I laid down for a nap around noon. I had woken up early enough to catch Cheers and Jeers this morning so my body wanted me to rest. I read a chapter or so and then curled up with my Pooties for a nap.
I was soon awakened by the old style fire alarm which is one of those round bells with the hidden clapper like a school bell. This is located across the hall from my door for my floor. The Pooties were not amused. I peeked out the door and smelt charred electrical smoke.
I drug out my shopping basket and my one Pootie carrier (note to self get another Pootie carrier). I put one of the Pootie beds in the bottom of the shopping basket and proceeded to wrestle Snowball into the Pootie carrier. After three tries and many scratches I was successful.
Snowball:
Bella on the other hand was not so cooperative. She had hidden inside the lining of the box spring. It took some cajoling and promises of treats to get her to leave her sanctuary. I put her in the shopping cart on the bed and placed the cat carrier with Snowball in it on top to block her in. So far so good.
Then we roll out into the hall. Where the noisy bell continues it's shrill ringing. Bella wriggles out of the cart through the wires and down the hall and around the corner.
Again like the good girl she is she came to me when I asked her to. I scooped her up and made my way to the elevators. There were two people on scooters waiting to be rescued, they were stuck on the floor. The elevators had been shut off.
I with trepidation for the safety of those trapped by their ailments, I proceed down four flights to get out of the building. Dodging fire fighters and other ambulatory residents.
There is a reason I don't do stairs. My knees are garbage and at anytime one or both could decide to go out. Holding a terrified Bella in one hand and the handle to the cart in the other I made it down safely.
I get outside to a ladder truck many, but not all, the residents and another support fire engine outside. Bella was not amused and Snowball was wailing.
I proceeded down to the corner away from the crowd and the noisy trucks but out of the shade. I tried to calm Bella by telling her how wonderful she was and all the sweet nothings I could think of to placate her out of digging her claws into my skin. Snowball is a lost cause in that department because he is a strictly indoor cat by choice. I tried anyway on deaf ears.
The scuttlebutt is that one of our residents fell asleep with a lit cigarette in his apartment.
The fire was soon out and residents were allowed back into the building. The fire and damage was limited to the one apartment.
I'm a little shaky from the excess adrenalin but should hit the post stress exhaustion sometime later. I do not know if it was the wrestling Snowball into the carrier, getting them down the stairs, or a combination of both. I'm feeling muscle strains in my arm, neck, and back. I will probably be fine but I may not know until the morning when muscle injuries on me get a chance to stiffen up in my sleep.