I was totally bummed out yesterday because my cat was missing. Well, it's more like one of my cats was missing; there are eight in total. This is a picture of the vagabond, Xena (pronounced ZEE-NAH), yeah like the warrior princess. When she was only a few months old, she used to stand on her hind legs like a kangaroo and try to punch the other cats; that was a weird sight.

Anyhoo, as I was leaving my office to go home for the evening, I saw that my Dad and my brother had called. Of course, the first thing that pops in my mind is that something may have happened to my Mom. Well, to make a long story short, they had been looking for Xena since my mom returned from her dialysis appointment earlier in the day.

There was no sign of Xena and they had looked in the house and throughout the neighborhood. My Dad said that my Mom was very upset and they wanted to know if I'd seen Xena. I started to feel nauseous and it seemed as if I'd never get home.

When I got home, my Mom's eyes were so swollen from crying that she looked like she had an allergic reaction. It was bad. To make matters worse, she started going on and on about Xena and how she prayed to God and my deceased daughter, Jamila, for Xena to return.

If you've been reading this blog, you already know my daughter's story. Well, Xena was her cat and is likely the closest I'll come to a grandchild. I wouldn't want to lose her but I'm not going to spaz out either. I checked the neighborhood again and then made plans to go to the animal shelter in the morning, distribute flyers and offer a reward. What more could I do?

My mom said the guy that tried stealing the newspaper on Sunday had taken Xena and had done who knows what to her. I couldn't convince her otherwise. I tried to concentrate on my tasks for the evening and periodically checked outside to see if Xena had returned.

At about 1 AM, after hours of my Mom's kvetching, I convinced her to go to bed. She went to the front door, opened it and Xena was there. Oh…my…God… she screamed – no, more like wailed, thanked God and really carried on. Xena sashayed in the house as if nothing was wrong.

Needless to say, Xena will not be allowed out of the house anymore unless she's on a leash. I teased my Mom about how she reacted yesterday. Of course she denies most of it but rest of the family knows better. Perhaps I can get a good night's sleep and no more cat drama.