Plans for the Farm

I've been reflecting seriously on the farm. There needs to be a plan for it, otherwise there is no sense in owning it. When we bought it, my dream was to set up the cat facility. My husband's dream was to farm. Exactly what to farm changed as he evaluated the land. Just because he gave up his dream doesn't mean I can't pick it up. It's a good dream and doesn't deserve to be abandoned.

I am not enough of a farmer to grow produce. It is far too unpredictable, takes considerable knowledge, patience, and skill, and nickles and dimes just aren't going to cut it. The kind of produce I could grow I could only manage on a small scale, and around here you only make money if you can supply a specific outlet (a store, or local restaurants, etc.). The kinds of "forgiving" produce I can grow successfully are really only suitable for me to freeze and use myself (kale, etc.)

However, flowers I would enjoy growing. This was one of my husbands ideas, and we have a shelf full of books to support it. If it turned out there were no market for them, or I did not have the time to market them, they can be given away, and local friends, restaurants, and nursing homes would love them. Unlike gift-zucchini, which gets tiresome after awhile.

I have the space for a cutting garden (for neighbors, and my own use). I have the space to grow one or two flower varieties this year that would be suitable for weddings, and market them last minute (Hey, I didn't arrange for flowers until the week before my wedding, and I couldn't find a single flower farm with flowers available at that time). Like sunflowers, for example. And if people came and cut them themselves, they could get them cheaper than at the market.

That is my preliminary plan. I had been toying with the idea of building a stand at the side of the road. It's a low priority...why build something when you have nothing to sell?

Then last night, I was driving by a former garden market, and noticed they had one of their produce stands sitting forlornly outside. I whipped in (would I be late to the vet's yet AGAIN?) and talked to the men who were putting in big new windows on the building. Did they want to sell the farm stand?

Sell? No, they would give it to me. They not only would give it to me, they would load it for me, and throw in a six foot section of cabinet top, too. They were absolutely sweet and wonderful, and shared their new plans for the building (ice cream!) Apparently someone else had stopped for the farm stand, too, but had not fetched it after a week and a half.

Nancy asked how I'd get it out of the truck (it weighs a ton). I just slid it out right where I plan to keep it. I'll get some landscaping fabric, put down mulch, and build a roof on it. And paint it, of course. I think I'll stay with green. I'll need to stake it down before someone thinks I'm giving it away and carts it off. And I'll probably move it under the tree, where it would be shaded and visitors would be somewhat protected from black flies.




The top is tile. Filthy, of course, from sitting by the road. But I can fix it up and seal it so it's quite cute. And it's small. That's a plus.

I have changed the name of the farm, which was formerly Old Ferris Farm. However, I'm going to mull the new name over for a time, to make sure it's right.

Martha gave me some sunflowers that Liza had started. It's fitting that "friend flowers" be the start of all this. Nothing much will happen this year, but something will! If I can keep the sunflowers from becoming deer food or insect food, just before they are ready to bloom I'll list them on Craigslist as you-cut wedding flowers for a very cheap price, just to see what happens.

There is always a reason why things come your way. Some good things have been happening to me lately, and while I'm not a particularly spiritual person, I had some good mentors when I was in college who taught me that gifts often arrive for a reason. And Rune Hill is right next door, so maybe some of their good light will spill over here as well.

Proof my mom reads my blog

She read this, and got me these:



I laughed pretty hard. The "miracles" list and "priority board" are definitely finding a home on my refrigerator!

Open gardens in Ithaca Saturday

In the category of "being nice to people who are nice to me and having a lot of fun doing it," I told Martha I would be happy to volunteer for a few hours for an open garden event in Ithaca on Saturday.

Oh, woe is me, I had to sit in the beautiful sun for two hours and look at this:





I actually knew a few people who came through the tour, whom I had not seen in awhile, which was an added benefit. I must get out more!

Proceeds went to The Garden Conservancy and the Community Beautification" program.

Tumble ain't a girl

When I felt Tumble's backside on admission and noted a lack of male equipment, I assumed Tumble was a girl. But something about her/his unabashed friendliness and the shape of her/his face indicated "boy." She/he had a small wound under the tail, so I wasn't sure if we had a girl who had a prolapse, or a boy with an unhealed neuter. And Tumble was so friendly he kept spinning around to see what the heck I was looking at. So we let the vet decide.

Verdict: Tumble is a newly neutered male, with some scrotal tissue poking out of the incision, which they took care of. Since he was friendly, I foisted him back off on Nancy, who had rescued him (a highly experience fosterer for a variety of animal rescue organizations), and she is taking photos and reporting him as found, so hopefully we can locate his owner. Unfortunately, there was no microchip. He was likely hit by a car (or jumped out?) so he is one lucky kitty.

He is FIV/FeLV negative, a bit talky, and extremely friendly. He seems OK with Jack, Nancy's dog, but obviously has not been exposed to ceiling fans! "Whoa, what is that scary thing?" If we don't locate his owner, he will be up for adoption. Perhaps Felyne will come visit him when she comes East (unfortunately we are pretty far from Pittsburgh!).

Thank you also for Nancy for generously donating to the vet fund to cover his care.

Reflections on housekeeping, laundry edition

Do you suspect that when your favorite brand of liquid detergent suddenly comes out "new" "improved" and "concentrated" that they simply put the same stuff in a smaller bottle, say you can use less, and charge you more?

And is there a "word" for when you throw your underwear in the washer, and don't notice that a leg hole fell over the agitator until the wash cycle is done and you pull out a grossly deformed piece of personal clothing?

Yes, I have the morning off (work an extra hour a day for four days, get one morning free for the summer!), which slightly skews my mental functioning.

Adopter photo: Ben!

Ben has a new friend, adopted from a shelter in the Tri-Cities area (I have to run back to the email to see which one and link it). It looks like he has perhaps even learned to share!

Blogger being a PINTA with photos

Blogger apparently does not want to load photos right now. So I'm afraid my return to cat blogging will have to wait until tomorrow!

Tumble is off to the vet tomorrow. Tuffy 2 is ready to return home. I spent an hour in the cat facility tonight, combing, combing, combing... Poor Fluffy. He is so good about it, and he so wants to bite me as I keep pulling at his long fur. Instead he just gives a pathetic meow and lifts one of those huge paws in a warning...

Some of them love it. Buttons thinks a comb is heaven. Even Perci let me comb her for quite awhile tonight. Espie also loves to be combed, but she doesn't need it. Dustin's coat came out in gobs, but it only took one session, and now she's glossy and shed-free. It's amazing how different their coats are.

Storm is long-furred but never gets a mat, and never needs to be combed. Which is a good thing because she starts to whine a warning as soon as she sees the comb in my hand.

I got quite a bit of cat laundry done this evening, cleaned the house, poured out the vodka and whisky since I'm certainly not going to drink it and it still sits here unclaimed, FINALLY sold the lawn tractor (which will hopefully stop the progression of interested farmers appearing at my door every day) and LOOK! I'm getting to bed before midnight!

I know, I know, bad blogger...

Apologies for not blogging. Things have been really busy lately, and for the last two nights I've been burying myself in a book during the late night hours instead of blogging. I'm doing some family things today, and hope to be a better blogger next week!

A different kind of dog post

Uh....wow.

Another feel-good post

I'm normally not a fan of "one species nursing another" posts, but this one at least seems like a genuine rescue of an animal in need. And besides, after another hour of pushing the mower, it doesn't take much of an excuse to make me smile.

This is fun.

I came in for a break from push-mowing...in a grumpy, sweaty mood I might add...and then I watched this on Gary's blog.

Here is the direct link to the Where The Hell is Matt web site.

I feel better. Back to mowing!

(scroll down below the banner to get to the video).

And now for the really good news...

Last year, a friend of Valarie's brought her a kitten they had found along our road. She called me up and we went looking for more. We found them.

Tuffy and Buffy were adopted by a wonderful woman who has been very generous with us at their adoption, at holidays, etc. She has been in Europe on business, and has been reading the blog. After returning to the U.S., she came over the other day, with gifts...



...and a proposition. She will send $250 each month for the cats. And she presented me with three months in advance, as she is traveling again until September.

I have put off writing this post, because I wanted it to be thankful, eloquent, and thoughtful. But frankly, I am so overwhelmed with the kindness, that I can only be thankful.

The sculpture she gifted us with reminds her of (in pose, rather than color) her two adopted cats. And the book (also purchased in Europe) is the source of their new names.

Coincidentally, I am a reader of science fiction/fantasy, and have read this book before. So when she told me the new names she had given her kittens, I was familiar with them.

So in honor of her, her cats, and her husband who apparently is smitten with them and cares for them while she is traveling, we are naming this The Leewit Fund, and once our 501(c)(3) comes through and we can begin seriously fund-raising, I hope that this becomes the seed money for a spay/neuter fund for the Spencer area. Currently, it will purchase all the food and cat litter we need for the cat facility each month, plus at least one neuter per month.

Fittingly, the first cat to need help was from the very same person who rescued these kittens. And (subconsciously? coincidentally?) I named him (for his vet records) Tuffy, the same "rescue name" as one of the kittens. Valarie and Craig will probably rename him something else once he returns to their place.

So, thank you. Thank you. THANK you. To the donor of The Leewit Fund and to all of you who have adopted, donated, or just read this blog.

You make all the difference in the world, not just for me, or even for the cats, but for the people who see the cats, and call for help. People who try hard to find help, should find it. You enable them to find it.

Thank you.

"Tumble"

Nancy rang my phone this morning (6:15 am, and I even answered!). She had noticed an injured cat around her home, had set a trap, and caught a feral tom cat. I told her I was headed into town anyway to take Tuffy and Cricket to the vet, so I'd grab him on the way through.

Well, "he" turned out to be "she" and very friendly. While my vet will take a male as a last minute add-on, females are another thing. When I saw how busy it was at my vet's, I didn't even mention I had Cat Number Three in the truck. I brought her home, and made an appointment for her next Tuesday.

She has some minor scrapes on her leg, butt, and nose, probably from an encounter with a car. I've named her "Tumble" because Joan needed a name for her appointment at the vet, and here she sits, choosing the nice cool cage pan over the towels, because it's not exactly chilly out tonight.

While at the vet, I ran into a woman who is looking after a colony on West Hill in Ithaca, and a farm in Spencer as well. I told her she was welcome to recovery space at Wildrun, so hopefully she'll be stopping by soon.

Tuffy Two

Valarie and Craig, up the road, have countless cats dumped upon them. They've gotten every newcomer fixed. This last month, this orange tom showed up. At the vet, I gave him the boring name of Tuffy. Upon arriving to pick him up, the vet informed me I already had a Tuffy in my files, so he was dubbed Tuffy Two.

Tuffy Two is no feral. He's as friendly as Bear. He came with an eartip (fight? fanbelt? who knows) but was still in possession of his...ahem...equipment...so it was not a human-made eartip verifying that he was neutered.

He was neutered today, and will be going back to Valarie and Craig in a few days.

Cricket's lone leg

All my personal cats are getting old, and their parts are wearing out. Cricket went off to the vet today when she started gimping around on her lone back leg. I was hoping she'd merely pulled a muscle, but it appears all her joints have small past injuries with resulting arthritis, and she may have torn a ligament as well (simplifying the terminology quite a bit). She's on Metacam for pain (tiny tiny kitty dosage) and her radiographs are off for interpretation. And she's on cage rest as of tomorrow (she's sleeping off her anesthesia now). She's a "pet" cat, so there was no rescue discount (nonetheless, our wonderful vet has gave us an incredible discount for "pet" cat Ivan's surgery last year), but she's worth every penny, given how much she has made me (us) laugh over the years with her three-legged antics.

Only Nell and Squeak (at age 8) are under ten years old. Everyone else is moving into the geriatric range. It's going to be a tough time as they grow older.

The Bear, up close and personal

I was coming back from the vet today in broad daylight (9:45 am) and as I came around the curve on my road, I saw a big black butt disappear into the bushes to the right.

The only NYS critter that big and black is a bear. So I hit the gas, and then the brakes, thinking perhaps I'd catch a glimpse of him/her walking away into the forest.

Well, I forgot there is a gorge on that side of the road. The bear reached that, turned around, and ran back into the road right in front my stopped truck.

I got to see our bear 10 feet off my front bumper. And he/she is a pretty darned big bear! The bear ran across in front of me, and then crashed on up the hillside (into someone else's front yard).

Well.

I must say, after seeing him up close, I'll make sure all my outside work is done before it's too dark out. I've seen him quite few times as a big black blur, but now seeing him with his handsome jaws and claws, I think I'll be a bit more cautious from now on!

University of Florida Shelter Medicine Program Coordinator position

*** Please Cross-Post to Interested Individuals ***

Description:

The Program Coordinator for the new Maddie’s Shelter Medicine Program at the University of Florida will coordinate the development and provision of services in core areas including:

(1) Shelter evaluation and extension services, including shelter assessments and provision of disease control consultation to enhance the welfare of animals and the efficiency of programs in achieving their life-saving goals

(2) Training of shelter medicine veterinary professionals and general practitioners to fill the current shortage of skilled providers

(3) Training of veterinary students and technicians in the problems of homeless animals, the animal sheltering system, shelter medicine, and opportunities for careers in the field

(4) Development of new knowledge to solve existing and emerging threats to successful sheltering programs.

The coordinator will be responsible for fiscal administration, personnel management, special event coordination, grant writing, fund raising, program reports, media relations, development of service contracts, web site development, policy and procedure development, and service to the public. In addition to the coordinator, the Shelter Medicine Program will be staffed by three faculty members, three residents, several part-time staff, a research technician, and several part-time consultants and instructors.

Requirements:



Ability to work independently to develop new policies and procedures in support of the Shelter Medicine Program based on research to identify best practices, including budget development, funding source identification and staffing requirements.

Ability to manage administrative and fiscal operations, including budgets, purchasing, personnel, contracting services, billing, and property control.

Ability to serve as liaison between the program and other units and departments as well as private sector shelter clients.

Ability to develop rapport with shelter personnel to facilitate culture of support and collaboration in order to improve shelter operation.

Understand and relate core concepts of epidemiology, disease prevention, management, treatment, and behavior specific to animals in shelters.

Ability to research and prepare program reports.

Previous personnel management experience.

Expertise in conflict resolution.



Preferred skills:



Excellent communication and organizational skills to interact with a wide variety of individuals, including researchers, veterinary personnel, students, shelter managers, and staff. Expertise in commonly used shelter management software preferred.

Expertise in Quickbooks preferred.

Expertise in developing and administering distance learning and continuing education programs preferred.

Previous customer service experience preferred.

Previous web design/management experience preferred.

Previous public relations/marketing experience preferred.

Previous media experience preferred.



Master's degree in an appropriate area of specialization; or a bachelor's degree in an appropriate area of specialization and two years of appropriate experience.



Salary:



Starting salary range is $35,000 to $40,000 annually, commensurate with education and experience.



All applications must be submitted on-line through the University of Florida employment office. Please apply at https://jobs.ufl.edu and search for Req #0705846.

Happy Independence Year

First off, if you haven't already been sent this link to enjoy your own fireworks display you should really go play with it for 60 seconds. It's one of those sites that's amusing to visit once a year, and you can make the finale last as long as you want.

So what did you do for the 4th of July? It felt odd to me, having a holiday on Friday.

I had a great day. Martha (adopter of Sam) asked me if I would like to help her host/help with a colleague's July 4th party on the lake, for hire.

I love being a support host. Now and then, Martha calls up to ask if I would be interested in pouring wine at an event (the Finger Lakes Wine Festival, Wine on Ice, Empty Bowls, etc.) when an extra hand is needed. Without exception, they are all a great experience.

I am no social butterfly, and the nice thing about helping with hosting is that you have a clearly defined role (food, drink, setting out, cleaning up), but the pace is so fast you are basically under your own direction after the initial instructions are given. And there are plenty of opportunities to talk to people. Because you--after all--have the food, drink, etc.

Therefore you get to meet a ton of great (new!)people, and everything just rolls along enjoyably.

Yesterday the weather was perfect, the lake was gorgeous, and I had no idea so many people shot off fireworks over the water of Cayuga Lake. It was the first time I'd seen the Flares Around the Lake. It was semi-potluck, and the food was incredible. Even better, there were several friends attending as well.

I rank yesterday up there with them most enjoyable July 4th I've ever had...and the bank account is happy, too, with a little seed money for the 2nd floor entrance I wish to put on the house.

If you have any friends or acquaintances who are "event-involved" type people or are event planners, and you are the type of person who laments that they don't meet new people often, consider putting out the message that you'd be available to help, if needed. In my case, it happens perhaps only once a year, so it's not like its a time drain.

And it does put you right in the middle of a new community.

To write, or not to write...

I have been rearranging bookshelves, which means becoming distracted by books. My great aunt Annie Laurie Snorf's journals are on my shelves, and as I was moving them, I flipped open her handtyped poems and found this, which made me smile:

The Amateur's Soliloquy

To write, or not to write, that is the question;
Whether it is nobler to keep one's ravings and
Brainstorms to one's self, or to take up a pen and
With a stroke or two, preserve them. To write, compose,
No more; and by that decision to save the public from
The shock which reading makes it heir to. To write,
Perchance to sell! Aye, there's the rub; for when we
Write what dreams will come of the heights we hope to gain
By our good pen. There's the respect that makes
Calamity of budding authors; for who would help bear the
Scoffs and sneers of editors, the pangs of unappreciated
Genius, the hope delayed, the insolence of critics, but
That the thought of future greatness goads us on? Who'd
These burdens bear, to toil and sweat over a rattling
Typewriter, but for the hope that we may one day find
And editor from whose office no manuscripts are ere
Returned, fires our ambition and makes us rather burn
The midnight oil than die unknown, unsung. Thus ambition
Doth make martyrs of so many.




(photo from Sandovals Signpost (Scroll down or run a "find" on Snorf)

Bedtime for Bear

Bear, the new cat, doesn't stay in the house at night, since the "cat dynamics" are not quite worked out, and if he's going to be a permanent resident, we need to take our time introducing Ivan to the idea. So during the day, Bear hangs out on the porch, he comes in early evening to avoid raccoon encounters, and about midnight I take him out to the downstairs quarantine area of the cat facility for the night.

You'd think he'd hate this. Oh no. Just like a dog, Bear is positively pleased to know what is wanted of him.

Time for bed, Bear!



"Okay!"



"Beat you down the path, lady!"



"You sure are slow. Can't you keep up?"



"I'd open the door myself if I could."



"Mmmmmm...you serve better food out here. Good night!"



Goodnight!

Tea, and setting a schedule

I'm sorry I haven't been blogging much on rescue. I have little Rudy in the barn whose picture I should be taking instead of the house cats. And I'll need to, since he'll be going to his new home on Thursday!

The cats like their new couch. Someone didn't, to start. I sat down on it the second day and discovered someone had peed on it. Argh! My cats don't commonly pee on things like this. I'm sure someone didn't think much of the smell of previous cats and Febreeze (Ivan, are your furry little ears ringing?). My fault, though. I should have known to cover it in something they would like to sleep on until they "made it their own." Luckily, the entire cover came off the cushions, and there are 2 cushions in the cover, so the bottom one was not affected. The top cushion is thin and could be washed, along with the cover. I lucked out on that.

Now I keep it covered with a fleece, and they have decided it makes a better bed than a litter pan. And it smells much better now that the Febreeze is washed entirely away. Thank goodness.

The cats both in the house and in the facility are in a turmoil, and so am I, due to the entire lack of a schedule. Their whole system of timing was destroyed when the house went from two humans to one. Nellie still wonders why she doesn't get to finish up cereal milk or oatmeal in the morning. Squeak wonders why there are no treats before bed (when I fall asleep on the couch). Norma wonders why no one comes up to sleep with her half the week. And of course, with no Nick the cat, there is no wet food for the entire clan when he comes in for the night. And now there is Bear, whom they all despise. There is no conversation in the house, so it is quiet, and half the time I even forget to have the radio on.

The cats in the facility get visited at haphazard times, and they don't like that at all.

So I've resolved this holiday weekend to sit down and actually physically write down a schedule. What time to get up. What time to go out to the cats. What time to take breaks at work. What time to give treats. What time to let Bear in the house for his evening visit, and to give everyone some wet food. What time to go out the outdoor cats for the last time (and take Bear out to his cage). What time to go to bed. And go to BED...not fall asleep on the couch.

I am afraid for a short time you all will have to endure my reflective posts while I try to settle myself. I thought I'd split this up on two blogs (this one for cat rescue, the other for my family to check in on my sanity), but that hasn't worked out at all. And break-ups are part of life for cat people, that's for sure. So I'm guessing it's relevant. At least, I will try to keep it so.

Thank you again for everyone who has gotten in touch. If you all have been this great with me, I'm sure you are a blessing to your other friends, and your families as well.

Oh, upon reading this, I realize I put "tea" in the title. Why? Well, I've had to learn to deal with walk-in guests. Walk-in guests? This seldom happened in the past. But now neighbors drop in. I've set the kitchen seating area up so I can actually invite people in to sit down. People honk when they drive by. People call and come for visits.

Previously we had a cabinet for tea. Upon visiting one of my neighbors, I was impressed that there was no "would you like some tea?" when I walked in the door (upon which I would normally say "Oh, no, but thank you").

No indeed, she just fired up the burner, put the water on, pointed me to a chair, and cut me some coffee cake. The tea was ready in an instant. I was impressed. So the small cabinet where our tea has been quaintly imprisoned has been packed up, and I put the tea in a basket. I can bring it right over to the table so visitors can choose, and maybe I'll even become settled enough to have homemade bread on hand someday, as well.



There is of course always coffee on in the morning.

I think I still have a bread machine? (checks pantry). Yes, I do. Handmade isn't likely, but even bread out a machine would be a step up, for me.

Thank you to donors...

Last month I received several donations in memory of Nick: two by mail, one via the Amazon link. And this month I received two donations via the Amazon link. I can't begin to tell you how much it amazes me that people send funds our way. Right now, it is a huge help, as I am purchasing cat food at full price because our low-cost option is not available in the summer, and am working to keep this place. While I am trying not to take in kittens this summer, adult cats are still coming our way, and the faster they get fixed, the faster they get out of here (and the less they eat!)

As always, our vet gives a generous 50% discount (and often more on extensive surgery). A neuter with vaccinations generally costs us $55, and a spay with shots about $90. All of this assistance is what makes our small effort a larger effort.

I'd also like to let you know how much ever stat on my blog counter means to me. To see people come back day after day is a great gift. I can't tell who you are, but I can tell generally where you are, and who your ISP is, so it's clear who faithfully returns.

Thank you!!!

Everyone needs distractions...

Does anyone have a drafting table kicking around that they need "stored?"



The fish tank is serving its purpose and providing sound and motion, which the cats are enjoying. I myself also need some distraction, and would like to break out the drawing supplies (and keep them out). I've got my eyes peeled for a drafting table, but I really don't need to own more "things," and would rather just borrow one that someone is currently tripping over, but may like back one day.

I figured I'd put some feelers out.

(Post Note: funny, someone else is also looking for a drafting table, on craigslist. Must be something in the air).

Why should I live with ghosts?

As another day passes, I finally snapped over living surrounded by boxes and furniture and personal items of ghosts who choose not to abide here; who send no messages by either Ouija board or table knockings. A "chair-and-a-half" and ottoman on Craiglist reappeared with a plea of desperation by the owner (moving tomorrow, must go) so I offered what I felt I could afford and she said "yes."

The ghosts are being exorcised, one by one.

I was determined to get this in the house by myself, and did (end-over-end, btw). Ivan says "oh, what is that smell?" "Febreeze, dear, sorry." Had I known she was going to spray it, I would have told her I had far less stinky things to banish the mustiness of someone else's life.



Her two cats were pretty dilute calicos, and they were lounging on the balcony rail when I walked about trying to track down the proper apartment. The owner is on her way to Utah, with the cats following later. I tried to get a photo before I drove away, but alas, she called them in. It was really a pretty sight. Good luck to her on her trip!

I think this will do as far as furniture. I'll reposition the bookcases; box up books that do not belong to me, and deeply consider paint options. Check out the information on lowering ceilings on that web page. If I don't have the skill to cut cove molding, I do have the skill to wield a paint brush.

Speaking of paint, I'm working on painting the house, and I can also now continue painting the cat facility, since I hope to stay.

So you are all invited over to try out the new chair...but I suggest you wait until the Febreeze wears off....

Purina 30-day Challenge

Purina is offering a 30 day supply of Purina One cat or dog food just for making a quick call and answering a few questions.. The toll free number is (800) 521-6300.... The call is totally automated and only takes a few minutes.

Thanks, Donna, for letting us know!

Cats, farm, and bears...

Work is busy, but I made a point of trying to get some things done around here today. I grant myself points for moving the newspaper box from way down at the intersection to in directly front of the house. While the walk was good for me, it was no fun in winter, and cutting down all that bamboo that was overgrowing the post simply was not going to happen.



I took ten minutes to enjoy the place this morning.




With all this rain, it looks like it's going to be a good blueberry year.



The Waverly folks came and picked up the newly-neutered Orange Juice, who will be happy to be back on his street again. He has the cutest worried look.



The bear paid me a visit the other night and bent down this bird feeder hook out of sheer spite. There was only an empty feeder on it, and the bear didn't even knock the feeder off. Needless to say, all the feeders are in tonight.



He/she also slurped up all the old cereal I put in the compost bin, and bent it all to heck.



I guess I'll get the enclosed compost tumbler out and put it somewhere away from the house. I'm also going to move the garbage cans into the way-bottom of the barn (below the cats).

Since I inherited the garden I've been trying my darnedest to keep it in shape. I have some seeds here to plant. I'd like to plant a ton of basil to make into pesto to freeze for the winter. There's some that Mark put in that's doing well, but it's not enough for a really big batch.



Donna and Tim gave me these two sturdy but lightweight carpets which look great in the downstairs of the cat facility.

Caring for the Ithaca cats

Kat sent me an email last week that one of the hinges was blown on the Fast Food Feral feeding station, and of course I knew it was also grown up into a jungle down there, so after mowing my lawn, I heaved the mower into the back of the truck, along with the screw gun and the weedwacker, and headed into Ithaca.







I stopped on South Hill to feed Gillian, but she was already fed. Thank you.



I don't spend much time in Ithaca any longer. I had not seen the mural along Cayuga Street, and it gave me a reason to smile today.




I'm absolutely beat, so I'm afraid I'm not too creative in the department of wordage, today. Hopefully the mural photos make up for it. You should click on that second one for the full effect.

Nothing much to post

Perhaps I'll add more later.

Perhaps not!

Anticipating a storm...

This is a beautiful place to be when a storm hits.

There is a nasty line of thunderstorms headed right at us, according to wunderground.com. I'm headed off to a friend's house for a party that under normal circumstances would be a "bonfire, boys, and beer" party, but looking at the front that is headed our way, we may be inside.

It's just "thinking about storming" right now, and that's when it's the most enjoyable to walk around the farm. The trees are tossing, and you can hear thunder in the distance. It's safe to get a few more passes on the lawn mower, but it's important to put it away when you leave. Bear, however, took my invitation to go inside, and isn't interested in coming out again. I'm afraid, looking at the radar, he will be banished to a cage in the barn when I leave, because it appears it will be too nasty to leave him outside. Ivan's nose will be out of joint if I leave Bear in the house.



Today was fairly productive. I hauled trash to the transfer station, and arranged to get the transfer station kitten to the vet next week. For once, most of the trash was "house" trash versus "cat" trash, as I've been brutal about throwing things out, especially food. If I'm not going to eat it, and no one has come to take it away, it becomes compost, recycling, or trash.

I made cupcakes. Yes indeed I did. I'll take most to the party tonight, but I kept some of them for breakfast (unfrosted), as there is nothing I like so much as unfrosted chocolate cake for breakfast, with good coffee. I'll shortly be making something dinner-like for the party as well.

I did some mowing, took care of the cats, and went fish shopping at Totalily Water Gardens. I got three pretty comet-type fish, and because I got them from Tim and Donna, they'll mean far more to me than fish from the big box pet store.

And yes, we are still rescuing!

The Waverly folks brought Orange Tea (I think? Or is it Orange Juice?) over to be neutered. He has an appointment tomorrow to be neutered and get his eye checked. The Barton Transfer Station people also found a kitten that I promised to get combo tested...but I lost their number. Call me! Also, Bear goes in for a combo test tomorrow.

The ground rules are these: I can still help spay/neuter, but I can't take any more cats in, and I can't pay as much as I did before. We have space to recover cats. I can care for cats temporarily.

I can't go broke and lose my place, and I can't get overfull. That's it.

Patience

The house is pretty quiet. Having Bear around, with his incessant chatter, has been helpful at creating sound waves.

I've accepted that I'm going to have to ultimately rent the upstairs. This means the downstairs needs to be set up as "home" all the way around. It's what I'll one day be living in. That's no problem. It's large enough.

I've been lurking on Craigslist, watching for futon couches (just missed one today, drat it!) when I made this mistake of clicking on the "pets" classification.

And there it was. A 30 gallon fish tank for a ridiculously low price. I assumed it would be encrusted with years of hard water deposits, but no, it was a shining clean watertight tank, with a nice hood and working lamp.

I have "done the aquarium thing" before, and in fact cared for an entire aquarium room in a previous job. It's a lot of work, and you can sink a lot of money into chemicals, "stuff," decorations, and fish. And then they get sick and die if you are impatient, or they come laden with parasites.

However, I have, I hope, learned how to avoid all this.

All it takes is...patience.

Patience is something I'm having a hard time with right now. Especially patience with long, quiet, tasks that allow me to think about things that bother me. I'd much rather run outside and push the mower determinedly back and forth for an hour with the radio earphones on. No thinking.

But setting up a fish tank takes thinking. First, there is the moving of furniture. I didn't expect this to cause as much anxiety as it did. Moving the furniture meant accepting that anything can go anywhere I want it to...and no one will care.

Then there was cleaning the gravel. You can be impatient with this (or even fail to do it) and what you end up with is a mess. Dust and water everywhere, or a cloudy tank that takes a day or more to clear. I've learned that if you take your time, it's not the turmoil it could be. But it takes time. Which gives large spaces of time for thinking. More anxiety. Sigh.

Then there is filling the tank. Another snail's pace job that can be a real mess if you get hasty, grab a big bucket, and start sloshing 30 gallons of water from one end of the house to the other. In two gallon jugs, however....no mess. But, it takes longer. More time to think about things I didn't want to think about.

I began to just accept the pace. I didn't want water on wood furniture. I didn't want a mess to clean up. I wanted this to be something that ultimately made me happy, and gave me a few nice, placid fish to watch. I would save three poor Comets from an overstocked tank at some big box store, where they had been destined as dinner for another fish. Instead they would now grow big and fat in their own large tank.

Fill jug, walk, pour, return, fill jug. Less anxiety.

By the time the tank was filled (not a single oversplash), the filter unpacked and installed, the hood on, the light glowing, the anxiety was gone. It took a few big breaths now and then, but it was gone.

Patience.

I put water on for tea and went to look at the tank. I'd forgotten a few things about aquaria. First, with a deep tank, you need a long-handled tool to smooth the gravel that ends up in uneven hills after you pour in volumes of water. Second, tiny little bubbles stick all over the tank for quite awhile and interfere with that beautiful clear effect you get a tank for.

When I was younger I would have found some unsuitable something (usually a kitchen tool that was far too short) to try and smooth the gravel, and I would have tried to sweep the bubbles off with my hand, getting soaked to the shoulder.

You know what? The hilly gravel will be just fine until another day, and the bubbles will unstick in a day as well, all on their own. No fuss, no muss, no mess.

The major miracle here is that I set up the tank...before getting fish! If you've seen people walking out of a pet store with a new tank in a box and live fish in bags, they probably also have purchased a bunch of little bottles of chemicals they were told they needed to balance the water chemistry.

If you set up your tank a few days to a week in advance, your water will be room temperature, the chlorine will be naturally dispersed, and your tank will have started to age and begin the nitrogen cycle that will make it stable and keep your fish alive. No wasting money on chemicals.

No one wants to be this patient, however. They want those fish right now. And then they kill them being hasty. I don't want to kill creatures in my attempt to create something beautiful and calming.

Patience.

I may be learning patience.

The gravel I chose? Well, that took time as well. And I finally settled on black. Yeah, black. I wanted "calm," but it's going to be awhile before I'm ready for "cheerful." I'll take my fish in formal gold and black, and I'll leave it to the cats to make me laugh.

Legislation alert from Neighborhood Cats

from Neighborhood Cats - for NY residents:

Please take a moment to send a copy of the email below to your Assembly Member ASAP!!!! You can find your assembly member's name and then contact info by going to http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/

Enter your zip code, then click on the name that appears. Email is in the righthand column. If you can, please also make a phone call.

In short, we need to defeat a bill that is up for a vote imminently - A. 11492 would, in a backhand way, make it illegal for any municipality to fund a TNR program unless the Legislature specifically passes a bill to allow it. Action is needed now to stop this!!

Please copy and paste the letter below and add your name and address at the bottom. thank you!!!

Bryan Kortis
Executive Director
Neighborhood Cats
212-662-5761
www.neighborhoodcats.org

LETTER:

Dear Assemblymember ___________,

I'm writing concerning A.11492, which may be up for a vote today!

Yesterday, the Senate passed a bill that would amend Agriculture &Markets Law section 374 to essentially say that "notwithstanding" the language dictating that shelters can only release cats for adoption or owner redemption, the city of Elmira can run a Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program.

TNR is a method for reducing and managing feral and stray cat populations through sterilization and vaccination for rabies. It is endorsed by The Humane Society of the United States, the ASPCA and many other leading animal welfare organizations.

This bill tells municipalities unequivocally that it is illegal for them to fund a TNR program without an express exemption in the statute. This is extremely harmful because it codifies an interpretation of section 374 that is questionable at best and it does this to the detriment of any locality in the state (other than Elmira) that either currently helps to fund, or plans to help to fund a TNR program.

This will damage TNR programs currently funded by NY municipalities and could significantly dampen the growth of TNR state-wide. Please help us defeat its passage in the Assembly!!

Respectfully from your constituent,
[Your name]
[Your address]

Shopping for tick shampoo...

Uck. Bear has ticks! After holding him on the porch, I found a teeny tiny deer tick on my neck. Argh! I knew I was going to have the heebie jeebies unless I took a shower, and a flea/tick shower at that. But I had no flea/tick shampoo in the house, so I headed into town, wasting precious gas because regular soap just wouldn't do it for my overactive imagination.

I figured I'd make every drop of gas worth it, so stopped by South Hill to check in on the cats there. They had no food, so I filled up the bowl and yelled for Gillian, a resident feral cat for at least six years. And surprise...she came trotting out from the recycling area as soon as I climbed into the truck (click for larger; sorry about the lousy photos).



She hesitated before crossing the driveway, and I thought perhaps someone was coming. But when I drove out, I discovered it wasn't a human that had drawn Gillian's interest. It was this lovely deer.



So catching a glimpse of Gillian made the trip well worth it.

Poached, as usual, from Potter's Blog

Something for the dog people...particularly the single dog people.

Where does he find this stuff?

"Effectively Managing Feral Cats" kit from HSUS

My mail bore presents yesterday. A copy of HSUS's new feral cat kit on Effectively Managing Feral Cats.

I am suitably impressed. I saw the DVD when I was in Florida at the National Feral Cat Summit (which is where I signed up in advance to receive this when it was released) and it is a very well-done, professional presentation of TNR, suitable for public viewing and for use with town boards, etc. when you are attempting to explain and promote TNR. The brochures (two whole packs) address all homeless cats, not just ferals, and the book is clearly done.

I'll curl up with this tonight, once it has cooled down and the daily work is done (sort of).

Lovin' people who post on Youtube

For the fun of it, I went to Youtube and plugged in Petfinder.

What?

I think about shopping:

A) when a catalog shows up in the mail and I am reading it, thinking about what it would be fun to buy (but don't) and,
B) when I am in a store, ummm, actually shopping, and...
C) the first two months after I discovered eBay. Then it wore off.

Who are these women? And where did they conduct this survey?

Shoes and bags? Okay, I don't even think about CATS 74% of my time.

Nick's tree

Nick's tree.

Walking with Bear

It turns out that Bear is more dog than cat. Like our old cat Nick, Bear goes for walks. Unlike Nick, he leads, and doesn't ask to be carried home.



The local natural gas meeting last night was extremely helpful. There were so many issues I hadn't even thought of (do you know that landowners have been sued by gas company workers who were injured while working on the property?). The best part, however, was getting to see a lot of my neighbors. I haven't been very interactive in the Spencer community (other than chasing a lot of cats), so this my be my opportunity to meet people who live near me. The organizers of the gathering have already set up a Yahoogroups site at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CitizensEnergyAlliance/.




And this is the land under which natural gas lies. A deer crossed the path in front of me this morning, and a few moments later a tiny fawn followed. I was too slow to get a photo.

Our guns don't bark (smile)

I need a buddy who barks and would like walks on the hill. And for whom I would only need to put up a 4' fence. What do you think?

I'm actually thinking about just fostering. Seeing if a local shelter would be interested in some of their dogs getting week-long breaks and training.

Also, my friend Nancy wants to sight in her .22. I'm thinking about getting a cop friend of mine to come here and do a gun-safety program (he's a firearms instructor). Are there any more local gun-owning women who would be interested in something like that?