Lap Cat

I had a nice time celebrating my Uncle's birthday this afternoon. (Happy Birthday, Uncle John!)

Later...

Me and Peanut

Lilith's Day

Like most days, Lilith spent a lot of time asleep:

Lilith's Morning Nap

Keeping Her Nose Warm

However, today was unusual. It was the first escorted walk of spring.

Lilith Walking

Lilith likes to spend time outside by herself, but she really loves to go for a walk with a human. This generally consists of walking across the back deck and into the upper level of the back yard. She typically seeks out her favorite clump of grass, but needs to be patted several times on the way.

Oh! Possum?

Matt went of to a conference this morning, while I happily stayed in bed... until Peanut started hollering.

He was talking to another cat, which I've heard before, but this time it was exceptionally emphatic, and continued longer than usual... so I got up to be sure nothing was wrong.

He was talking through the sliding glass door to a long haired white cat with orange spots (wearing a collar & tag) that I've seen in the neighborhood before. He was saying "You are on my deck and you should leave, because the minute I get outside I'm going to beat you up." The stranger was saying "I don't have to leave, and you can't make me."

Meanwhile Lilith was sitting on the spare bed, looking a bit concerned, but not too put out... and then Cally came into the room and was very upset about the whole thing, so she started growling, etc. She then tried swatting at me. I got out some treats to see if it would calm anyone down to have a snack, but no one was interested in food. (Shocking!)

Just as the stranger started very slowly to back away, an opossum showed up near the Brandeis fence! The stranger decided to go investigate, Peanut looked on with wary interest, and I ran and got my camera once I saw it was heading down the hill.

The possum on it's way to visit the neighbors
(That's ND's witchhazel.)

I almost had a perfect shot of it's face, but the camera's automatic light sensor thought I needed a flash for the second picture. That slowed it down and doesn't work through a window. Drat!

mmmMelon

Peanut

Ring of Fur

Matt called Lilith a "Ring of Fur" in a Johnny Cash voice.

The Ring of Fur

Here are my Lyrics:

Lilith Is A Furry Thing
And she Makes A Furry Ring
Curling round she will purr
She Becomes A Ring Of Fur

CHORUS:
I sat down with a Purring Ring Of Fur
I sat Down, Down, Down
And The Purr Went Higher

And she Purrs, Purrs, Purrs
The Ring Of Fur
The Ring Of Fur

I sat down with a Purring Ring Of Fur
I sat Down, Down, Down
And The Purr Went Higher

And she Purrs, Purrs, Purrs
The Ring Of Fur
The Ring Of Fur

She can appear so Sweet
A cat you'd like to meet
Now you'd think she's Like A Child
Oh, But She's Fierce and Wild

CHORUS
I sat down with a Purring Ring Of Fur
I sat Down, Down, Down
And The Purr Went Higher

And she Purrs, Purrs, Purrs
The Ring Of Fur
The Ring Of Fur

I sat down with a Purring Ring Of Fur
I sat Down, Down, Down
And The Purr Went Higher

And she Purrs, Purrs, Purrs
The Ring Of Fur
The Ring Of Fur

And she Purrs, Purrs, Purrs

The Ring Of Fur

The Ring Of Fur

Enimies?

I can't believe it! Cally and Lilith are napping in the same room!

Over an hour ago I heard some hissing, but ignored it since I've gotten used to hearing hissing when Cally and Lilith are near each other. After I finished what I was working on, I got up, said hi to Peanut and Matt (they are napping together upstairs), and then started to get ready to practice my cello. I started wondering where Lilith and Cally were, so I looked around...

Cally and Lilith in Cally's Room

There they both were, looking quite at peace in Cally's room. Cally's room is the one with the Comfort Zone/Feliway diffuser, so maybe it's actually working!

Or, maybe it is just that the cats have all been appreciating the nice weather. It was about 60 outside today (incredible!), so we turned off the heat and opened all the windows. Peanut and Lilith both spent some time outside this morning, even though the ground was quite soggy from rain overnight and into the morning. All three of them really appreciated the open windows.

Peanut Enjoys the Fresh Air

Everybody Loves Grass

Peanut

Lilith

Cally

Thanks, Petra!

Lilith's New Bed

No detectable results from the comfort zone for cats yet. Peanut has been enjoying sleeping on the chair in Cally's room, but he did that before we got the pheromone diffuser. Meanwhile, Cally and Lilith are still on edge around each other. The biggest news is that Lilith has found a new place to snooze.

Lilith on today's new bed

Germination

Petra gave us a cat grass kit. It's already germinating after only a few days.

Oat Grass
(The fuzzy stuff is root hairs on emerging roots.)

Worm Home

The worms' new home arrived yesterday, and I set it up last night. It seems silly spending as much money as I did when I could have made something myself... but life is always a trade-off in this way, and I have several other projects I need to complete now. So I chose the Worm Factory: http://www.cascadewormbin.com/wormfactory.htm

I bought it from All Things Organic: http://www.allthingsorganic.com/Products/worm-factory.asp (They have good customer service.)

I had read elsewhere that the bin was made from recycled plastic, but now I find that only the black version of the bin is recycled. The Terra Cotta version is made from food grade plastic (that's good in other ways). It would have been nice to know before I bought it.

Instead, I have an illustration of the difficulty of trying to be an environmentally conscious consumer. I didn't have all the facts before I made my purchase. I couldn't find the manufacturer's website until I had the item in my possession, so after the fact I have more info about what the product is made out of. Why aren't the retailers highlighting the fact that there is a recycled version?


In cat news, comfort zone for cats (aka the Feliway diffuser) arrived today and we plugged it into a wall socket in Cally's room. This product releases the same pheromone that happy cats release when they rub their cheeks against things. It is supposed to help cats feel safe and comfortable. I will report back later if she seems calmer.

Introducing My Cats (aka the Fluffy Beasties whom I live to serve)

Lilith Lowe:

Peanut Passell: (He's male--for some reason a lot of people assume he's a she. Not that he cares much. He's still the king.)
Cally Goble:
Peanut and Lilith are the true owners of this house. They lived here before Matt and I bought the house from the humans who previously served the cats. We were very happy to move in with the two of them.

Cally Goble lived with Matt's Great-Aunt Carolyn until this past summer when Aunt Carolyn passed away. Cally moved in with us "temporarily" (hmmm none of our friends seem to want to adopt a kitty), but Lilith has been rather annoyed that we let another cat move into her house. Peanut doesn't mind too much except when Cally hisses at him because she is ridiculously nervous. I ascribe her neuroses at least in part to the fact that she was declawed, and now feels defenseless.