Trespassers

So we get home from the vet, I go out on the deck, I hear rustling at the back fence, and I am in my hunting point position, and the keeper swoops me up and locks me inside.  There was a big fat mother and about five baby raccoons who were anxious to explore our yard. I was hoping they might want to play a bit.  The keeper took a stick and had a very long talk with them about why this was not a good yard for the babies, and she told them that a very mean cat lived here who ate raccoon babies and she shook her stick at them and eventually they left.  Then she had the nerve to repair two holes in the back fence.  These were holes which I used on a regular basis to slip out. Man! I am so grounded.

Then Frank the neighbor came over to ask if we had seen Hunter, their piebald cat who keeps marking our yard.  His keepers are very distressed  He has been missing since Sunday.  The keeper sent them to the spot where my collar was found.  She calls it the " no good cat party house".  I hope Hunter is safe.  I actually have not seen him either, and I am telling the truth.

Terror!

The day started innocently enough.  But before I knew it I was tossed into the cage, placed into the front seat of the keeper's car and driven to the place from which my brother, Stassi, did not come back alive.  I howled all the way there, and no amount of the keeper meowing "Tantum Ergo" could quiet me.  I was raging against the doctors of death!  I howled all the way into the vet, then had an asthma attack and started to pant.  Finally they let the keeper hold me for the examination.  She didn't seem too concerned and I didn't know why.  The next thing I knew I was in my cage and down in the lab where they poked me with needles.  I howled so loud that the keeper said she could hear me upstairs.  I was not going to die quietly. 

Next thing I knew I was back in the car in the cage heading home, and I wasn't dead.  I overheard the keeper and the vet and the techs saying that they thought I was associating Stassi's death with this trip to the vet.  You better believe I was!

I am home now, and the shot they gave me to calm my lungs down , has already stopped the raspy breathing.  I don't sound like a pig anymore.  I will sleep well tonight.

Monday at the Locks

This morning the keeper left me to go with her friend J to play tourist in Seattle for a little bit.  They went to the Locks.  She hadn't been to the locks for decades. They stood with the tourists and watched three boats get moved through.  Then they went to look at the fish.  She didn't realize that salmon were still around the locks at this time of year, but here they are.  I liked looking at them alive. Although I like them after they have crossed the Rainbow Bridge too.

FT25!

Today the keeper spent all day and part of the night in church.  It sounds like the old days.  I stayed inside alone.  But she rushed to the Cathedral, then picked up her share of the CSA vegetables--an onion, bok choy, and 1/2 dozen eggs, and then she had to dash off to help prepare for the FT25 Spanish Mass and reception.  It's good she got there early to help because most of the community failed to show up for Mass because Mexico was playing at that time in the world Cup. (They lost. )  But the Mass was good.  The children dressed up as part of the the procession. The church was almost full by the end. And maybe it was better because they only had to serve 500 bowls of pozole and chips and cake and toppings.   Then all of the young adults decided that they are coming to our house for 4th of July. I hope I get to eat something.

The keeper finally came home at 10 ish, because she had also gone out to Carnation for a Mass and the first baptism in Spanish there.  A very cute young man, Alejandro, all dressed in white.

But when she got home her legs hurt and she realized she had been standing or running around for about  8 hours straight. 

Well, I didn't let her off the hook.  I was hungry and I don't like the raw chicken food she is serving me and furthermore, I don't like the chicken canned food either.  So I made her clean out my bowl and give me turkey.  She did it.  She was too tired to fight back.

Simplicity

This rose got to come inside.  It has the most beautiful fragrance.  Old fashioned and delicate.

Outdoors at Last!

Finally, I am resting on a deck chair.  The keeper hauled out the cushions today.  They smell like Stassi, which is comforting to me.  It rained a little bit this morning and so it was damp and Stassi.  But I spent several hours pondering the back yard, watching squirrels, keeping a sharp eye out for  cats crossing the boundary which I had clearly marked.  Not a lot of action, though.  Very noisy birds in the laurel bushes.  Must be some good worms or berries out there.

I am fighting very bad congestion.  I am allergic to the outdoors and I sound like I have asthma.  In fact, the keeper cuts flowers these days and puts them in vases outside because I start sneezing when they are inside, especially the peonies and mock orange.  So here are some of our outside vases.

The keeper worked in the yard while I rested.  She cut down all kinds of runaway wildflowers and filled a 1/2 dumpster.  She said she had to make haste while the bees rested this cloudy evening. She also picked black spot leaves off of the rose bushes.

Roofing Day 3

It's over!  So quickly!  Today Andy the gutter man came and gave us new metal gutters and even added some more and made sure one of them dripped into the rain barrel.  It's all quite spiffy.  Andy and his crew spoke not only Spanish, but Mizteco as well.  I watched from my perch indoors.  I was exhausted after it was all done.  The keeper wondered why I didn't want to come outside when she finally got home.  She has no idea what a stressful day I had watching those guys on their ladders.  All she did was talk with people and write memos.  Such risky work.  She went out and planted more lupine, desert paintbrush, echinacea, coreopsis, and some other stuff.  We are all out of things to plant now.  Except the seeds she forgot to plant earlier. 

I thought she would spend some quality time with me when she came in so I sat at the computer and played with the keys, hoping this would take her away from her work.  So I fell asleep on the keyboard. Now what is she going to do?

Roofing Day 2

After a very long day and lots of workers, our roof is done, except for some flashing and little things.  Tomorrow the gutter guys come, and then one of the roofers, who is also a carpenter, is going to rebuild our planters, and eventually will help us put in a new front door.  Another one will come back later to help construct the brick patio/potting area. 

I stayed in most of the day.  I could see more from more windows.  The keeper ran around in her car--coming home with library books for summer reading, fruit, vegetables, and surprise of surprise, more plants.  She spent the rest of the day re-potting and planting and digging and watering and sweeping, and around 8:30 tonight she remembered that we needed to eat.  I think the sun does strange things to people. These were very hard working days off. But now everything looks pretty spiffy!

Roofing Day 1

It was 9 AM.  A knock on the door.  And so the roofers arrived, with big trucks and tools, and noise!  They ripped off our old roof, and put new plywood down and put in special vents.  They didn't find to many problems underneath, which was good.  The keeper spent the morning cleaning all of the cobwebs and  dirt off of the walls.  When they are covered, we don't notice it.  But, we collected piles of dust and dead spiders and stuff.  It smells better now.  Then she went out and cleaned out the gardens some more and started planting some more plants she picked up at Lowes for 25 cents because they were a little limp.   The foreman is also a carpenter so he may work for us later and build us some new planter boxes. So she put plants in new planters so we could put them in the new cedar boxes when they are ready.

When she came back into the house she noticed what I had been observing after she went outside.  She said, "Ack!" And headed out to talk to the foreman.  We now have a hole in our ceiling and it is getting a little bigger.  He said now he knows where the missing hammer is!
They will repaint the ceiling and fix it, but.. now she will want to paint the whole living room and dining room.

I had to sit inside all day.  When they all left, I went out, but it smelled different, so I came back in.  I smelled other cats that don't live around here.  They had all kinds of tarps wrapped around the deck and the plants. I was proud though because I was not afraid of their noise and I kept a sharp eye on them all day/

A 12th Sunday in Damp Ordinary Time

The official beginning of Summer begins in a few hours. It rained all day, like in Ocean Shores. It is still raining.  It is also Father's Day, and we didn't smell many BBQ grills stoked up tonight.  It was a night to watch Miss Marple on PBS. Maybe the roofers won't come tomorrow after all.  But the keeper was at several churches today and had great visits with people.  But she said she had a wonderful gathering of young adults who were studying Christology and she told me about the profound stories of conversion they shared with her. I do not know what the words Paschal Mystery mean for cats but the stories of human transformation were really powerful.

Almost Summer

The roofers are supposed to come tomorrow, that is, if the rain stops.  So the keeper had to take down art and breakable things that are hanging or stacked along the outer walls of the house because the roofer says the pounding could knock things down and off.  Our house looks like we are moving.  But the keeper also realized that we are not the best housekeepers.  She cleaned lots of cobwebs and dust off of painting and pottery and walls.   Maybe it will help my allergies.

It is fascinating to observe myself in mirrors on the floor and see the paintings up really close.

Farewell, Biscuit

This past December, Stassi and I had to entertain a Yorkie named Biscuit.  Biscuit belonged to one of the keeper's long time friends.  Now, I had some experience with little dogs, and don't mind them, but this one invaded our home.  We hid under the bed all day.  Yet, I know in my heart that Biscuit was a good dog, and her keeper loved her intensely.  Well, Biscuit crossed the Rainbow Bridge this week.  And her keeper is distraught.  Hopefully she was greeted by her great aunt Yorkies and perhaps Stassi can rouse himself from the heavenly lap to acknowledge her presence in his new home. Perhaps she will experience a little better hospitality in pet heaven than she did at our home this past December. Our hearts go out to her keeper.

Building Project

One of these days I am going to be able to get outside again. I have been watching the neighbors' cats cross in and out of  my yard for the last two days and the keeper has no idea how important it is for me to get out there and reclaim the territory before it is overrun by aliens.
So, what's so important that she just can't stay home?  Well, it seems she really lives in her car ore than here these days.  Meetings here and there.  She came home last evening all exited about a new building which she has been watching grow week by week in Bellevue.  She got to take a tour of it on Friday.  She said it is beautiful.  The students even have a balcony. Perhaps that will expand their vision and perspective. She also learned about a new blog called The Mother Hen.  We will be reading that  reflective blog from now on.

Sidewalk Sale

The roofers postponed their visit until next week.

This is the weekend for the famous University Village Sidewalk Sale where the keeper practice safe  retail therapy.  The keeper let me go outside for 1 0 minutes, fed me, and went out to the sale with severe limits.  She didn't need those limits and came home with her usual sack from Bryn Walker. But it was a very small sack.  She likes that store a lot, and likes all of the friendly people who work there.  And their clothes are made in the US out of natural fabrics and those left over are given to clothing banks.

But she thought she would also check in at Chicos.  She used to love Chicos.  But every time she goes in, sale or not, no one speaks to her.  Today they were all speaking to each other, and even after she said hello, they kept speaking.  She is never crossing their threshold again. 

I think she is just getting tired of stores.  We don't really need anything else and would be fine never going shopping again till the day she dies.  I have a feeling we are going to have a major house cleansing of  "Junk" soon. She has two friends who are moving and tossing things. Sometimes moving is a good thing she says.  But we are not moving. Yet we may be tossing.  I can just feel it coming over her. I think it is a good thing. As long as she leaves my toys alone.

Thank You, Veda Jo

Today I tried to get outside, but the keeper lured me back in with " treats". And before I knew it the door was shut for the rest of the day.  She had meetings in Georgetown and then had to be at her office, and then to a funeral for a lady named Veda Jo. Finally she came home and fed me.

I don't quite understand why she likes funerals.  She certainly goes to a lot of them! I have only been to one---Stassi's in our back yard, and I thought it was very sad.  But she said this one was sad but it was a lovely celebration of a daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, friend, bailiff, SU alum, shopper, traveller, party thrower, and lover of life.  One of her children catered the prime rib dinner in the new church hall.  It was a feast of words and friends and an  incredible Irish clan. Lots of reconnections with old friends and then she had to rush home to me.  And that is always good. 

I hear rumors swirling that some people are coming to take off our roof for the next few days.  I just hope they cover it back up and don't let any of those mean crows come diving down on me.
Also, I heard some mumbling about going to the vet.  I hope I imagined that.

Intensity on the 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time

The keeper tells me that this has been a weekend of so much intensity--life, death, hope, destruction, sadness, delight. On the way to the funeral, she ran into a pack of fire engines heading toward a big plume of smoke in the Fremont area.  It smelled horrible and people were lined up on the street.  She didn't give it much more attention since she needed to be at the funeral home.  Only later did she learn that four children and an adult died in this fire.  And they were from the Ethiopian community.  Some of the fire department equipment wasn't functioning.  It's a terrible tragedy for which there are no words.  The keeper said we should also remember the fire fighters who must also feel terrible right now. 

On the other hand, today she attended a young Hispanic priest's First Mass.  The line up of his friends who are seminarians and other young Latino priests was impressive.  The keeper said that she prayed for those young men that they learn to love their people, more strongly than anything else, more than strongly than church politics or opportunities for advancement or following the law rigidly.  She prayed that they would help their people become strong leaders and wise in faith and tradition.  And she prayed that they would fight for their people--for justice, recognition, in the face of bureaucratic manipulation.

Found: One Collar

Today was a funeral day.  The keeper scurried off to the funeral home to help a family say good bye to Leo, father, grandfather, great grandfather, husband, gardener.  The sun was out and the day was warm.  All went well!    While the keeper was out, the vet called.  I tried to knock the phone off the hook, but it didn't fall.  But, I learned that it wasn't about my shots but about my collar.  A neighbor found it and called the number, and was really concerned because there was no cat with it.  She went to pick it up and learned how far I had travelled to lose it.  SO now I am being watched a little more carefully.  She also learned that raccoons hang out in the house where it was found.

We picked a few of the peonies in the backyard.  They make me sneeze.

Later, she went out walking and brought back photos of more flowers that are beautiful and make me sneeze.  She gave me extra chicken.  And we sat on the deck in the sun.

Out in the Country

The keeper awoke early and caught a ride with one of her LEMMINGS colleagues.

They headed up to Arlington and way out into the country and onto a gravel road and then onto no road to a little green house on a roiling creek for a retreat. The roar and rush of the water and the wind dancing in the trees and the ferns exploding anew every minute in every shade of green. Of course I had to stay home. But I wouldn't have wanted to go in a car with people.  so I watched birds.  I hope I get a kitten soon. I hope she knows I am serious.  I can only play with those fake birds and mice for so long. 

Cyclone Days

This is the moth I have been trying to capture for days now.  The keeper caught it at rest on the garage door.  It's pretty.  I really don't want to kill it.  But I like chasing it.

It's been a little nutty here.  The keeper is pretty much recovered, and so she is making up for a few lost days.  Let's see, we had the yard people here yesterday, pruning, buzzing, sawing, weeding, raking, 5 of the them.  So noisy, but the yard looks better.  Then the keeper decided to plant tomatoes and other things, and more flowers, lupine and paint brush plants.  Then someone died from her old church and so there is a funeral to plan. Then the roofers are coming next week and so there are shingle samples on the floor.  Then the keeper is refinancing the house, so there are inspectors and mounds of paper, and phone calls.  Then the house in Ocean Shores is having some issues, and so there are more phone calls.  I am glad I do not have to be in charge of a house.  I don't know how she does all that and then leaves me all day to go to her office or where ever it is that she goes.  She keeps telling me that I might get a kitten, but so far it's shingle samples and inspectors.

Hams for Rent

After the Corpus Christi procession the keeper decided to avoid the parking garage knot by walking to Starbucks.  She came across a van with an open door and found pigs sleeping in their cages.  She asked the lady in the passenger seat if these were the famous performers, and she learned that they had just finished a show--the regular..you know, tricycle riding, golfing, hoop jumping.  They actually have blinds to pull down on the window so they can sleep better!  Or, perhaps the paparazzi might pester them too much!

From a feline perspective, I am amazed the pigs would stoop to this. I thought that they were smarter than that.  What is the payoff? You won't catch this cat playing golf at birthday parties for kids!!!!

"Give Them Something to Eat Yourselves"

The Gospel for today's Corpus Christi told of how Jesus told the disciples to give the hungry crowds something to eat themselves.  No purchased food would satisfy, only the gifts of their own substance would suffice.  One of the most wonderful images of the Christ is that of the mother pelican feeding her young by tearing at her own flesh. 

The earth feeds us from her own flesh.

The keeper and I were thinking about that ever so tender pelican image...and in particular the recent newsclips that showed us the horrifying images of pelicans in the Gulf  all covered with oil and mud, grounded in greasy muck.  What an image!  Pelican! Earth! Our mother, avian, christic, who gives her flesh so we might eat and be satisfied, is trapped in our greedy muck.

We have much to ponder and change.

Feast of Corpus Christi

Today is the Feast of Corpus Christi--the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, as the keeper patiently explained to me this morning before she flew out of the house for the Cathedral and elsewhere.  The 10 Am Mass concludes with a lovely procession out into the streets around the block and ended up with Benediction on the steps of Cathedral Place.  Last year they processed out into a street lined with a notorious haters on the other side.  This year it was raining at 10 Am, but miraculously the rain abated for the procession.  Compared to last year the procession was much more muted. Kind of like the silver washed sky. Nice.

Almost Recovered

The keeper is way better.  Today is her best day.  She only coughs when she talks too much. I also lost my collar with the fancy tag on it the other day.  My story is that one of the crows was chasing me and I ducked under a fence and it popped off.  That's all I am going to say.  But I don't feel like going  outside of our yard or even off of the deck for while.  The keeper went out looking for the collar but I hate to say she will never find it. But she went out and  got me a new collar with lots of information about me on it. 

Eve of Corpus Christi

    

A few scenes of more beautiful sites

     on the side of the road (as opposed to

      the last blog scene)

      during the keeper's evening walk.

Side of the Road

Today the keeper worked at home in the afternoon, after being at meetings in the morning.  It was sunny out and she dragged all of her work outside.  It seemed like a good arrangement.  She brought out my Moses basket to the deck too.  Then I was placed inside and then she went out walking before dinner.  She came across a strangely disturbing straw art piece lying on the side of the road.  A bit spooky.  A bit unsettling.  Some people stopped her to ask what it was about.  She almost brought it home with her, but it would have been too bizarre to carry through the streets. I am happy she left it there.  But at the same time, if it is still there tomorrow we may remove it, or maybe we shouldn't.  It does say something about the value placed on human life these days, and in that, it becomes shocking.  But we hope that others do not pass blithely by.

On the Mend

The keeper was feeling well enough to head to work today. She stayed home yesterday and took pills.  But no, she was sure she was ready today! I figured that she would be home within a few hours.  I was wrong.  I waited at the window. It was lonely without her on the couch.  She did come home tired and ended up on the couch, coughing.  This bug is not very kind.  She never lolls around like this.  She is becoming catlike.  As long as she leaves my toys and my food alone, I am okay with it.