“The only escape from the miseries of life are music and cats…”
I have turned off the AC and opened the doors and windows. The morning is cooler than it has been for days, and there is a slight breeze. Gracie is in heaven. She gets to go out and come in as much as she wants as her dog door is accessible. The temperature is still in the 80’s, but I decided to brave the heat for some fresh air. The forecast is for thunder showers tonight which will be welcomed after all these steamy days with no rain. If the weekly forecast is correct, it will be in the high 70’s by Friday.
Yesterday afternoon the backup was 25 miles long to get off cape over the Sagamore bridge. I can’t imagine how long it took to go those 25 miles, and I can’t imagine sitting in a car going inches at a time. I’d have been crazed.
The open windows have brought the world back. I can hear the sounds of mowers and trimmers but even better I can hear the songs of birds. Yesterday I watered the plants on the deck and filled all the feeders. Even the two suet feeders were empty. Today I’ll sit on the deck for a bit and read. I haven’t had the inclination to read in a while. Usually I read a book or more a week, but since the surgery, for whatever reason, I haven’t be able to focus for too long. Maybe a new book will kick-start my reading.
In the mornings, Maddie is my only companion. She sits on the couch beside me. When I got Fern and Maddie from the shelter, they were both five and had grown up together. Fern right away took to the house and to Maggie, my dog. Maddie, on the other hand, spend at least three weeks under the bed. Part of it was the new house and part of it was Maggie who chased her, not with any malice or intention to do harm but for the fun of it. I used to lie on my stomach and give Maddie treats under the bed and talk to her. She came out but stayed in the guest room on one of the beds. I put a gate up so Maggie wouldn’t bother her and added a hole in the gate so Maddie could go to the food and litter. It took a while but she came downstairs and chose the dining room table as her safety spot. Gracie came only a few months after Maggie died, and she chased poor Maddie. It was puppy fun for Gracie. Poor Maddie ran for her life, but she didn’t hide. She stayed on that table. Now Maddie will even sit on the couch where Gracie is sleeping. She heads butts me for pats. During the day she sleeps on my bed and during the night she sleeps on the rug in my room. She won’t go so far as to join Fern, Gracie and me on the bed, but she stays close. Miss Maddie is a sweet, lovable cat. It’s nice to have her around. Now if she and Fern would stop hissing at one another, this would be a happy home.
Explore posts in the same categories: MusingsTags: hissing, open windows, pets
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July 8, 2013 at 11:49 am
Cat music for Hedley (and maybe Marie and Birgit, too)… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JAk_UZ7xF8
July 8, 2013 at 12:02 pm
im6,
I don’t know this song, but I like it. Looks like I’ll go looking and add it to my files!!
Thanks!!
July 8, 2013 at 2:03 pm
Meow 🙂
July 8, 2013 at 7:17 pm
Birigt,
Yup, today’s the day for that comment!
July 8, 2013 at 1:36 pm
It got rather pleasant here as soon as the clouds went away and the sun showed and breeze started to blow. Warmer than when the clouds were here but the humidity got lower instead. Tomorrow we’ll most likely pass 80F so I’m hoping for breeze too.
We rarely have any traffic problems on the roads I drive on, not even today when a lorry filled with garbage fell over when the driver made a left turn. He must have driven like crazy to make that loirry fall 🙂
Bertil and Teodor (brothers so they arrived the same day) took over completely when they moved here. Bertil rarely stays close to any human, when he does I always worry that he’s planning to take over the world 🙂 Teodor on the other hand is a really kind cat and often drinks my tea or coffee when he thinks I don’t see him 🙂
have a great day!
Christer.
July 8, 2013 at 2:03 pm
Christer,
It got warm in the afternoon so I turned the air conditioner back on. I hope it cools down enough tonight that I won’t need it. Last night I had only the one in my bedroom on, not the central air.
The cape has two bridges to get traffic on and off. The number of people who come down for the weekend are just too many for a quick exit over the bridge. It is always backed up every summer Sunday.
Fern and Maddie are not related except by upbringing. The man who had them also had a dog, but the man became homeless and had to give up his pets to the animal shelter. At the shelter they told me he was crying because he knew his dog would find a home but doubted two five year old cats would. I had told them I would take an older cat which was dog friendly. The shelter called and said they had 2-naturally I took them both!
July 8, 2013 at 2:02 pm
Not exactly a cat, but a nice way to stay cool:
http://www.onlinewahn.de/bpics/b-050207.jpg
July 8, 2013 at 3:37 pm
I love that, Birgit. It reminds me of when I went to the National Zoo to see the panda. It was brutally hot as only Washington DC can get.
The panda has his own air-condintioned cave in the outside enclosure. It’s a rock den with two huge cold air grates on opposite walls from each other.
There he was, fast asleep inside his air-conditioned cave, with his back against one blower and his belly facing the other one. My friend and I wanted to crawl in there with him.
We didn’t think he would have minded.
Or even woken up.
July 8, 2013 at 7:06 pm
Birgit,
That’s a great picture. That polar bear looks so content.
At the zoo in Boston, they were giving the animals popsicles.
July 8, 2013 at 3:46 pm
Hi Kat,
Traffic jams at the bridges are the reason I don’t go to the Cape except in the dead of winter. 🙂
I’m waiting for the humidity to drop some before I open the windows. Impatiently waiting, I might add. I’m sick of the air-conditioner even though I’m grateful that I have one.
I sent Rocky to doggy daycare. I had a bunch of errands to do and leaving him home alone in a cool but stuffy house on a lovely day was too cruel. Meanwhile I have been driving around and calling around straightening out stuff that other people have screwed up. It’s been that kind of week.
Must be the heat. 🙂
Enjoy the rest of the day. Stay cool.
July 8, 2013 at 7:13 pm
Hi Caryn,
You can always leave later at night than 4 in the afternoon. It’s like all the tourists got together and decided to leave at the same time. I’d stay and have a good dinner then leave.
I just turned the air off and opened the windows. It is a lot cooler than it was when I turned it on at 1. The air gets stale , and I miss being connected to the world when the air is on.
Gracie is outside enjoying the yard. Once her doggie door is accessible, she’s gone. She runs around the yard getting rid of all her excess energy. I may sit out on the deck and join her.
Have a great evening!
July 8, 2013 at 7:19 pm
Today the humidity has returned and if we turned off the AC we would all melt. My wife is deathly allergic to cat dander. If there has ever been a cat living in a house and my wife enters the room she will immediately begin to itch and her eyes will water. She doesn’t even have to be in the room more than a minute or two.
God made dogs for our companions and he made cats to live with us and work taking care of mice. We and dogs have a symbiotic relationship. With cats it’s all business.
July 8, 2013 at 7:36 pm
Bob,
I just turned off mine as it is a cooler night. I used to be allergic to tons of stuff including cats and dogs, but I took those allergy shots and now nothing bothers me. Summers used to be hell when I could hardly breath, my nose itched and my eyes watered. Summer now is great.
My cats are pushy for pats and scratches. They want affectionate as much as the dog.