I must forego specifics, but SRSLY…I sometimes DESPAIR of the human condition…SRSLY!!
Why can we not be kind and thoughtful and ethical in our dealings with each other???
I am brought back to earth and sanity by my dear boys…
Peace and Truth and Kindness.
Go There.
A bit later it was 92F.
Hot.
Bear…sniffing the hot air.
Even Auggie chose the shade.
Hot.
Everyone in the shade…
Mama, it is HOT!
Auggie’s face looks much better today. And so far, he is tolerating the medication.
AND, barring a few tentative meows, he is content-ish staying inside. We will try to get another day out of the inside routine.
I don’t know what he tangled with. It was in the 2:30 p.m. time frame. Did he stick his head in someone’s “house” where he was unwelcome?? …get too close to the turkeys?? …get to close to another bird’s nest ?? A mystery. I didn’t see which direction he came in from so don’t have a clue.
I spoke too soon yesterday about a not too bad 4th. Apparently my 2 houses down neighbors who cannot do the 4th or the New Year without incredibly unthoughtfully loud fireworks…had some sort of schedule conflict on the 4th because to my great surprise, they started with the artillery wannabe fireworks shortly after 10:00 p.m. on July 5!!
A POX ON THEIR HOUSE!!
I have a letter written which I will wait and edit in a day or so when I am slightly calmer and more rested and take maybe another day to decide whether I deliver it.
So, today is recovery day for all of us.
Bear came to the bedroom, distraught, about 10:15. He got on the bed and finally settled down next to me. I administered some Benadryl.
Auggie was very sweet and after checking Bear’s ears, rubbed his chin on Bear’s head. I told Bear that was an “I love you” in Cat language. Auggie settled himself between Bear and I, but later I woke to find him snuggled up against Bear and every time I woke they were the same.
Still, it was a short night and today we are catching up.
The day after.
***We all went outside 4:00 p.m. ish. Auggie was obviously thinking about staying close to Bear, me or the house and came in with Bear and me in about 20 minutes. Good to “get back on the horse” and I’m happy that Auggie is both wanting to go out and also very cautious about going out.
We came through the 4th very well. Noise was not near as bad as some years. Bear doesn’t like it but does not get as upset as Karl did…a Benadryl, some of my T’s under his head (from the laundry basket…scent of Mama!) and he settled. Auggie was unphased…
I went right back to sleep after Bear settled and woke rested versus years past when I did not get near normal sleep and was tired and grumpy on the 5th. Ultimately, we did well and can enjoy the rest of the weekend!.
After last weekend’s wonderful cool…it got hot.
Not my favorite.
Not Bear’s favorite.
Auggie deals…
The summer influx of persons is astounding.
6 weeks of too many people and too much heat.
Summer, summer, go away!
The first winter I was in this house, I had a chimney fire. It was not much fun, but the good news is that Doug Heil, of Heil Brothers was the person I called. He was at my home the next day and replaced my damaged chimney, inspected everything including my wood supply and that was the start of a most excellent business-friendship.
We speak once a year when he comes to clean and inspect all.
Since that first visit, it has been a quick clean, “all is well” and then I hear about his family and I share my stuff and it is what life in a smallish town is made of!
We missed last year as I did not use the woodstove the winter that Bear had his surgeries. I had phoned the office last July to say why I didn’t need a clean, but instead of Doug’s wife Sandy, I spoke to an employee so did not get a chance to catch up with either of them.
It had been in the back of my mind to call earlier this year. I closed the damper and doors on the woodstove…early May…thinking not only the bats of past years, but the yellow jackets of the recent year.
Then, last week, on the way to the dump…there is the Heil Bros truck parked by the side of the road. I pulled over. It was Doug. We chatted, etc. and the upshot is that he was here on Friday to clean the Chimney.
The cleaning was fairly non-eventful.
Doug did note that there were a number of Yellow Jackets (DEAD!) in my stove.
We discussed the bane of the yellow jacket thing and I told him about my traps this year. I also told him there was a nest on the house and that I’d had a ladder set for the last week, but kept putting off dispatching the nest.
He said: “Oh, I’ll spray it, I do it all the time”. He sprayed it and did not get stung and the nest fell to the ground.
I was SO relieved! I absolutely HATE dealing with the nests. I told him about my nest spraying “outfit”.
I just wanted to hug the man.
He said that my spray was the best he’d used. It is a foam spray from the local hardware and my personal favorite as it goes a good 20 feet with a significant amount of foam which seems to render anything in its path…DEAD!
I told him where I got it and then gave him one of the 3 cans I had in my arsenal as a THANK YOU!
As we were “settling-up”, Doug said that I should start a fire in the stove. The recent driving rains had soaked the chimney, the stovepipe and the stove. He said a fire would dry things out vs some rust happening.
So…a fire…in late June…with the windows open and me in shorts.
Bear stayed away from the heat.
Tales of the Chimney: Summer 2014.