Monday, August 17, 2009

Fleamarket finds a Home

Fleamarket has a new Daddy.
His name is Mark, and he is otherwise known as our Electrian.









The reason Mark originally came over today was not to adopt my little feline friend though.

Late last week, while working at my desk in my Office, I saw the Reading Room light come on.

By itself.

It startled me, and without even really thinking, I immediately jumped up from my desk, ran outside and into the room underneath the old part of the house where the fuse box is.
I flipped the switch marked, "bedrooms" and went back upstairs to make sure it was off. Thank goodness, it was. My next move involved my cell phone- and Mark's phone number. He came over about 15 minutes later, and within about 5 minutes of that, he was showing me the wiring behind the Reading Rooms light switch. Y'all, it was not a pretty sight. Think: singed wires and a big pouf of old threads. Long story short, there was some major arcing going on between the two live wires in there, and would have caused the old fabric coating around the wires to catch fire if I hadn't shut the power off.

Yeah, I know. Scary stuff. I was thankful it didn't happen in the middle of the night. I would have never even known. My smoke detectors didn't have batteries in them at the time either. Not cool. (They do now, don't worry) :-)

I asked Mark how much it would cost to get the old part of the house re-wired.

He told me to sit down.

I asked him if he was serious, and he said, "yeah, you're probably gonna want to".

So I slowly lowered myself down onto the beer garden bench, told him to go ahead and lay it on me, and mentally prepared myself for a number.

He hit me with the number, which was lower than I had expected, but higher than we had anticipated spending on home improvements this month. I'm not a huge fan of living in fear though, so he's going to start the re-wiring process tomorrow, and should be done by Thursday night.

Back to little Fleamarket. Mark is going to surprise his 14 year old daughter with him tonight. She's going to be so excited, and that just warms my heart. I wasn't expecting to have to say goodbye to him today though, so I'm sort of sad right now. However, I am thrilled that he'll have a loving home, just one short mile down the road. Mark even said I can visit him if I want.

Wonder if they're done with supper yet? ;-)

41 comments:

Unknown said...

oOo... Sweetest story. I bet his daughter will love him to pieces, inseparable friends I'm sure they'll become. Sad for you though. I am just excited you rescued him from his nightmare... now you can sleep sound :)
-Mj

geri said...

You are so dam cute Layla.
You have a very kind heart. Your mom must be so proud of the creative and talented daughter she has that is also compassionate and a good friend to all she meets.
Love thatadorable kitten and the new home and life she will have.
All done with an angels touch.
Have a wonderful evening. Geri.

Anonymous said...

Glad you are getting your electrical fixed. That is one of those necessary but no fun expenses that need to be taken care of and nobody ever sees it. It's great that Fleamarket has a permanent new home and you can still visit :)

Diva Kreszl said...

So happy to hear about Fleamarket's new found family however I must say I'm a little sad to not get these little updates...do you think Mark would mind if you checked in from time to time and posted how Fleamarket is doing???

blushing rose said...

We've had situations like this with wiring & DH immediately took care of it ... scares the dickens out of me, tho.

And, what a lovely gift for his little girl. Someone is going to be getting a lot of lovin' .....
TTFN ~Marydon

Deb said...

I'm sorry to see him go too, but I'm so glad you found him a nice home so quickly. I love little furbabies and know he'll be happy. Thank you for taking good care of him and finding him a good home, Layla.

Deb

Melissa Miller said...

How scary! Sorry that happened.

Horray for Fleamarket!
Great news and wonderful photos. :)

MegJill said...

Hi, Layla! I just want to tell you that I think I have your youngest fan sitting here next to me! She is 13 months old and her name is Anya. (She's also my daughter.) Ever since you started posting video of Fleamarket, she has been glued to your blog! Whenever she sees me on the computer she quickly crawls over and makes her little baby noises, which we all know means "Show me the kitty!" We then proceed to watch all of the Fleamarket videos over and over again until she is thoroughly satisfied. Which is fine with me, 'cause he is kind of a cute little thing. So, thanks for sharing Fleamarket with my little girl, and make sure to bring us more pictures and video as he grows up! I'm so glad you found him a good, happy home.

NeeNee said...

I am so happy that Fleamarket found a home. That little girl will love him. I have four rescues myself, and the two youngest I got at age 3-4 weeks. They are the best cats you could ever ask for.

Also, I'm glad you found out about the electrical problem before it was too late. That was smart on your part to check it out.

MegJill said...

P.S. Wednesday we sign on our first house, a 1929er that is old enough to be my great grandma. We can't wait to make it our own, and I sure hope the electrical is updated like they said it is! So glad you caught yours before it was too late. We love taking peeks into the Lettered Cottage!

Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...

Don't you love it when a strong, burly man isn't afraid to show his softer side. Great pics!
So smart to get the electrical all fixed...know you will sleep much better!
Susan

Vivian said...

Awww! So sweet and she will LOVE that kitty! I am going back to the blog to see the new door! lol

http://allthingswonderful.blogspot.com/

Lori said...

I am so glad that fleamarket found a new home! I am a sucker for a happy ending. Sucks about the wiring, but better when you were home and aware of what was happening ~ electricity scares me or I should say electric fires scare the living crap out of me! I am glad that you will be safe and sound once the wiring is completed.

Vivian said...

OH! I see it is a floor and NOT a door! Looks great and I am sure she appreciates the idea!

We had a similar thing happen with our dryer and if we had not caught it our home would have had a fire, too! A big spot was burned around the 220 plug and it was charred really awful! God has a way of bringing these things to our attention, thank goodness!

Betsy Brock said...

Oh, what a sweet surprise that girl is going to have...one she will always remember!

-G- said...

aww, that little girl is gonna love fleamarket!
thank goodness that didn't happen at night, yes! glad you're getting it fixed! scary.

Claudia said...

What a wonderful story and I'm so glad Fleamarket has a home! And I'm glad that scary wiring problem was discoverd in time!

Leslie said...

so glad you're all safe!!
we had a similar issue- though luckily it was just the one electrical box and not the whole house... what a blessing that day time was the findings of these issues and prevented a fire during the night!!!

Unknown said...

I'm so glad to hear that fleamarket is going off to a new home.

Thank goodness you had your wits about you! I would not have tought to turn if off at the box! Well done. I've learned something important today! Thanks for that!

Tina

Denise said...

Aww! I'm glad Mark is taking Fleamarket to his daughter. Every kitty needs a girl to love it!

XXDenise

Catherine Holman said...

It's so sweet of you to find Fleamarket a home! There are so many animals out there wandering around looking for a home. He was so lucky to run into you.
Hugs,
Cathie

The Redhead Riter said...

Electricity can be a tricky thing, so it is great you have someone good to fix it for you.

PS~Erin said...

Such a happy little story.

The new blog looks so nice!

Pony Girl said...

Just got back from vacation and I've catching up on your kitten story and videos...I'm so glad you were able to find him a new family, it just breaks my heart when animals are abandoned (by humans or their own mommies.) My parents bought a beach house years ago where the owner had just sold it and up left her 3 cats behind. I found one meowing in the bushes and after much coaxing, befriended it in the yard, feeding it some of my parent's mushed up dog food and petting her for half an hour. Within a week they'd adopted that cat and now she is my mom's favorite, she calls her her "angel cat." In fact, at their new home in a busy neighbhorhood, Lily had to become an indoor cat but she escaped once and was lost for days. My mom used a pet physic to help her find her and that led them right to her, literally a few houses away. Weird! Lily really likes me, too, I think she knows I am the one that rescued her, even when my dad told me to stay away from the stray. Not possible! ;)
Glad you discovered the electrical problem~ yikes! I have anxiety over stuff like that!

HirondelleRustique said...

Wow that is so scary! I'm really glad you caught it before the wiring issue became a huge problem. I dont even want to think about it!

Yay for little Fleamarket! It's wonderful that he's going to such a good home.

Tracy Watier said...

Hooray for the kitty and his new family! What a great dad!
And glad to hear you're getting your wiring trouble taken care of. Scary stuff!

People Who Know Me Would Say: said...

Yay, Fleamarket! I'm glad you discovered the need for re-wiring before anything bad happened!

Sew Create It - Jane said...

Well, you are smarter than me...if I'd seen the light go on by itself I just would have thought the house was haunted! :o)
You did the right thing getting the electrician in..one can't be too safe about these things.

Glad to hear Fleamarket found a home..I've been following the story and wondered how it would turn out.

Anonymous said...

awww I am so teary eyed!! Fleamarket looks just like my first cat, Puff. I picked him out when I was two years old -- my first memory. I hope his little girl loves him as much as I loved my little guy!! He's precious!

Liz said...

Awwwwee that is such a good ending. So glad Fleamarket has a new loving home. Is he going to keep the name? I think it's such a cute name.

Lynn Kellan said...

Phew, I'm so relieved that you caught the electrical problem before it became a disaster!

Have fun visiting little Fleamarket.

duchess said...

Awww. What a sweet Daddy. I'm glad Fleamarket will get lots of loving from a sweet 14 yr. old girl.

Blog Author(s) said...

Fleamarket chose a wonderful new home. Congratulations to the happy family.

tipsygirl said...

I am so glad to read that both stories have a happy ending!

Sarah said...

So cute! He's so nice to give him a home!

Kelly B said...

I hate electrical problems! They are never cheap and are always scary. I am so glad you found it before something bad happened!! I am so glad to hear about Fleamarket. I am sure he will make a wonderful pet for his daughter...!! :)

Prairie Girl Studio said...

love your images layla ... it just makes me smile so to see this big guy being so adoring with this itty bitty kitty ... sweetness all around!
flemarket is one lucky lucky feline ~
prairiegirl

Angie said...

Anybody who cares about animals and helps them is an awesome person in my book! Love to read stories like this one!

Prairie Girl Studio said...

oh ... and i was having an anxiety attack reading your electrical story ... even the slightest little "zzzt" makes me crazy nervous ... good for you for knowing to 'pull the plug' and turn the power off ... so glad all is well ... big time phew. (and if that hadn't happen, would the electrician's daughter have a new kitten? hmm)
pg xo

Pokey said...

So sorry about the big electrical bill, but that's scary, so I'm glad you had an electrician to call. It is all relative, though, isn't it?
I have enjoyed your blog, but this story about Fleamarket has been precious!! We have never been "cat people", always doggies, but this little guy is a sweety! I'm glad he has a home ( but I had the feeling he would have been moved into the "inner circle" in no time... : } pokey

Betty G said...

That electrician reminds me of Jason from "Ghost Hunters~" What a hoot! Sorry it didn't work out!