Storms, Ferals and Birds

 We had a storm Monday night, in the middle of the night. The lightning flashes and then semi close thunder that woke me up. It is kind of unusual to have a thunder storm in winter. The old wives tale says, if you have a thunder storm in winter, there will be snow within the next ten days. Guess, we will have to wait and see if this come true. What is kind of unusual about the thunderstorm is, almost everyone I have talked to heard the thunder, and part of this conversation comes from my dental appointment, talking with people who live all around the Asheville area. 

My plans had been to go over to the Biltmore before my dentist appointment but thick fog that rose up late in the morning as well as cleaning paw prints off the Mustang before leaving took those plans away. It was a warm, spring-like day here and just like Texas, we can get all four seasons in a twenty four to forty eight hour period. I ended up doing the practical thing after the appointment. The Lowe's on Tunnel Road had a throw rug that the Weaverville Lowe's didn't have. The floorplans of those stores are almost the exact opposite but I finally found my way around. Then on the way home, a quick trip to pick up a few things at the grocery store. 

Since it was so nice in the late afternoon, I put together some treats for the kitties and set on the back step to draw them in a bit closer to me. They were enjoying the treats, fighting one another off for them and I enjoyed the brilliant winter sunlight. The sunsets in winter are spectacular because of the clouds but for us not only the clouds but the sun peeping through the branches of those tall trees make for a beautiful scene. My neighbor Nancy stopped by for a visit on her daily compost horse poop disposal trip. The land they have been trying to purchase, went under contract to a couple from the Weaverville area. While they are disappointed in not getting the land, the new owners are going to build a house for themselves and told Nancy that she and her daughter can continue riding on the acreage. She didn't know about the pasture in front of us and we are all feeling a bit hemmed in. My dentist lives out this way as well and said yesterday our rural is going suburban and then we all say the same thing, where would we move to avoid this? Some of the most beautiful areas can be sketchy and we all like our neighbors on our hill, so guess we will wait and see. 

The Feral Fam continue to be entertaining. With a warm day, I scooted them out of the garage to run off some of their energy. Monday morning, they left me a present at the backdoor steps. I don't know what it was when it was living but it had been played with quite hard before their leaving the gift. Guess, this is the Feral Fam regifting. Progress with them is slow at times but keeping patient with them has been a good lesson for me. Poor Boo, his siblings rescued but we could never get him. Punky kept him with her for weeks and then one day, as mama cats do, she had no more interest in him but moved on and had another litter. He is a bit of a loner, but he will hang out with the others. He has just now started coming into the garage not only to eat, but to sleep. He and Jazzy are the two that exit the moment I enter the garage, if they have been back in the sleeping corner. They make a racket doing so. Mama Cat doesn't hiss at me whenever she is around. Punky is still being a pain to the others but I know her actions are a result of missing Strawyer. She can stir it up in the garage. She has always had panic eyes, or at least that is what I call them, and her eyes hold a little more panic than they used to. I get impatient with her but deep inside, I know this cat is hurting, still. Biggio and Bobbsey are becoming friendlier. During treats in the morning, Bobbsey will let me touch her nose. Biggio lets me pet him every once in a while and that little bit of petting is usually associated with food. Radley is expanding his territory, he just loves the prayer of Jaybez, and taking on other male cats. Baby doesn't look like a baby anymore but is a beautiful cat. Funny, started out a black and white cat, then became a little greyer in color and now has gone back to more of a black fur. Baby is so playful and always looking for a fake fight better known as play. Sadly, I have not seen Gramps for several days. It is not unusual for these cats to take a road trip exploring the area. Nancy thinks he has been riding the fence line near her but the fence line is connected to coyote country and I hope that Gramps, as little as he was, did not find his demise among those viscous animals. I hold out hope because these cats have shown up before after I had given up hope.  But now, thinking about it just a bit, Gramps had signs of not feeling good. Since he was the smallest and the smallest don't always survive, I have a hunch, Gramps did what most cats do when they're ill and maybe close to death, he is probably back there hidden along the side of the gravel road. Junior and Jazzy, the two orange cats take after their dad, Strawyer. A little whinny at times but love the comfort of a warm bed. They are usually the last two up when I am fixing their food. 

Most of the birdfeeders have been moved to the front yard. The birds are able to eat in relative peace. I hung a feeder in the pear tree yesterday, meant especially for cardinals. They require trees and shrubs close by to use a feeder on a continuous basis. I walked the front yard looking for any problems that will need to be taken care of when spring arrives. I did see where I would like to put in a fence and then use the rest of the openness to plant trees to obstruct views closer to the road. Dreaming on a warm afternoon with the threat of a storm on the horizon. I went down to the road to check the mailbox and Nancy was there picking up her garbage can. We visited a few minutes and in those brief minutes, the weather turned. The wind picked up, clouds moved in, and the temps began a descent into the coolish range. Even a few drops of rain fell.