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a good cat
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It was warm enough today that Sarah wanted to go out and ride bikes, so we did. A couple of houses from Mikey's, there was a big truck with a trailer, and on the trailer was what looked for all the world like a rough, muddy concrete sofa. As we were getting set to leave later on, I had been regretting that I didn't have my camera, but then I remembered my phone camera. I got it out, and before I could, the truck started up and drove off. I didn't get a decent shot of it. I'm guessing it was a chunk of concrete that used to be a front porch. Lots of work going on at that house.
Yesterday was hundreds day for Sarah, and she was home feeling sick. I was a parent volunteer, so I took her project in (Great Wall of China festooned with genuine Chinese sunflower seeds). They were making beanie-type stuffed critters with 100 lima beans in each. As I helped kids, I was also counting out beans and making a basic beanie for Sarah so when she came in today, she wouldn't be the only kid in class who didn't have one. I took the extra step of stitching off the extremities, with beans inside, so they'd always have some substance to them. She says she has decorated it with a cape and a black karate belt. As you might guess, she's fine today.
I have the turntable hooked up again, and have started ripping some of my LPs. I've scanned in some negatives, too. Using all those peripherals. Rip, scan, print... Mr. Techno Guy!
So. Tonight I was getting ready to turn in, and the cat was, as is typical, sprawled across my path. I looked down and saw that she had a mouse between her paws. It was still moving its legs a little. I emptied some soybeans out of a bowl and put it over the mouse, then carefully slid a piece of card stock under that, followed by a thin board. I assured Frances that she was a good cat and took the captive to the front porch. I lifted the bowl, and the mouse looked a bit startled. It was probably even more startled when I flipped it out into the yard. It landed with a slight squeak. Well, I thought, now I've heard a mouse go 'squeak.'
Cathy said there's a hole by the base of the fireplace. Oh, yes, that's a hole, all right. Silly mice don't know what a mouse hole is supposed to look like, but it was enough for them to get in through, anyway. I looked in the garage for something to block it with, missing my bricks and cinder blocks (which I reluctantly surrendered when we last moved, after having had them for decades). I selected a likely 1x4 and nailed it over the large part of the hole. I went back for a 1x2 and nailed it over the rest, cursing each time a nail bent. There are two bent nails, but I straightened them out and they bent again, so there were more than two curses.
I returned to the bedroom to get back to trying to prepare for bed. There was a strange little object on the floor, which I suspected might be some sort of hairball. After I poked it with my finger, I realized it was an ex-mouse, intact at the ends and harvested much like an ear of corn in the middle. (My apologies to my friends with pet rodents for this gruesome image.) Informing Cathy that our cat was twice as good as we thought, I carefully picked it up with a paper towel and put it in a proper sort of place. Then I washed my hands and gave Frances some extra kibble and told her some more what a great cat she is.
Are there more furry little surprises in our future? Time will tell. Time will tell.
.
It was warm enough today that Sarah wanted to go out and ride bikes, so we did. A couple of houses from Mikey's, there was a big truck with a trailer, and on the trailer was what looked for all the world like a rough, muddy concrete sofa. As we were getting set to leave later on, I had been regretting that I didn't have my camera, but then I remembered my phone camera. I got it out, and before I could, the truck started up and drove off. I didn't get a decent shot of it. I'm guessing it was a chunk of concrete that used to be a front porch. Lots of work going on at that house.
Yesterday was hundreds day for Sarah, and she was home feeling sick. I was a parent volunteer, so I took her project in (Great Wall of China festooned with genuine Chinese sunflower seeds). They were making beanie-type stuffed critters with 100 lima beans in each. As I helped kids, I was also counting out beans and making a basic beanie for Sarah so when she came in today, she wouldn't be the only kid in class who didn't have one. I took the extra step of stitching off the extremities, with beans inside, so they'd always have some substance to them. She says she has decorated it with a cape and a black karate belt. As you might guess, she's fine today.
I have the turntable hooked up again, and have started ripping some of my LPs. I've scanned in some negatives, too. Using all those peripherals. Rip, scan, print... Mr. Techno Guy!
So. Tonight I was getting ready to turn in, and the cat was, as is typical, sprawled across my path. I looked down and saw that she had a mouse between her paws. It was still moving its legs a little. I emptied some soybeans out of a bowl and put it over the mouse, then carefully slid a piece of card stock under that, followed by a thin board. I assured Frances that she was a good cat and took the captive to the front porch. I lifted the bowl, and the mouse looked a bit startled. It was probably even more startled when I flipped it out into the yard. It landed with a slight squeak. Well, I thought, now I've heard a mouse go 'squeak.'
Cathy said there's a hole by the base of the fireplace. Oh, yes, that's a hole, all right. Silly mice don't know what a mouse hole is supposed to look like, but it was enough for them to get in through, anyway. I looked in the garage for something to block it with, missing my bricks and cinder blocks (which I reluctantly surrendered when we last moved, after having had them for decades). I selected a likely 1x4 and nailed it over the large part of the hole. I went back for a 1x2 and nailed it over the rest, cursing each time a nail bent. There are two bent nails, but I straightened them out and they bent again, so there were more than two curses.
I returned to the bedroom to get back to trying to prepare for bed. There was a strange little object on the floor, which I suspected might be some sort of hairball. After I poked it with my finger, I realized it was an ex-mouse, intact at the ends and harvested much like an ear of corn in the middle. (My apologies to my friends with pet rodents for this gruesome image.) Informing Cathy that our cat was twice as good as we thought, I carefully picked it up with a paper towel and put it in a proper sort of place. Then I washed my hands and gave Frances some extra kibble and told her some more what a great cat she is.
Are there more furry little surprises in our future? Time will tell. Time will tell.
.
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If Frances is strictly an indoor cat and you've blocked ingress for the mice, things may calm down. If she also goes outdoors, though, all bets are off. Fuzz Buzz surprised me with a squirrel last year. None of our cats had ever caught a squirrel before, and I was surprised she managed at her age. (Maybe it was a particularly stupid squireel.) When she catches birds she usually deals with them herself, but the squirrel she actually presented. I tricked her into the house and disposed of the poor creature. When she came out she went right to where she had left it and seemed quite startled that it was gone. She looked at me beseechingly. Maybe I should have made fake squirrel stew to appease her.
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