food allergies being dairy, it is rare that I get allergy friendly ice cream. It is difficult to find and expensive when you can find it. 

Seeing that ice cream scoop, I immediately thought how nice it would be to sit on the porch there and have a bowl of ice cream and watch the world go by. I wanted to relax. After months of daily harassment and not being able to relax due to injuries and  repeated attacks to our physical safety, the ice cream scoop was a whimsical reminder of a bygone era of simpler times.

The closest grocery store to where we were staying was a Walmart. I was both surprised and delighted to find that they carry many allergy friendly items. They have items that I cannot find in more traditional grocery stores. After spending the past five years plagued by food shortages in the area we moved from, it was refreshing to have allergy friendly food choices again. 

I chose an allergy friendly sorbet. I did indeed sit on that porch with a bowl of ice cream and relax for a few minutes. It was nice. 

In the new house, I realized I need new coping skills. I have coping skills that got me through the stress of neighbor abuse. However, I don’t want to relive that time in my life. The abuse we experienced at the hands of two different families in that neighborhood is the worst abuse I have ever experienced.

I decided to purchase an ice cream scoop for the new house and that I would continue to put that allergy friendly sorbetto on my grocery list even though it is expensive. The ice cream scoop was only 97 cents. It is a dollar worth spending. 

Now I can use the ice cream scoop in the new house and sit with a bowl of ice cream relaxing at night. Sometimes I just need a break for a few minutes. It’s been a rough year.

We are in a better place. Our lives are no longer in danger. However, it is very hard to just pick up and move to a completely new area where you know no one. We do have friends in the vicinity, but they are still about 45 minutes south. I need to meet new people in my immediate area (20 minutes or less). 

I know this is going to be a hard winter as we do not have adequate supports here. It has proven very challenging to meet new people. I am having a hard time finding help with snow, lawn, electrical, plumbing and HVAC. Contractors do not answer their phones. They do not return messages. It is very challenging to get connected here when people won’t engage.

The good news is that we are all together. We are all safe. We are no longer harassed daily, threatened, or experiencing physical injuries as the result of other people’s actions. We are no longer in danger of being tortured and murdered (as they told us they were going to do many, many times).

I never thought I would have to completely move out of an area I lived in for 25 yeas of my life just to be safe from physical harm, but here we are.

We have a new beginning where we are no longer in danger. I am taking pleasure in simple pleasures like an ice cream scoop. 

Throughout this process, I have come to realize the only thing that is important is that the cats and I are together and well. We all need to be able to access medical care. We are all together. Nothing else matters. We have love. 

Sometimes you only need a 97 cent ice cream scoop to bring you joy. 

Happy First Gotcha Day, Flower!

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One year ago today, Flower finally went into the live humane trap. One of my friends called Flower my white whale. Flower lived in the house next door and was kicked out when the dog was taken for neglect and abuse. She was outside for six years (at least) before I was finally able to trap her.

We lived across the street from people who were involved in a dog fighting ring using cats as bait and doing boom cars to advertise drug sales. I kept finding injured, spray painted cats. I had trapped four and got them to safety. Flower was the fifth and final cat I trapped. The neighborhood had really declined due to two houses across the street. When gunfire started, I knew it was time to leave.

I said I would not leave that house until I trapped Flower and got her to safety. I never thought that I would be her forever home.

The animal shelter that had helped me with the other injured cats I trapped and provided evidence for the dog fighting ring was full when I trapped Flower. They couldn’t take her. I said I would foster her. To be honest, it’s a good thing they were full. I am pretty sure that given Flower’s age and medical condition, she would have been euthanized. (At least one of the other cats I got to them had to be euthanized due to the injuries from the dog fighting ring.)

A few years ago, I saw Flower with a broken front arm. It was obvious it was broken. It was hanging at an unnatural angle. Even when she was hobbling on three legs, I could not catch her. Last October, she was limping along. I tried to trap again. Flower is extremely intelligent. She avoided the trap for years. 

On November 3, 2024, she went into the trap. To this day, I wonder if she is happy, she went into the trap? I hope she is. 

I had tried to find a home for Flower. The longer Flower was with me, the more I realized that she had chosen me as her human. Not only that, but I honestly don’t think anyone else wants to handle her. People are afraid of Flower because she hisses and hides. She only does that because she was tortured by humans. She’s traumatized by what happened to her.

When I trapped her and got her to medical care, the vt confirmed she did have extensive injuries. All four legs and her pelvis had all been broken at some point, along with other issues as well. 

Flower was with me as a foster child for about four months when I thought I had found her a forever home. It didn’t work out. People were interested in Flower, but when they met her or learned about her medical needs, decided they could not handle her. That’s honest. Flower is a senior special needs cat who has been through a lot of trauma. She has “issues.” I lovingly call her “spicy.”

Flower has captured the hearts of many people on the internet and has fans all over the world. She used to get her own update on our social media sites daily, then twice a week. Now, she is in regular rotation as a permanent family member. 

I am Flower’s forever home. She chose me as her person. After 6 years, she finally trusted me enough to go into the trap. I do believe she chose me.

Flower follows me around the house. Now that she has a ramp, she sleeps in my bed. She purrs. It took months before she started to purr. At first, it was barely audible. Now, her purr is quite loud. She loves sun puddles and looking out the window. She has never tried to escape the house or go back outside. 

Flower is extremely intelligent. She is carrier trained and knows baby sign language. I read a bedtime story to Flower every night. Sometimes Jolene and Simon listen too. Flower’s favorites are Goodnight Moon and Toad and Frog. Those are the ones she seems most interested in looking at the pictures. She moves her head around to look at them. 

I’ve known that Flower is a hospice situation due to her numerous health issues. I didn’t expect her to do this well or live this long. I never expected her to outlive Jude. Jude’s passing came out of left field. Jude was the one that Flower tolerated the most. Jude won her over. He was the only one of my three that Flower did not hiss at. 

Given her medical condition, bones, and eyes, it is estimated that Flower is 15 years old. She has a birthday in April. She will be 16 in April 2026. November is adopt a senior pet month. I wasn’t planning on adopting another cat, but this time last year, Flower picked me out and went in the trap.

I fully intended when she went into the trap that I would get her medical care and get her into the shelter. I never anticipated that they would not take her and I would need to try to home her on my own. I also didn’t anticipate that that home would be me. She lets me pet her. She licks me.

Every day I wonder, “are you happy you went in the trap?” I don’t know. I hope she is. The hardest part of all of it is that I know she would do best as an only child. At the same time, I feel like she chose me as her person. Unfortunately for her, I had three cats when she picked me out. 

Flower has been a trooper through the move. She is the one who did the best when we were in temporary housing. She did not seem as happy in our new house as she was in temporary housing until the ramp arrived. Now that she can use the ramp and get into the bed, I think she is ok. 

I hope Flower is happy. I really do. She’s so spicy, it’s hard to tell. 

Flower is a natural bobtail. She looks like a skunk from the back but a cow from the side. She is a beautiful cat. My heart breaks when I think of what she has lived through. I try not to think about it. I want to give her as much love as I can in the time she has left. I hope she knows she is loved. 

I hope Flower is happy she went in the trap.

Happy Gotcha Day, Flower! We love you! 

Happy Gotcha Day, Simon!

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Simon was adopted on November 1, 2017. He was a year and a half old when I adopted him. While Simon is the youngest cat in this home, he is the one that has been with me the longest. Simon has also been through two moves with me now. Simon moved from the apartment to our first house. Then, Simon moved from the hell house to our current home. 

Simon is 9.5 years old. He may be turning 10 in the spring and approaching senior status, but Simon will always be the baby. He is pure innocence. I had Kip and Kitty from the time they were kittens. I called them the Dynamic Duo. I remember kitten phase and can’t handle kittens. Since then, I’ve said I would adopt adults. Simon is the youngest adult cat I have adopted. 

Simon is the sweetest cat. He sleeps with me in the bed every single night. We were so fortunate that we were able to all stay together through this vert rough move we just went through. I was worried we would have to be separated for 3-4 days. Turns out, we had to be in temporary housing for 3-4 weeks. I am so grateful we were all together. The cars came through the ordeal better because we were all together. They are not unscathed, but better than if we had been separated.

Of the three cats, Simon is the one who has been handling the move in stride. It may be because this was the second move for him. The hardest part for Simon is that he is grieving Jude. Simon was with Jude from the day I brought him home. Simon and Jude were very closely bonded. 

While Simon is also closely bonded to Jolene, bis strongest tie was with Jude. Simon is our Chief Cuddler. He just loves everyone and wants to snuggle everyone in the house. Simon gets as close to Flower as he dares to get once she is asleep. Flower hisses at Simon when she is awake. 

Simon loves playing with small toy mice. He can often be seen on cat cam throwing them around in the air, batting them, and carrying them from room to room. If there are cat toys under appliances and furniture, it’s because Simon put them there. When we were in the apartment, I used to take a yard stick to fish out all the cat toys from under the refrigerator every week. I was regularly pulling out 20-30 toys a week. There are not as many toys under appliances in the house. This is a bigger space than the apartment. 

Even the vet office says that Simon is the sweetest cat. He fully cooperates for his exam and vaccines. Simon is very loving. 

His only downside is that Simon is afraid of everything. He is so sweet and innocent. He is easily scared. This made it extremely difficult to get him to safety in the old house both for tornado warnings and for neighbor attacks when we were being harassed and assaulted. 

The other challenge with Simon is that he chews cords. I’m not sure if that is something from his kittenhood, but when Simon is being naughty, he tries to chew a cord or string. I must hide all cords as much as possible. 

Everyone loves Simon. Sweet and innocent are the words that describe him best. “Simon is a good baby” is a phrase heard frequently in our home. Simon is a very good baby. He is such a precious soul.

When I adopted Simon, I had been approved to adopt him in October. I asked the shelter to keep him until November 1 before I picked him up. I did not want a new cat near Halloween and have him scared on Halloween on top of being in a new house. I thought it would be too much. I’m glad I made that decision, now knowing how scared he is of everything. It was the best choice for Simon. 

This marks 8 years that Simon has been with me. He is the perfect baby. Simon’s name comes from three places. First, from The Saint so that Simon has a link with Kip and Kitty. Second, from Paul Simon so that he has a link with Jude (and now Jolene). Third, from the Chipmunks. 

Simon knows his name, and it fits him. When I sing Paul Simon songs to him, it’s typically either “Everything about it is a love song” or “Loves me like a Rock.” 

Simon is the only boy in this house now. It’s Simon with Jolene and Flower. It’s so strange. I’ve always had boys. Jolene was my first girl. Now, Simon is the only boy. There is a lot on his little shoulders. He is the youngest cat in the house but has the most “seniority” since he has been with me the longest. 

Happy Gotcha Day, Simon! We love you! I am so honored to be your mom. Simon is a good baby. He is the most gentle and innocent soul. 

Smaller Space

/ rachelgoes262 / 4 Comments

Back in August, I had started a blog post about the forced exodus from our old house due to abusive neighbors. I wrote about the attempted arson and daily harassment we experienced that necessitated that we leave under extreme duress for temporary safe housing that I only disclosed to very few people. It made sense to write about it at the time I was living it, especially when everyone in that area (except the attorney) was normalizing the abuse we experienced. 

Reading that now, I relived what we lived through this summer. It was very traumatizing. I am not ready to talk about or post about the attempt on our lives that occurred this summer and the subsequent daily harassment we experienced by the neighbors. 

Suffice it to say, we are now in permanent housing several hours away from those horrible people. We are safe. We no longer experience daily harassment, abuse or threats. We can sleep through the night without being deliberately woken up. I can walk outside safely without being physically attacked. 

It was very hard to leave an area and a community I was part of for over 20 years. We were literally bullied out of our home we had known for decades due to two families who were engaging in various criminal activities.

Now that we are in a safe place, I am learning a completely new location This is the hardest move I have made since the 90s. 

When we initially left, I could only take the cats in the car and whatever I could fit in the trunk. We had to arrange the leaving at a safe time when I would not be physically attacked or otherwise physically prevented from leaving. A few weeks later, when I went back with a moving truck to move all my belongings out of the old house, the moving men were threatened with assault by the neighbors. It was a rough situation.

I had spent all summer downsizing and minimizing the house. I knew we would be moving to a smaller space, even though I did not know where we were going. 

When they say, you and your belongings grow and increase to match the size of the space in which you live, that saying is true. 

While I got rid of over three truckloads of stuff before the move, it was eye opening to see how much I really have now that we are living someplace that is literally half the size of the house we fled. 

At first, it was encouraging to find that all my belongings fit into a 16-foot moving truck with room to spare. I had friends who kept saying I had way too much stuff and there was no way everything would fit into a 16-foot moving truck. To my surprise and delight, they were wrong! 

All my belongings were stored in the moving truck for about 8 days before we could get into permanent housing. To be honest, I mostly forgot about what was in there. 

The cats and I were in temporary safe housing with only what had fit into the trunk of my car. It was very freeing as well as eye opening to see how little we needed on a day-to-day basis. What was most important was that the cats and I were together through the entire ordeal and that we were all safe. 

While I was elated that all my belongings fit into a 16-foot moving truck with room to spare, moving into our new home was a bit of a comedown. With half the living space, it now feels like I have way too much stuff. 

We have only been in our new home for a month. In addition to unpacking and getting settled in our new home, I am learning a new area, working full-time, attending to all our medical needs, and had to deal with the fact that Sophie was totaled in this transition. 

It’s been a lot of change and a lot of trauma.

When it snows this winter and things slow down, minimizing will be back on my radar again in full force. This house feels cluttered with all our stuff in it. It is overwhelming. Therefore, things need to be removed.

I’ve seen how little we needed when we were living the emergency those few weeks in temporary safe housing. We do not need all the stuff in the new house with us now. 

The biggest difference between the temporary safe house and our permanent home is that when we were in temporary housing, we were in an urban area. It was easy to get things there and access resources such as groceries and laundry. In our new permanent home, on-site laundry is a necessity. Other necessities we need in our permanent home that were not relevant in temporary housing include emergency supplies for winter, as we are not in an urban area close to amenities. 

If people get more things to fill a larger space, then we must conversely get rid of things to fit a smaller space. 

Our weeks in temporary housing showed me how little we need. The challenge will be curating the items in our permanent home down to what will fit here without being cluttered. 

On top of everything I am doing trying to get settled in a new area, I am also trying to take time for me. The cats and I need to heal from all the abuse we suffered at the hands of the neighbors. Jolene especially has been traumatized. She had always been a friendly, outgoing cat until the summer when the neighbors escalated. Now she is timid and fearful. We are all still mourning Jude. I feel so guilty I could not get him out of that house before he passed. We all have a lot of trauma to process as the result of the daily harassment we experienced and attempt on our lives. 

This winter expect to see a return to minimalism as we acclimate to a smaller space. I’m now looking at it with fresh eyes after our experience being in temporary housing for so long and having to flee our prior house under extreme threat and duress. I have a lot of “comfort items” that were not comforting and not needed when we were living the emergency. You don’t realize how little you need until you can only leave with a very small, space restricted amount of stuff. 

The good news is, that chapter of our life of horror is behind us. We have a new chapter ahead. While it has it’s challenges, we are all safe and no longer in physical danger. We can finally get back to our roots at Rewind Live Slow. 

In Memoriam: Sophie 2007 – 2025

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A photo from my photo album from a few years ago camping with Sophie.

After my cats, my strongest attachment is my car. I’m one of those ones who will buy a Toyota and drive it until it dies. Sophie was my second Toyota. She was a green Corolla. 

Sophie and I had many great memories together. She was the only car that all my cats rode in. Kitty, Kip, Jude, Simon, Jolene and Flower all rode in Sophie. We went to my favorite camping spot in the Adirondacks. We went surfing on Cape Cod.

My first Corolla was a base model. Sophie was the luxury model. She had a polished wood interior and plush, luxurious seats. Even with all the luxury, I was still able to fit a lot in Sophie for camping and for moving. Sophie was the nicest vehicle I have ever had in my life. 

Sophie got the cats and I to safety. She made the 3-hour drive north to get us all to the safe house and out of the house with the abusive neighbors. In fact, it was in that exodus that Sophie gave her life protecting me. (That will be a story for another post, but yes, we did escape the neighbors who repeatedly injured us, harassed us, and attempted arson while we were in the house this past summer). 

We also won’t talk about the deliberate damage Sophie incurred from the neighbors prior to her demise. 

It’s hard for me to lose Sophie so soon after losing Jude. I don’t want to talk about what happened. I want to remember all the good times I had with Sophie. She was still young and low mileage compared to my first Toyota. My first Toyota had 283,000 miles on it when it died. Sophie only had 175,000. 

Some of my best memories in life have been while driving. I remember summer 2015 when Sophie and I visited as many state parks as we could on our Empire Passport. She used to have a row of Empire Passport stickers in her window, back when they issued stickers before they went to the cards. 

For a sedan, Sophie was surprisingly spacious and was able to transport my short board for surfing. For my long board, I needed a vehicle with a roof rack, but Sophie could handle the short board for surfing the Great Lakes. 

We went to Boston and to various other cities in the northeast on marathon running trips. Sophie was my most reliable companion over the course of her entire life with me. So many things in life change, but Sophie was a constant for me for a long time. 

Sophie was the most dependable being in my life, aside from the cats. 

I knew it would happen eventually. No car lives forever. I was honestly hoping for another year or two. I wanted Sophie to make it to 20. She would have made it to 20, if it had not been for the neighbor situation. This year has been especially hard. In 2025, I lost my house (was bullied out of it), I lost Jude, and I lost Sophie. That’s 3. Bad luck comes in 3’s, so knock it off. 

I haven’t even had time to properly grieve Jude or Sophie with everything that is going on.

The good news is that, yes, we are out of the house with the horrible neighbors and are in a new, safe location. More on that later. It was in that transition that Sophie died protecting me. I owe that car my life. It never should have ended for her like it did. Sophie deserved better.

On the bright side, Sophie carried my most precious cargo to safety. She was able to get the cats out of that house with the evil neighbors. I need to hold onto the good memories we had. The camping trips, the surfing trips, the park trips. Sophie kept us safe. 

She was the best car ever. I love you and I miss you. 

Happy 11th Birthday, Jolene!

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August 24 is Jolene’s birthday and this year the Queen turns 11! Jolene brings so much life and love to our household. Jolene has my girl baby name. She is the first female cat I have ever had. 

While she is small, Jolene made it apparent from when she first arrived that she oversaw Jude and Simon. Jude liked to cuddle Jolene and was cautious in playing with her. He was truly gentle with Jolene and played rougher with Simon. 

Jolene and Simon play almost like kittens! Jolene is typically the one who starts the play session, and she likes to win. Often, Jolene and Simon will chase each other up and down the stairs. They also cuddle each other and are truly bonded. 

Flower lives in her own little world and hisses at the house cats. Jolene is afraid of Flower and gives her plenty of space. Jolene does not go near Flower. Sometimes Jolene appears on cat cam at night checking on Flower when she is asleep, but it is more of a general “let’s check the entire house” than a specific check on Flower.

Jolene’s favorite toys are carrot and ghost bear. Her stuffies are moved around the house daily. Jolene enjoys transporting them to different places. Sometimes she even puts one of them in a carrier. You know that Jolene is feeling well and in good spirits if she is moving her stuffies around.

Jolene loves attention and will often arch up like a little horse for pets. She loves to be picked up. She is quite the work driver, as she likes to sit in my lap and knows what work times are when I should be sitting. She follows me everywhere. Jolene goes to the basement every morning to check the live traps for mice. She follows me down to supervise laundry and the emptying of the dehumidifier. 

Whether at the vet office or at home, Jolene knows just how she likes things and has the nickname Miss Sassy Pants. She is adept at wiggling her way out of things and looking cute when she does not want something to be done to her – like her nails trimmed or her ears cleaned. 

Jolene had been found dumped at the animal shelter in a box with her kittens when she was 5 years old. All her kittens were adopted first. Jolene was in a cage at the back in the corner on the bottom. She pawed to be let out, and the orange caught my eye. When I took her out of the cage, she hugged me and would not let go. She picked me out. 

Each August, we try to use Jolene’s birthday month to bring awareness to adopt the moms. Adopt the shy cats, the seniors, the differently abled.

In addition to being a mom, Jolene is differently abled. She has a genetic condition that resulted in needing almost all her teeth removed. She has four teeth. She also gets motion sickness when traveling in the car. The motion sickness is unfortunate, as she loves traveling in the car. Thankfully, she does have vet prescribed motion sickness medication so she can enjoy car rides when needed without vomiting. 

Jolene brings so much love and life to this house. We love you, Jolene! Happy Birthday to the Queen! 

End Of Watch #Hedgewatch

/ rachelgoes262 / 4 Comments

Jude Raymond Anderson passed away on July 21, 2025, in his loving mom’s arms after a brief but brave fight with cancer. Jude was born February 14, 2012, and his Gotcha Day was February 14, 2014. Jude was adopted from the Humane Society of Rome in Rome, NY. 

Jude is survived by his mom, Rachel, siblings: Simon Freckles Anderson, Jolene Mamba Anderson and Flower Sunday Anderson. Jude is predeceased by Kitty Molecule Anderson and Kip Quark Anderson.

Jude truly embodied his name and “took a sad dong and made it better.” He came into our lives after the passing of Kip to be Kitty’s companion. Jude was with Kitty for three years, and for most of those, Kitty fought his own cancer battle. Jude was strongly bonded with Kitty. I know Kitty is welcoming him in Heaven and they are cuddling in the sun.

While Jude is loving and accepting of everyone, (even winning over poor traumatized Flower!), Jude’s strongest bond in his life was his time with Kitty. To Simon, Jude was a mentor and an amazing big brother. Jolene is in charge but would still let Jude be man of the house. Flower accepted Jude as her protector, and he was the first of the trio to win her over.

In his Hedgewatch duties, Jude was head coworker. He helped his mom through grad school and supervised writing of the thesis. He would sit in the cat bed in front of the window next to the desk for the past six years of coworker duty. Jude made friends all over the world as part of Hedgewatch. The family would like to especially thank our Hedgewatch family in the UK for your love and support during Jude’s illness. 

Jude loved to talk. He always wanted treats and would often get his siblings to join in his shenanigans to try to push up dinner time and get more treats throughout the day. Jude was extremely intelligent and easily trained. He was carrier trained for all meals and was also well trained in the tornado safety plan.

In the apartment, Jude would cling to the screen on the sliding glass door, earning the nickname “Spider Cat.” Jude would go out on the porch to look at birds and could be trusted to not jump off the porch. We were going to travel the world together. 

Jude slept in the bed with me every night. 

Jude was my best friend. He was there for me at the worst times of my life. He was there for me at the best times of my life. Jude was so full of love and life. He genuinely had an easy-going personality. He never met a stranger. Jude won hearts – everyone he met and everywhere he went. 

All you need is love and a cat. Jude was more than a cat. He was a beautiful soul. He gave me so much more than I deserved. It was an honor to be his mom for the time we had. Jude will always be my valentine. 

The family would like to thank the staff at Adana Veterinary Clinic for their compassionate and expert care over the years. They are truly the best cat hospital around. 

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you please donate to your local no-kill animal rescue In Memory of Jude. Or, if you prefer, save your donations for when we can move to a safe location and are able to accept help with the move. 

If love could have saved you, you would have lived forever. 

Preparing for a Move

/ rachelgoes262 / 1 Comment

Minimalism takes on new meaning when you are preparing for a move. This move is not a joyful one – it’s not happiness about a new location or some other positive attribute that prompted the move. This is a move of necessity for safety. What makes it even more precarious is that we need a new place to live. I don’t know where we are going. I just know we need to leave.

This move will need to be done as quickly and as easily as possible. To be honest, when I bought this house, I thought it was my forever home. I truly thought we would be here for the rest of our lives and never move again. Never say never.  Hopefully the move coming up this summer will be the final move. Fingers crossed. 

I’ve been on this minimalist journey for a while now, but it’s different when you are moving. Here is what’s happening:

There were a lot of items in this house from the previous owner when I purchased it. The person had passed away, family members inherited it, and they did not clean it out completely. A few years ago, I hired a junk truck to take most of the items that had been left in the basement – rusted and broken tools, and items that were decades old. I found a very interesting fire alarm circa 1950s that I tried to donate to the Historical Society. 

There are still items in this house (mainly the garage) from the prior owner. I do not want to do to the next owners of this house what was done to me and leave a bunch of junk behind.

Everything in this house will either be going with me, donated, or junked. Obviously, the preference is donation, but broken items and many of the items from the previous owner need to be junked. 

In packing for the move, I am only taking with me what is necessary. I am getting rid of a lot of stuff. Some of it is stuff I like and use but am not willing to move. A lot of things I’m getting rid of because they are associated with this house, and I do not want to take things with me that remind me of this place. Some items I would keep if we were staying in this house, but I don’t want to move them.

You don’t realize how much stuff you have until you are trying to get it down into the smallest space possible. Most of the items moving with me are winter items like blankets. Winter blankets are bulky and take up space. 

Some things that are leaving:

Teaching Supplies – I’m getting rid of all my teaching supplies. Honestly, this is hard. As you may know, many teachers purchase supplies using their own funds. While I enjoyed teaching, I lost my teaching job because no one could hear me. (No, “noise canceling headphones” did not help with the level of noise coming from vehicles here). I would like to volunteer my time to teach English as a Second Language again moving forward but now is not the time. We need to be someplace safe first.

My 23-year-old TV set – This one is hard. I have never had cable, but I have used the TV to watch DVDs. That is, when I can hear the TV. A few months ago, I thought the TV was starting to die – it had some discoloration in the bottom right corner of the screen. Then the discoloration went away, and it has acted normally. It is possible there is a tube going in the TV. At any rate, I don’t think it will survive another move. Even if it did survive another move, I don’t want to move it. I haven’t been able to enjoy my DVDs in two years now; I will go without. A TV is not something that’s important when you are leaving a bad situation. 

My under desk / walking pad treadmill. This is in the basement. I got it so I would be able to run inside. When I go outside, I have been chased and taunted by children on bicycles (they were upset my security alarm went off when they were throwing rocks at my car and they were told to stop). It has been safer to try to run inside. It works, but I have no intention of moving it with me. Wherever we go, it will be safe to walk around outside again.

Tech Waste – There is tech waste in this home that should have left sooner but has been languishing in a “tech graveyard.” My microwave broke last fall. The broken microwave needs to leave. There is a laptop from 15 years ago and a broken robot vacuum. 

A note on robot vacuums: I did enjoy the robot vacuum and felt like it helped me. However, after the robot vacuum broke, and now that I am faced with properly disposing of it, I am realizing it did not help me as much as I thought. Whether you use a traditional or a robot vacuum, you still must pick things up off the floor and move items around to be sure everything is cleaned. The robot vacuum often gets stuck on things like heat vents, so you must be alerted to rescue it. The robot vacuum was more work than it was help. It’s quicker to just use the traditional vacuum and do it yourself. 

I will be much more thoughtful moving forward before purchasing technology and small appliances. 

I am proud to say that I have minimized items enough that when I packed up CDs, DVDs and books, I only had one box each. In the case of books, the box was not even full, so I put other light items in there with the books. To be honest, DVDs and CDs are not things I have been able to enjoy the past two years here. I have been able to sit and relax with a book when things are calm. It’s been nice to get lost in a novel when things are challenging. 

I am grateful that due to my minimizing efforts over the past several years, I only have one box of Christmas items to move. I am looking forward to being able to enjoy Christmas this year in a new, safe location. 

Many things have already been downsized and donated, so in going through items now, it is truly a matter of “I don’t want to move this,” or “this is not necessary for survival in an emergency situation.” Once we get to a new location and can relax and enjoy a living space again, then I may decide that I want new items to enjoy. For now, this is about survival.

Of course, the most important part of the entire equation is keeping the cats and I together. I had bought this house to keep us together. We need a new place to live. That is the only thing that matters.

When it is time to move this summer, I currently have everything packed except for the kitchen, my clothes, and work. This entire process is stressful and disruptive. I am hoping that things come together for us to obtain new housing soon. 

I’m trying to make this move as small and as efficient as possible. I remember when we moved from the apartment to this house, the people who helped me move commented on how organized it was. Everything was moved in a day. I have always done a DIY move. This will be the first move that I am unable to DIY due to my health.

 I will need to pay professional movers for this one who can load a truck, drive a truck, and unload the truck for me. I can get most things packed (except for large items like furniture, microwave, vacuum cleaner and cat towers). I am not going to be able to drive a moving truck or do any loading again. My health is too precarious right now for that. 

Any tips for deciding what to move with you when planning a big move? Any items that you recommend you can do without until you get to the new location? I’m sure there are frivolous things I have packed that could have been donated. 

Packing has helped me to feel like I am doing something to move forward in a positive way. It is hard when you feel powerless in a situation. I may not know yet where we are going, but I know we need to move. 

Of course, if necessary, I will leave it all behind just to get the cats and I out of here safely to a new location. Finding a place to live is the challenge. 

This is going to be the most difficult move of my life, but it needs to be done. I am not sure where we are going, but I am preparing to leave. We need a place to live.

A Decade of Rewind Live Slow

/ rachelgoes262 / 2 Comments

It’s been 10 years since I started this blog. Back in the day, (mid 2000s) I had a facebook. I deleted my facebook for my mental health. I have no regrets and have not looked back. Once I finished grad school, I decided I was “done” being on the internet and all the drama that goes with it.

In 2015, a coworker suggested I start a blog. She commented that stories I told at work about my life and what I experienced and noticed throughout my day were often comical, and other people may like to read. I decided I also wanted to use all my own original photography and have never used a stock photo on this site. 

I pay for my domain and hosting and try to keep things clean and ad-free for you. 

While some of my earliest posts may have been comical, I do realize that a lot of posts are more serious as I have navigated challenges in life. I try to focus on downsizing, minimalism and simple living, but life happens. We minimize our belongings to focus on the things in life that really matter – the relationships. 

From the comical post era, I will say that one of my personal favorites was the post about the time my yoga pants went to yoga. 

The cats have featured on this blog many times. I try to do a birthday and a gotcha day post for each cat. We now have two social media accounts – a twitter and a bluesky. I have made some new and treasured friends sharing my cats on social media. There have been many times over the past 5 years when the pet accounts on our social media have kept me going.

There is a lot of drama right now with these neighbor issues after we were attacked and physically injured two years ago. We are harassed daily; it prevents me from working and sleeping. There are a lot of moving parts, many of them legal, but I am trying to get us out of this situation and to a safe place. I can’t give a lot of detail right now due to safety. 

However, once it’s all done and we are in a safe place, I have stories to tell about the journey we are now on to try to get to a place of physical safety. 

A few weeks ago, there was gunfire here. 

Right now, I’m trying to post on here once a month. It is a struggle with trying to get us to a safe place to live with all the legal and other logistical parts involved. I am also having some very serious health concerns now.

I just wanted to take some time out to acknowledge that this blog has now been here for a decade. It started June 2015. I wanted to be sure I made a post for the anniversary before June 2025 passes us by.

If you are any kind of praying person, we would appreciate all the prayers and positivity you can muster right now. I’m trying to get us away from these abusive neighbors and to a safe place. Finding housing that will accept four cats is the challenge. 

I will not give up any one of my cats. They are the only family I have left. My entire purpose of buying this house in 2018 was to keep us all together. I love this house. I researched it back to when it was built and learned its stories. 

Due to violent neighbors that have already injured us and continue to threaten our safety daily, we are not safe here anymore.

So please pray we can find a place to live. 

Hopefully the next decade of Rewind Live Slow will be able to get back to more of the comical aspects of past.