I'm going to finish posting on this thread with an update. My cats, rat, and I are living in our own apartment! We've relocated to a small town. The apartment is tiny, but just right for me and my furry family. I'm already fixing it up and feel so happy here.

The house I was living in, the one I escaped from, has been completely looted and trashed. It's sickening. I've never owned much, and I've lost most of my stuff...almost everything my parents left to me and, worst of all, someone stole my fat leather case of poetry I've written (and some that was published) over the past decades. I did recover a box that was (amazingly) untouched by the squatter and other looters...a box of family photos and my children's baby books.

All I can do is go forth and thank God I'm safe and in a home I love.