We (me and the three cats) survived the night. I left a light on in the living room so they wouldn't crash into anything should a mouse be foolish enough to run the gauntlet. Then closed the door to the upstairs bedroom so I could sleep in peace.
During the night there was some hubbub that woke me up but there were no bodies to be found this morning. A couple of little piles of puke, but no bodies. It's possible that one of the cats gorged upon dry nibbles and then drank some water and, as the dry food swelled in their tummy, purged themselves. They've done it before, the little gluttons. Or, maybe, someone ate a bug or spider that didn't agree with them.
Julie and Chester came readily to the food bowls as I dished up breakfast but Shadow is still in a snit. She'll slink in on occasion to grab a nibble but not while the other two are there. And Julie doesn't like having to eat on the floor with Chester who usually has to try and stick his nose in all the bowls to be sure they are all the same.
This morning Julie allowed me to pet her while she lay upon the couch like a pasha's princess. But just a little. Shadow actually permitted me to stroke her as she walked by without shooting up the nearest curtain or under the chest of drawers.
Speaking of under the furniture.... There are spots getting dusted with cat tails that I haven't been able to reach with the dust mop or vacuum. Every now and then one or the other of the trio shows up with a cobweb wrapped about their tail.
Taking a quick look around, I can see three or four screens that need repair. The worst is the big one on the sliding door in the living room. It's a nylon screen that has quite a bit of age to it and, being exposed to direct sunlight, it's faded and weak. Apparently so weak that a bird crashed into it and ripped a good 8" hole i the damn thing. I know it was a bird because there were feathers inside between the screen and the glass door. They looked like robin breast feathers with their red tinged edges. No sign of the bird outside so nature's cleanup crew took care of that for me.
There are also several smaller window screens that have been damaged in winters past from snow and ice falling off the roof and piling up along the walls that I've been meaning to repair. With the cats here, I can't do it on the floor of the living area without a lot of curiosity getting in my way so these will likely have to wait until I am here alone. Lord knows, I will not try to confine the cats to a separate, small room together while I work to make the repairs. It would be like a cage match. Three cats enter, one cat emerges.
I got stung by a wasp last evening when I came back from shooting across the street at Mark's. I reached for the door knob to let myself into the cabin when the wasp dropped from the door onto my right hand and before I could shake it off it stung me right at the big knuckle of my ring finger. This time of year, wasps, ladybugs, and cluster flies are looking to find any warm nook or cranny they can for the winter. The door is in the afternoon sunlight and this winged terror chose yesterday afternoon to squeeze into the crack around the door. I disturbed it and had to pay the price.
Thankfully, I'm no longer allergic to the stings of bees and wasps since I underwent desensitization shots years ago so there's only a little pain and swelling of the joint. Still, it was a reminder to be alert.
It was a glorious night with temperatures in the low 40s and a clear sky lit up by the waxing gibbous moon. I had a fire in the wood stove to warm the house and left the upstairs door cracked open slightly to keep the bedroom cool. It did allow some of the cluster flies that were in the door jamb to infiltrate the house and they buzzed around the bedside lamp while I read for an hour. Once the light went out, however, they settled down. I heard no sounds from outside during the night. Just the cats downstairs running around occasionally. I set the alarm for 6:30 AM and was surprised that it woke me up and not Chester. He didn't start making any noise until after the first snooze session.
Today promises to be a gorgeous day with the thermometer rising into the upper 60s. I'll be making a quick trip down the road to Gander Mountain and to pick up some groceries I'll need. I'll also be able to get a feel for how many camps are occupied this weekend. Then this afternoon will be spent doing some chores around the yard. Tomorrow will be spent hunting. Probably just sitting in one corner of the property to see if the other hunters will be moving deer around to their "comfort zones" in my area. And if no movement, or shooting occurs, it will at least give me an idea of where both hunters and deer are.
1 comment:
Sounds like an eventful night! I miss hunting with my .45 muzzle-loader. There are a few people here who hunt moose with black powder, but I'm not one of them. Come to think of it, I miss deer season, too.
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