We hope to establish an ongoing housesitting arrangement with one or more Seattle residents who can occasionally stay with our cat Mia in our Downtown/Belltown condo when we travel. We take about a dozen trips per year, some for just a few days and some for as long as 6 weeks. If you plan to live in Seattle for at least a couple years and would like occasional retreats to a beautiful in-city oasis with a sweet kitty, read-on.
Mia is an easy-going petite 16-year-old cat in good health. We would like a sitter who will normally spend several waking hours at home each day to keep Mia company. It is OK if you work outside the home but we don’t want to leave her alone all day and night if you tend to work long hours and then stay out late for a night on the town. You main responsibility is to be aware and responsive to Mia’s non-verbally communicated needs – rub her belly when she rolls over, refill her water when she waits by her dish, feed her when she's hungry (and set out food for when you go out), chase her around the house when she gets frisky, or provide a warm lap to sit on when she wants to relax in the evening. Mia loves it when we read a book from our large library or watch the big screen TV. Yes, we pamper our cat and if you are a cat-person, you will want to also!
Besides caring for Mia, the household responsibilities are minimal. We will provide a schedule for watering our 30 potted plants and refilling the cat, bird and hummingbird feeders. We live in a large one bedroom condo (converted from 3 bedrooms) on the 22nd floor of a Belltown high-rise. Every room has a great view west to Elliot Bay and the Olympic Mountains. We also have one window facing north to the Space Needle and one south toward downtown. The interior is stylishly (but comfortably) furnished. The kitchen is large and well equipped. We have two decks, one off the bedroom and one off the dining room. Our building has a common area with a swimming pool, hot tub, sauna, gym and barbeque.
You will not find a more central location. Within a 10 minute walk are Downtown, the Pike Place Market, South Lake Union, Seattle Center, the waterfront restaurants, 30 movie screens, live theater and music, museums, central library, shopping and direct buses to every corner of the metropolitan area. Put on your walking shoes and in minutes you can find yourself on Capitol Hill, Pike/Pine, Pioneer Square, Chinatown/International District or Queen Anne.
What’s not to like? We have one parking space that will usually be available to you, but if you have a second car or visitors, you will need to find paid parking. Although our concrete building provides perfect sound insulation from our neighbors, you can still hear the muffled noises of city outside: buses, sirens, late night revelers. This isn’t the neighborhood to stay in if you want to pretend that homelessness and drug dealing don’t exist. In the summer, our beautiful walls of windows can heat up the apartment like a greenhouse and you need to carefully manage the windows and blinds to keep comfortable (though we just bought a window air conditioner that might help).
If you think you might enjoy becoming part of Mia’s extended family, send us a message and we can learn more about each other.