Cat TV-The Characters

.............................................Neo-tropical?........

...........................................Insatiated......

...........................................Sheltered life.....

....................................Now you see me.....

...............................Now you don't, well?.......

.........................................Ruffled..........
..........................................My name is Douglas...
...............White Tail Deer or Dogs to The Competition..
.................................How do I get from here to there?
......................................Now that I'm there?......

This is a small representation of what could be seen at times with the camera. One would need a trip wire system to see all that might be seen at night. For some reason the Doves have eluded the camera and they make up sometimes fifteen birds all feeding at one time. Always thought they went south for the winter. They must be arctic born which really points out the relativity of things. We have seen moose tracks near the back feeder but no moose. The Competition is probably happy for that. One more Cat TV topic is coming up and we will be done with this subject. Hurray!

Cat TV- The Competition

...........The Competition Caught on forbidden territory..... ..........The Competition in over her head but having fun!....
................The Competition and Referree in discussion .........
.............................Another Competition Subdued................

Cat TV #2 Oliver "The Verminator"

Let us see? I wonder how this place would be to homestead (built in 1892)? Mouse habitat looks pretty good! Wonder how the owner is to live with? Think I will just have to check it out. And so a young cat with a limping hind leg ventured into this new horizon and finds that there is also another cat residing here. A little older and not as aggressive as one would think. No problem, I can still raid the food dish and stay out of the way, he says to himself. Oh oh! Where did that big black (neighbor's cat King) cat come from?! He is scary! Last night it sounded like he munched on someone pretty bad! I will just have to steer clear of him. He must be a neighbor's cat. Hey, the food dish is not on the deck but I smell something on the back porch and the door is open. Let's check it out, quietly, with no one to see me. Just a little closer, a little closer, rats! I am caught and this lady has me in her arms! What is a cat to do? She is closing the door and now she is handing me something that really smells good. This may not be so bad after all. Think I will just cool it for a while.

Well to make a long story short, a new cat has just been recruited by Mom. What do we call this cat, Mom said to herself? The morning news had something about that Iran Contra Trial and who is on trial, Oliver North? So cat, your name is now Oliver and you are about to have a boot camp physical, get your needed vaccinations, get fixed, and we will check out that rear gimpy leg. Any one residing on this turf will have responsibilities and must be fit.

After that informal adoption (it is questionable by whom?), Oliver lived a quiet life (except for King, the neighbor cat) of mousing and eating, and he usually spent most of his time outside. This went on for approximately five years and then Mom became ill and for about six months, Oliver turned into a caregiver. His duties included being close, under foot and out of the way especially when visitors came to visit. For some reason all the furniture was rearranged to make room for a bed in the dining room area. There were times of visitation that were marked with reserved conversation, business like happenings, adjustment to the new arrangement and the need to go on living, laughter, prayer, more visitors, laughter, rest, more prayer, quiet times of reflection, more laughter, routine, getting outside, feeling the warm sun, hot sun, more intense struggle, resignation, tiredness, happy laughter, dimming laughter, quiet rest, bitter sweet joy and relief. Mom went home to be with the Lord 23 minutes into September 11, 2003 and we found grief and joy in that. And Oliver was adopted into another family with a dog this time and another cat! But knowing the resiliency of Oliver we knew that he would do just fine.


And here he branched out in his job description, one being that of office file investigator requiring abilities to jump high levels, squeeze into tight places, can have no claustrophobia, and possesses good powers of observation. This he did with enthusiasm as he did performing other duties as assigned including office clean up requiring abilities to work in higher places, with minimal disturbance to desk arrangement, and abilities to wipe things clean. He also performed in house planter management not pictured here because of my inability to insert pictures without blowing up the whole composition! And when the day is done, there is nothing like easing back into some folded bed spreads and viewing an outdoor TV program with birds singing in it.

So what did I reaffirm or learn from this exercise?

• In blogging, don't take it seriously because it may just undo all the previous stress prevention measures needed when one blows up a composition.
• SAVE AS DRAFT frequently so one has something to go back to when the first take home message occurs.
• Blogging can be a time sink so only participate in it taking a break from some other essential task.
• Love your animals because they are probably increasing your life span. Only take another when you commit to loving it until death do you part.
• Home hospice is a wonderful caring experience. Be willing to participate in it for your loved ones.
• Insignificant features usually make minimal experiences significant.

PS: I forgot to tell how Oliver got the name Verminator. He moved (in his second home) into a target enriched environment with many mice per square acre around the house. He can bag up to 5 or 6 per day and deposit them near the front of the house. Well, along the front of the property runs a two lane county road that commands enough road kill to warrant a clean up crew (like ravens, crows, and turkey vultures). Oliver's prowess or performance has been so good that this road cleanup crew now stops at our house for a quick meal. and usually I do not have to do the dirty cleanup. Actually Oliver does cleanup some of his trophies but I do discourage this practice. Once I put on a boot in the morning and felt something squirm down next to my toes. Alarmed, I hurriedly took my boot off. Out crawled a mushed lizard one of our previous cats had recruited. There is a lessen in this also.

Cat TV

This picture is the first depicted in the enclosed collage (upper left hand corner) as a proxy for an activity that involves the whole family, neighbors, and natural community in contact with our small property. Many members in the natural community have not been seen yet but we know they are there. We have evidence of one moose walking through the property and we see tracks very close in the snow from time to time. This activity requires sensitivity and consideration to the natural community in the areas of what type and how much feed we should be providing. We would not want to be providing elements in a diet that would alter the digestive chemistry or make the participants overly dependent, should our supply be interrupted for some reason. For that reason we have only provided bird and squirrel food at this time. Another consideration I have learned is that if one wishes to keep peace in the family we needed a protocol agreement between family members as to when certain other members should be let out side. One wrong move could result the lessening of the natural population and resulting in family disharmony, something to be avoided when possible.

This particular window (upper left picture) happens to be in the den that is shared from time to time by me and my wife who loves to bird watch, wolf watch (validated by the neighbors) etc., etc. Anytime during the year one's view might be drawn to the window to witness something really interesting. The upper right picture is of our subject looking out the back window with the squirrel feeder on the tree just barely visible through the window blinds. One misstate I made here in placing this box is that it is too low. One night I caught one of the large white tail does with her feet up on the tree and her nose buried in the top of the box with the flap open. So the take home message here is to place the box at least six feet above the ground. I doubt if a moose could get her snout in this box. Maybe someday I might be recommending that one places the box ten feet up the tree. I really wanted to ad two more pictures to this post but the program is just not cooperating and/or I have not figured out how to arrange photos yet. So until this situation changes and I can manage the time to research the problem, this will have to do.

The Rest of the Story About 2006

We tend to picture (photograph)the high points of an experience but is this real? Probably not, so the rest of the story will have to come later, as each picture in the following arrangement stimulates thought and as time allows I hope to do this one or a combination of pictures at a time. I am just now discovering how to use this blog and I'm experiencing not many starts yet. I once had an old boss (Forest Supervisor on the Stanislaus National Forest) tell me, Phil, "whatever you do, do something". So in the interest of that good advice off we go to the next post.

Matthew 6:33-"But seek first His kingdon and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you."