Sunday, December 27, 2015

Cats, Etc, on Another Rainy Day


Blueberry is such a dear.   Her mouth has a slightly different shape now that she is missing most of her teeth.   I took her and four siblings from a location in Lebanon, from the yard of a house, now the feature of several paper articles about tenants suffering under a husband and wife slumlord pair, who own multiple slums in this area.  The tenants there at the house tried to get repairs for really terrible problems, like leaks that caused ceiling material to fall into the shower/tub, to name one.  They were evicted, probably in retaliation for daring to challenge the red door slumlords of the valley.  In my opinion, the house needs bulldozed and did then, when I collected Blueberry and her siblings there.  Oregon has virtually no protections for tenants and tenants can be evicted without reason at any time.  



Haley and Alexi.  Alexi is quite needy and loves her mom (or aunt) not sure which, Haley.  Because the space is small, Haley sometimes gets a little grouchy with Alexi.


It is hard to believe, Nemo, above, is Starry's brother, but it is true.  I caught both, along with a third sibling, Peko, long since adopted out, in N. Albany, when they were teenagers.  All were sick with giardia.  Nemo went to a home, was gone two months before they returned him.  After which he was not the same cat.  It took him a year to come into the house from the cat yard after that very bad adoption and he still won't let me hold him.  He used to be in my arms constantly, like Starry still is.  She is a torti.

Flooded cat yard.  The constant often heavy rains flood the yard, then it drains, only to flood again.  I give up.  This spring, I hope to raise the yard dirt height somehow and slope it one way, then create a way that area can drain onto the drive and from there to the street.


This young Scrub Jay was out in the Cherry Tree, in pouring rain, drenched and miserable looking.

8 comments:

  1. Anonymous3:12 PM

    Haley and Alexi look adorable together. I don't envy you trying to change the levels in your yard. What about digging a shallow drain? I mean just a depression really. Doesn't have to be much to drain water.

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    1. The fence piece she had put in, on this property, illegally atop the drain line, whose stud knocks up against the foundation of this house, she did before my brother bought the place, so the reason for the under the house water issue was no known at first, but now is, and resolved with the above ground line. My brother is going to remove that fence, next time he's up here, and we hope to install another underground line eventually. I could then connect French drains from the back yard to it, and that would be an easy solution to the flooding backyard. So I hope we can do that sooner, rather than later.

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  2. Poor Nemo. I hope the person who adopted him gets some of the same medicine. Some days Karma takes too long to land.
    Good luck on the drainage issues.

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    1. Absolutely, EC, I hope so too. As for the drainage issues, a lot of digging in my future (maybe).

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  3. Drainage problems are often very complicated, but it sounds like you've thought them out. I was thinking French drains, but so are you. Good luck.

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    1. Yes, the good old French drain system, and a shovel. With me operating said shovel. Not sure that's a great idea with all my joint and shoulder problems now. But in my mind, it seems an option.

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  4. I wish all cats could be happily adopted. Grrr... Rotten caregivers of any ilk make me angry. On another note, nice jay photo! I'd like to think the bird's bearing looks regal and stoic. ~grin~ So sorry about the terrible issues in your beautiful part of the country. For what it's worth, I'm praying for you and yours, furry and otherwise. I hope you are well.

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    1. Yes, stoic against the weather. A good attitude and look for Oregon these days. Yes, lots of the cats here are returnees, and probably very happy here and not so inclined to trust again. They do trust me and I'm trying to do right by that trust.

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Dashing

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