Just another day of working from home…because it’s never boring!
Yes, I have basement cats and main-level cats—which sounds weird, I know. You might be picturing me as an old cat lady who does nothing but cater to animals all day. And honestly… that’s not too far off.
I’m almost 50, and my pets run my life.
One of my cats will physically smack me with her claws to let me know she wants to go on the front porch—immediately. Another sits by the back door screaming until I open it so she can go lounge on the deck railing like a sunbathing queen.
And the dogs? Just as bad.
But it’s the basement cats that almost burned my house down.
Why Do I Even Have Basement Cats?
Great question.
It all started when my son’s friend moved from Florida to Georgia for a fresh start. He needed a place to stay while job-hunting, and he had two big, beautiful cats with him.
The problem? My son’s house already had:
✔ Two adults, two toddlers, and my elderly mother
✔ Three big dogs—including one that already escaped and killed a neighbor’s goat
Clearly, adding two cats to that mix was a disaster waiting to happen.
So, being the responsible (and slightly cat-obsessed) person that I am, I became their foster mom. My house was the best option since:
✔ I live alone (aside from my own small zoo of animals)
✔ I work from home (meaning constant supervision)
✔ I have a semi-finished basement with concrete floors (aka, cat-proof)
Solid plan, right?
How the Basement Cats Almost Took Me Out
Friday morning. I was still lying in bed, mentally preparing to start my day as usual:
☑ Feed the animals (because I am their servant)
☑ Take a walk with two dogs and one cat (while the other cat is lazy and just watches from the porch)
☑ Go to work by walking the whole 15 feet from my bedroom to my home office
Then I heard a noise while I was still debating whether I wanted to get out of bed or not.
At first, I thought it was my air purifier acting up. No big deal.
But as I got up to check it out, I realized the noise was coming from the basement.
Instantly, my brain jumped to murder.
Because obviously, what else could it be?
Slowly, I crept down the stairs, expecting the worst. And then I saw it.
It was my shop vac.
The basement cats had somehow jumped on the button and turned it on. Naturally, the sudden roaring vacuum scared the absolute crap out of them, so they bolted—leaving the vacuum running at full blast.
After turning it off, it hit me:
💀 That thing could have overheated and started a fire while I was asleep.
I’m a heavy sleeper. If I hadn’t woken up when I did, I might’ve had no house left.
…And honestly? It wouldn’t be the first time.
I once actually almost burned my house down with an air fryer. Had to break out the fire extinguisher and everything.
But that’s a story for another day.
Working from Home Is Never Boring
This isn’t even the wildest thing that’s happened while working from home. I once watched a tree split a house trailer in half—live, in real-time.
So yeah, remote work isn’t always just sitting in pajamas and sipping green tea. Sometimes, it’s stopping some cats from committing arson.
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