Over The Moon

Just yesterday I was complaing to Stephen that nothing much good has happened lately. It seems like trouble comes not in threes, but in downpours! I had some more fruitless trips to get my military ID, car troubles, job issues and a new loan to pay that I had completely forgotten about.

And yet, today I received answers to two e-mails I had sent out and they instantly lifted my mood. Pair that with the arrival of Olivia's sister, and a girl's day with Mom and my sisters and I'm feeling much lighter of spirit.

I'll save my best news for last.

First, today was delightful despite the nasty weather and a busted tire that had to be changed in the midst of a winter storm. Mercedes and I attended Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet with a modern setting and enjoyed it. The actors were fantastic and the post World War II world with all its racial tensions was a great new take on Will's tale. I don't, however, have much good to say about the story. I rate Romeo and Juliet as very low on the list of Shakespeare plays I like. I just cannot identify with any of the characters and I think the double suicides are just plain stupid.
Afterwards we met mom and Cecilia at one of my favorite restaraunts, P.F. Changs. I adore their fried rice with a bit of sweet. Yum. Finally our girl's day concluded at Metropolis where we shopped (or in my case looked!) and saw the movie Avatar.
(Also, Mercedes was nice enough to buy me the most adorable shirt. Pictures later.)
Personally I could write a whole post in itself on Avatar. Suffice it to say, I was opposed to seeing the movie because of all the hype but ended up adoring it. I would've paid twice to see the film. Well worth a watch.

Oh, and I got my military ID finally! Now my school can verify that my father is in the military and I can start getting paid my stipend.

As for the two e-mails; the first was from a friend and former co-worker from the zoo agreeing to let me use her as a reference for a position I am applying for. I adore Encounters, but I would love the opportunity to work in the Forest part of the zoo with the bears, otters, tigers and birds of prey. Also the vampire deer. (Look them up. They are called Muntjac's and they are from India.)

The second e-mail was from the woman I purchased Addie and Olivia from. She has agreed to, with my vet's okay, allow me the use of one of her males for ten days so I can breed Addie! I am so super excited about documenting the pregnancy, birth and raising of the kittens (that's what you call baby rats! Females are does, males are bucks). After the kits are weaned, I will keep one little girl for myself and give the rest back to the daddy's owner to sell to pay for my stud fee. This may not seem like much to you, but this is precisely why I am so over the moon! I get to go through the entire mating and birth process with one of my beloved girls.

And finally, my aunt made the difficult decision to give her rat Penelope (Olivia's natural born sister) up to me. She feels she can't spend enough time with her, and since Penny has been living with me for two weeks while my Aunt was away, she has gotten along famously with my rats. Part of this deal is that my grandmother will help me purchase a new, bigger cage!

Oh joy, oh happy day! What fleeting emotion it is, but determined am I to enjoy it for every morsel I can wring!

I shall keep you updated, never fear. :-) I hope you all get to experience such a rapturous day like mine sometime soon!

'Quel