I lay in bed, sleep deprived and angry from the latest fight. I try to enjoy having the whole bed to myself. A luxury that I so rarely have. No snoring, no rustling, no stealing of the covers. I finally nod off into a peaceful and much needed slumber. It is 3:30am.

I wake from my sleep unsure of what woke me. I glance at the clock and it is 4:15. I close my eyes to drift off again, but notice the bed is shaking. Darn cat, it must be clawing at the bottom of the bed. I make my usual tsss tsss sound and it stops. I go back to sleep.

At 4:30 I wake again to the gentle shaking of my bed. The cat is really starting to bother me now. I have six of them. I'm not sure of the culprit, but I make the tsss tsss sound again, it stops and again I try for sleep.

This continues constantly until 6:45. Every time I am getting a little louder and harsher. I have started to get the dog involved by saying "get that kitty" and having her chase him away. When 7:00 arrives, I am at my wits end. I start tearing out the storage containers from under the bed. I am yelling and carrying on. Nothing is making this cat stop. I discover that it is not the end of the bed he is scratching. He is inside the box spring doing God knows what.

In the grips of an adult-size temper tantrum, I flip the mattress and box spring up on end (so much for taking it easy on my back and shoulders). My husband arrives home from work and I look like a rabid animal, consumed in rage. He makes me coffee. I enjoy a cup while standing outside watching the sun rising. I take drags off a cigarette like I'm making love to it. Twenty minutes and I have gained my bearings again. I feel more exhausted than before.

I use to take everything with a grain of salt. I would not lose it over a frustrating cat. I would not be in tears as I tore apart my room. Life has been so overwhelming that the littlest thing takes over me. I fear I am becoming more like him. Angry over every little thing.

Needless to say, the cat and I talked things out. :-) I have started my day over again and will probably enjoy a Lunesta tonight. All will be right again.