I went to my massage therapist, Claudine, yesterday.

It’s not what you think with hot stones and relaxation. Even though there was flute music playing, it might as well have been Slipknot’s “Duality”.

It’s serious knot-untying and painful.

As I lie there on the “torture table” I imagined the cats of a Michigan artist I follow on Facebook; Robert Winslow. “Diego” is the big tom cat and “Henry” is the new kitten.

Diego often pins down Henry with a mouthful of the back of Henry’s neck, like mountain lions do. Robert is unsure at this point if this is dangerous tom behaviour or mothering. Each day, I tune in on FB to read the latest pet antics.

Claudine had my back and neck pinned down in agony yesterday.

“OMG, I’m Henry!” I thought, trying not to panic with my imagination running wild.

“Am I Claudine’s PREY?!”

I overdid my first gym visit of the year weeks ago by doing free weights overhead while standing.

Such a rookie move.

The result is halo migraines.

“That is dumb. You are not 17.”

I know.

And now I have exercises to do and weekly chiro adjustments.

And Claudine.

She is really awesome with sports medicine massage but I’m afraid of her a little.

“Ah you doin’ okehh?” she asks in her soft Jamaican accent as her elbow pinches along my spine and digs into my scapula.

“Yyyyes”, I whimper and lie knowing that getting the knots out is key to recovery.

I wonder what Diego meows to Henry “You doin’ ahright, kid? Tryin tah toughen ya up for the world” in a Chicagoish accent.

“Yyyyeah” Henry mellooows back, then runs to hide in a pillow fort once Diego lets go.

“mother…”

Diego saber tooth tiger character from Ice Age. Blue Sky Studios.