Smoke in my Eyes

 

Just another smoke clogged August in Oregon.

I tried to get away one last time to Waldo.   Took off unexpectedly.  

It was smokey when I got there, but I hoped for the best.  I got a site but nowhere near the lake.  This meant a lot more work to go kayaking.  I couldn't just walk to the lakeshore to take a quick paddle.   I'd have to load it back in the car and drive to the day use boat launch, and then take it back out and load it into the car to go back to the campground.

Since I sleep in the back of my car, meant unloading my bedding arrangement before loading the kayak, then unloading the kayak again when I returned, and putting the bedding back in for the night.

The campsite I got was small and shady but at first I had no neighbors.  That soon changed, when a camp trailer, complete with generator, moved in next to me.  But they were gone the next day.   But then on the other side of me, to which I had no privacy, a big pickup with camp trailer, then a second car with kids and two large dogs rarely on leash at the campsite took up residence.  I didn't like this.  Zero privacy between the two campsites.  They probably didn't like it either.  

So I decided this wasn't really very enjoyable.   Packed up and came home.

I was there a couple nights.  I went kayaking too, even though I couldn't even see the other side of the lake due to heavy smoke.  I had to wear a mask to paddle, one I still had, for some reason, in a corner of my car glove compartment, from covid days.  I could have used some goggle sunglasses.  The smoke made my eyes burn.

The smoke is from the Emigrant wildfire burning, as the crow flies, maybe ten to 15 miles south of Waldo.  South of highway 58, south of Odell lake, and even south of highway 21.  But still, that smoke can travel a long way.

From the shoreline trail, early morning near the boat ramp

Off the shoreline trail near the boat ramp early Friday morning.

 Regardless of the smoke, I made a long trip clear down to the north end of Waldo Lake by kayak yesterday.  Now that's a long paddle!  I dillydallied on the way, exploring the shoreline all the way.  I ran into a sailboat moored out just behind a small outcropping of land.  They had camp set up on that outcropping.  It was a perfect set up.   When they saw my cat material mask, one of the two ladies gasped and said that's just like masks she had made and sold during covid.  It may have been one she made.  Someone had given it to me.  They showed me their marine gps of Waldo, so I could determine how far it might be to the north end.  

Here's sort of a map of my trip, from the boat ramp, sound end, up the east side, first to Islet, then on to North Waldo.  Waldo is 5.75 miles or so long, so did my miles, up and back.  I find it hard to draw on the app markup, so it is only a general line of my trip.  I hugged the very uneven in and out shoreline most of the way there.  On the way back, however, I paddled quite a distance offshore, to cut the distance.

 My trip took hours.  I saw both now closed campgrounds.  First Islet and then North Waldo. They closed after the 2022 fires, I think, that also scorched most of Waldo's west shore.Now the only open campground at Waldo Lake is Shadow Bay.  I talk to myself when out kayaking sometimes.  I told myself what great places now to camp and get some privacy during the busy season at the north end burned out campgrounds.  It's true  It takes awhile to paddle down that far, but it could be worth it.

Burned area, including a picnic table close to Islet camp ground

Coming up on the burn zone on the northeast end of Waldo

Boat ramp and dock at Islet campground

Out of order photo, but this is coming into view of North Waldo campground (also closed) and its boat ramp.

Islet campground dike weather station?  Not sure.

Warning sign at Islet. 

Boat ramp harbor at Islet

Buildings still stand at the closed North Waldo campground.

Barrier rocks at North Waldo.

Barrier rocks again, a group of rock islands beyond the big island off North Waldo campground.

Video above is of the Barrier rocks.

Both campgrounds gave me the feel of ghost towns.   There were still buildings, benches, even picnic tables, roads, parking lots, but no signs of human life.  Chipmunks and Ground squirrels scampered about.   I had a short lunch break on Islet at a picnic table overlooking Waldo, which was not a very pleasant view, with all the smoke.   The boat ramp there is shielded from wind and chop by a dike.  At its very end, a metal pole held what appeared to be a weather station.   I hoped it had no camera, like the ODOT tripcheck road cams do.

A little Golden Mantle Ground Squirrel I named Seedy kept me company.  I was a curiosity to him.  I told him So Long when I finally left.

Back out in my kayak a kayaker passed me headed south. She was way out beyond me.  Had one of those fancy kayaks with kind of a rudder thing at the back.  Anyhow, I then proceeded on to North Waldo, which I could see from Islet.  I explored around North Waldo for maybe an hour then suddenly checked the time and realized I might be lucky, with the state of the lake, having deteriorated into large swell and chop, to get back before dark.   Now the boredom would set in, of a long paddle.  I would not follow the shoreline, as this would drastically increase the distance to travel and also cause me delays because I can't help exploring and investigating.   

It took me awhile, I'll just say.  I talked to myself and encouraged myself mainly due to the tediousness of paddling.  I had to be alert to the large swells too.   I'm not a kayaker because I want to prove anything, like endurance or speed.  Ha!   But, like in hiking, a lot of people don't stop and smell the roses so to speak when kayaking and seem to want to impress with how fast they can get somewhere.

I tried not to peek at the west side.  I'd peeked once already and saw that after paddling what seemed long enough I wasn't even near even with Rhododendron Island, on the west side.  Which meant I still had a very long way to go.

I watched the sailboat glide with the wind down the west side, to almost the north end, before turning back.   I thought they'd head into Rhododendron Island bay, but instead, they tacked back Across to the east side, took the sails down up at the point.  I knew they were going to electric motor it into that bay and back to their little safe harbor and camp.     Ok then, not to much farther to sailboat point.

Actually it was a ways further.   Finally finally I achieved Connection Point, formerly known as First Point.   Here I dallied because I don't call it Connection Point for no reason.  Cell reception there.   I returned texts and messages and had just finished and headed out again, towards Shadow Point, when I hear voices behind me.  Here come three kayakers.  I recognize the one way out in front of her two friends.  She yells at me "hey are you the one I saw down towards the north end."   "Yes," I said, although that was a long time before and I was headed north and she south.  "Well you're paddling wrong," she says.  what the fuck?   She's yelling across open water at a stranger whom she knows has just paddled for hours, to critique her paddling?  I nearly snorted in laughter.   I quickly eyed her two friends, lagging some distance behind her.  Lucky them, I thought.

I felt like yelling back, over the water, "Hey, fuck you!"   But I didn't.   She's paddling a rather fancy boat compared to my sit on top tub.  I was proud of making it clear up to the north end and back and on a sit on top, no less.  Exploring the entire shoreline along the way, meeting Seedy too, was a high point, much higher point than meeting know-it-all miss.

They pulled to a beach on the north side of Shadow Point while I slugged it out to pass the campground and go on up and around Boat Launch point and down to the boat ramp to load my kayak into the car and head back to the campground.

Having thrown stuff together quite quickly to head off to Waldo in the first place, I didn't take along a lot of food, outside of some bars I got at Wheeler Dealer, six for $.99, some fruit and the coffee that remained in a jar of instant I keep in my camp tote.  I was now starving and nothing I had seemed desirous.   I didn't get back til 6:30 p.m. from my kayak trip.  I was wet the entire time on the sit on top, from the swell breaking over it, so I had to get out of the wet shorts and into dry clothes and socks, to warm up.   

I changed fast, once back at camp, eyed the busy camp next to me, with the dogs, and took off again, this time to Crescent.  Crescent is a wide spot in the road town about ten miles east.  Once there, I found a very lively bar that served chicken and also sandwiches and ordered.   I was entertained just watching everybody else and the wait staff.   I would have loved a cold draft beer, but because I rarely drink, I never take a drink and drive afterwards, being a light weight with alcohol.  I settled for a Sprite.  

Outside, when I left, I saw all these incredibly elaborate and fancy off road vehicles.  I figured they must be having an event this weekend nearby.  I almost asked if I could take a photo of one.  It was really unique, very tall, on narrow well treaded tires.  It was so sparkling clean without a dent on it, I wondered if it was all for show.  It did not look like it had ever seen a well rutted dirt logging road in its life.  

I slept the night in my car at the campsite and came home today.  Yeah the trip was a bit of a bust but oh well, better than sitting around doing nothing.   I had known when I left I might be coming right back because of wildfire smoke.  I did th e long paddle trip in the smoke because I wanted to take home something awesome to remember anyway.

It's cloudy here.  When I drove home the smoke vanished just west of Oakridge and the sun was out and I thought "awesome", I can enjoy the rest of the weekend in the sun at home (minus smoke).  

But once driving north on the interstate, the sun vanished and it was all cloudy.

Here is my best friend from the trip---Scar.  He even invited him or herself into my car.  We were buddies.

I don't know how I got Scar in slo-mo, but I love it....

The Friend

 I went and saw my old friend--Waldo Lake.

I can't be alone all the time, here in this house.  I do love my cats.  But getting out is a good thing.

Off I went.  Nothing to it.  Kayak in back.  Sandwich along for lunch and an apple.  Some sunscreen.  A book.

Under two hours to get up there.  Wildfire smoke was clogging the air yesterday.  Must be from the Flat Fire,  bearing down on Sisters.  NOooooo!  Not Sisters.  I hope they can stop it.  It's just NE of it now.

I'd heard something about the fire, but until I saw all the smoke today I didn't know much about the Flat Fire or that it was so close to Sisters and 0% contained.

Sisters was a darling little town that's now a tourist and hipster type trap.   Sort of.   Trendy I guess they call such a town.  Or something.  Hard to describe.

Lot of rich people have homes around there now my brother says, and on to Bend.  Bend is bigger and richer though. (I think).

Anyway, nobody wants that area to burn.  Me included. 

Description of Flat Fire on OPB.

Sisters is named for the mountains, the Three Sisters, which I can see from the valley.   They are individually named Faith (north sister), Hope and Charity.  Today, I was down south of the Three Sisters, looking at their south sides from Waldo Lake.  The Middle Sister, Hope, has a distinctive sharply pointed peak.  The south sister is oft climbed in a day.  It's a non technical slog climb.

I got there about 12:30 and put in my kayak at the ramp at the day use area.   Along with about a zillion other people.  Everyone seemed extremely happy to be there.  Me included.

However I hadn't eaten yet and I knew I had a sandwich in my rubber bag.  I wanted to lay out on a beach, read my book and eat my sandwich.   But all the beaches I passed from my kayak were chock full of people and the waters dotted in paddle boarders mostly but a few kayaks.

The paddle boarders fascinate me.  They travel in caravans, I call them.  Maybe a guy on one with a cooler and a dog and a child being half towed behind in a toy kayak.  Then there's mom on another board, paddling hard, two kids sitting cross legged behind her.   Or the flotillas of young people together on three or four boards, conversing and laughing maybe half mile off shore.

I wanted some alone time with the lake and kept on paddling, from the boat ramp out to the lake proper, north then, and past the campground, and on.  When all the beaches to 2nd Point and on were full, I decided to cross the lake.  I angled across towards Green Point.   Two more points then Rhododendron Island.  Two beautiful inlets inbetween.  One had boat campers, a tent, a hammock, chairs on the inlet beach and a cooler.

On I went.   I passed a struggling fish.  First fish I'd ever seen at Waldo.  Surface swimming sluggish, slow, not long for this world I guessed.

I came to the Island finally.   First off, I ate half my sandwich, lazing in the kayak in the shallows off the beach.   Then I beached the boat and took a  swim.  Quite a long swim in fact.   After that I went ashore on the island beach and laid out the foam board I've had forever and use for swimming safety, and the lifejacket as a pillow, but I didn't nap. I sat atop the board, leaned back on cushiony life jacket and read.  I had a book along, half done with it.  I lost track of time reading.  

Sun was hot.  At least I had sunscreen on.  

When I tried to check the time and my phone said I couldn't use it because it was too hot, I thought I better put on more sunscreen.

When I left, I went around the island's north side as I usually do then, to say goodbye, and headed south.  I had to get back across the lake and south to the boat ramp.  I needed to get gas in Crescent before the station closed because I forgot to get gas before I came up to Waldo and noticed I had less than quarter tank.  That car will go forever on a quarter tank but I didn't want to risk it, in case there was a wreck or something that held up traffic.

I took off from Green Point, on the west side, headed towards 2nd Point, on the east side.    By now it was nearly 5:00 and the lake was choppy from wind.   It was fun.

Long paddles today, but also a few hours down time, swimming and reading too.  Very pleasant.  I made it to Crescent and got gas then headed home.  Took about an hour and a half to get home.  No real traffic issues at all.  My only expense for a fabulous day like today was the gas.

So long for now, Waldo.  Don't go anywhere.

Balloons!

 Balloons galore filled the morning sky.

Ultra lights circled them like crows buzzing eagles.

I had big plans to go watch the balloons launch.  To do that I'd have to get up before 6:00 and that didn't happen.   Also, parking to watch the launch is a quarter to half mile walk from launch site.   

Instead, I pulled off the highway near Walmart and watched as they rose from behind the industrial buildings and car lots across the road and soared over where I parked.

Balloon after balloon soared directly over me.  Some basket occupants waved back when I waved.

I like the sound of them, like labored breathing of a large creature, when they fire up the gas.  There is something dragonish about them too.

Then there are the bright colors.  I love color.

All sorts of ultra lights circled them like stalking fans.  Or little birds in awe or jealousy of bigger birds.

After the launch----the chase!!!   There were others chasing. 

I took 20 to Kennel and turned right.   I took Grand Prairie to  Three Lakes, south on Three Lakes to Seven Mile.  South on Seven Mile to Tangent Dr. and crossed the freeway, debated on Tangent Loop, remained on Tangent.  Several landed just off Tangent Dr.  I could see that one landed north of highway 34 while others continued on south and west, beyond Shedd.  I gave up the chase  on Tangent and turned north to return home on 99E since I was so low on gas.

Watching them go directly over me....chasing them to parts unknown---so fun!!!!!

That's Marys Peak behind the balloons and the corn field.   Its real name is Chatimanwi, so named by the Kalapuyans. There are many different spellings of everything around here.  Like Chatimanwi is sometimes spelled Chintimini and that named is well used in the valley.  The Calapooia River runs from up beyond Holley down along highway 228 to Brownsville and on and finally joins the Willamette in Albany.  The river, too, is named after the local originals.

It's going to be near or over 100 next two days.   Not much a person can do in that.   And over 90 for a week.  I'm headed out Tuesday for a few days though.  Can't wait.  I went to the lake yesterday, too.  

I had some spots Monday.  Well they weren't really mine.  Caregiver has to contact the Salem clinic now.  It's become so cumberson to get appointments there.   She fed all these cats along a rural road.  I'd gotten three fixed and had to return them due to lactation.  Otherwise they would have been placed by Silverton Cat Rescue barn team.

Then suddenly they vanished, after return, along with others she fed a different place along the same road.  I had to cancel the appointments, which are so hard to get.  Then after a week of the feeder not seeing any of the cats, suddenly the first group of four of five reappeared yesterday at the one location.   In the meantime I'd posted about the disappearance of close to ten cats.   Then I get contacted by the barn cat team, stating someone had trapped a mom and her two kittens on that road and turned them over to SCR, but the adult had turned out to be already fixed.   I was at the lake when she messaged me and couldn't see the photo well of the adult cat she sent, asking if I recognized the cat.  Once home, I compared their photo to the photos of the two tabbies of the three girls who had been fixed and returned, due to lactation, and one of them matched!   

It's so ironic, too, since she was going to go to SCR for barn cat placement, with her two sisters, but first the kittens had to be found.   I think its the people who live across the road from one place this lady feeds who caught them.  I think the

cats the lady I'm helping feeds, are actually part of the colony across the road, whose people have been catching to relocate and fix.   I don't know that for sure.    It was good news to find out one of the missing fixed girls, with her kittens, is in the care of the barn cat team.  Made me happy.

Still Cloudy and Cool

 Our weather is far from August normal lately.

After the brief heat wave, it went to predicted extreme rain, which didn't happen, but misty cloudy weather has happened.   Tomorrow is to be the last day of it and couldn't come soon enough.  

I know summer is on the wane and its scary to think of months of gray and damp coming soon to an Oregon town near you.

Some people love it depressing.  They like the low pressure.  By that I mean, when its yucky and icky outside, life devolves to be the least you can be mentality very quickly.

I hope to immediately head out, once cats over being fixed today go home to their people tomorrow.

To where?   I don't know--anywhere.

For the day, or a couple days.   It's simple for me to head out for just one night, since the cats can be here two nights alone without any problem.   I have if anything too many litter boxes.

Throw the sleeping blankets in the back, toss the kayak in too, and off I go.

Takes no planning or ta do, for a one nighter.  A two nighter, maybe a cooler goes too.

I was overjoyed to see the line of people outside Radpets clinic this morning.  So many cats and dogs getting fixed there.  They are wildly popular.  Why not?   They're affordable.  There's nothing that can make me happier than seeing so many people lined up to get their pets fixed.   It's probably like winning the lottery to other people.

I named those four Waterloo kittens.    Juble, Jetty, Jambo and Jingles.  The mom already had a name--Cinnamon.  

The Brownsville man only got the outside kitten caught who is tame.  I had asked him to try to get one or both of the pregnant females and he put maybe 30 minutes into trying, mid day too, which is useless.    The orange tabby boy is cat 31 fixed there.  He asked me, as I left, does it ever end, does anyone ever get them all?   I almost laughed.   Well, I said, it doesn't happen by magic.  You have to work at it. 

 Yeah, like that will happen.

Maybe he thinks elves will come in the night and get it done.

Around here, I'm the night elf cat trapper.

Little Guy, the 31st cat fixed from the Brownsville colony.  He looks big in the guy's small dirty carrier but he's quite small, maybe 3 lbs.  Maybe.

Filling the Spots

 The Sweet Home kittens couldn't be fixed tomorrow since they have kitty colds.   

It was to have been a no work day for me, with them transported and picked up by the couple holding them.  But with spots to fill, I set out yesterday late afternoon for Waterloo.

I wasn't sure how many I was to catch, since the spots Monday were originally for six males and one female, all kittens.  What if I caught all females, for instance.  They take longer to do.

I set up the drop trap on the side of a residential street in Waterloo and instantly kittens began popping out of the brush.   I yanked the cord when five were under it, but the cord caught on some grass and one escaped in the meantime.   So I got four kittens, in one yank of the string.   3 blacks and a buff.

After transferring them out to live traps, I didn't really expect the fifth one to be back and it didn't come back, but the mom came out.  At least one mom that is.  There have to be more moms.  Four of the kittens were taken away by some kids two or three weeks ago.   Five more here?  Really?   

I caught the next one out, an adult tabby tux, whom the feeder lady says is one of the moms.  I have no idea who the other mom or moms might be.   Because this morning, feeder lady says there are 3 more kittens, at least.   That would, with the ones taken by kids, be 11 kittens..That still could be just two moms, but who is the other mom, I wonder.   

I came home with the 4 kittens and one adult.   I'd already told the big Brownsville colony man to catch one.  He's had one of my traps for awhile and is supposed to have been feeding in it and use the bottle and string method to catch one of the pregnant ones.  That's the colony where I've already taken 30 to be fixed.  

One of the Moms

Two kittens

Two more kittens, both black, hard to see

The Waterloo lady has a trap of her own, so she's supposed to catch one more this morning.   The trap needs some work, but it will spring.  Not sure a kitten could spring it though.  Its mechanism needs some loosening.

I got to the colony about 5:00 p.m. and left before 6:00 to come on home.

Later my Lebanon friend said she found a chicken in a box along the road, poor thing, and took it to a friend of hers who has chickens.

We have some sick arsonist trying to start forest fires out by Foster Reservoir.  Ten fire starts in one night.   I hope they catch the twisted sicko.  The fire department and forestry fire were able to put them all out fast.  But they are upstaffing til they catch the mental bastard.  They at least sound like lazy arsonist/arsonists, maybe just doing it from a car (and that's from a facebook comment from someone who claimed to see someone throwing firecrackers etc from a car).

By Tuesday, our weather here should be less humid.   No rain yesterday but terribly humid so it felt hotter than 77 degrees.  We're not used to humidity here.  And Tuesday I'll return these cats fixed tomorrow, and head out somewhere.

Right now, for records, I need to name 4 kittens.  The feeder lady already calls the mom cat Cinnamon.

The Inevitability

 If Heartland has a euth tech there today, Vino will today meet his end.

Vino's an old feral boy here, who has, for two months experienced symptoms one usually associates with kitty IBS.  He's had some issues for almost a year which I attributed at first to worms, but netting and worming him did not help.  Then I thought hairball blockage but hairball cat food for two months did not help.   I even got some coccidia two day treatment but that didn't not help either and neither did panacure. When I try everything possible, and symptoms only worsen, its time.  Blood lately in his stool, makes me believe he has digestive tract cancer.  He's not handleable and cries out when he goes.

So its time.   

In other news, Morning, the flamepoint kitten from Sweet Home, is doing better but still sick.  There were 7 kittens still up there in trouble.  The couple who discovered their plight, at a neighbors house, that had burned, began feeding them.  Then we got the adults fixed, four so far.  And two of the kittens, both girls, both flamepoints.  One of them was Morning, now named Angel, and in the care of the vet clinic.  The couple helping were trying to build a catio to hold the others, after one of the 8 left died.  But he had to work one handed having just had major shoulder surgery, then fell.  So instead, she ordered a catio from Amazon and its awesome!

The 7 remaining kittens (Fleabee, one of them, already fixed), went to the vet yesterday.  They had upper respiratory illness and can't be fixed Monday as planned.  So now they have been wormed, flea treated and are on antibiotics.  The neighbor who is holding them took them to the vet.  These are neighbors you would want to have, helping out someone just down their block whose house burned--twice.   Anyhow, they'll either go from their place to a rescue, or be fixed and another neighbor near her, will help find them homes once fixed.   

Their lives are improving at rocketship speed!

I'm heading to catch a few in Waterloo hopefully this evening, to fill the spots Monday, that the kittens had, to be fixed.  No sense wasting spots.

I saw evidence of rain yesterday morning, just a bit, and this morning, but haven't actually seen any rain.  No atmostpheric river.  Barely any rain at all.   Skies outside are blue.

A little disappointing.

I stopped in at my Lebanon friends place yesterday.   She and her brother are selling the house she's lived in, which was her mom's.  She had taken care of her mom for years, when she was in dementia.  Then she died.  They decided to save money and sell it themselves, not through a realtor, who would take a lot of the money in the sale.   They don't have much money, and need all they get from the sale to buy something else, so my friend and her nephew have a place to live.  They had to be outside city limits, so they can better afford property taxes and they also wanted off city water, to save money on that.  It's tough to afford to live lately, if you haven't noticed.  Every penny counts.

So they go an offer and will close by September if all goes well.  I hope it does for them.  They have a place they will buy immediately, also private sale, from a former coworker of hers, who has to move to warmer less damp climate since her husband gets pneumonia winters here.

Lots of folks can't tolerate the damp winters here and some can't do the pollen and dust filled summers of the mid valley, with the grass seed production.

Oregon just got labeled one of the worst places to move to due to how expensive it is, crime, health care access, somethiing else, I forget.  My Idaho brother sends me such news stories.  He had wanted to move back to Oregon but now can't foresee doing so because its so expensive to live here.  We all know about that already.

Now the news is OR and most other states are about to lose billions from the federal government, mostly in cuts to health care for the poor and food stamps but also for many other things.  Like anything that involves science, lol, just generalizing.   I won't know for some time if I am going to lose housing and/or medicaid, which for me is secondary, not my primary insurance.  With our current admin, things change overnight, so you never know anything til it actually happens.

Oregon is considered a sanctuary state, which means local law enforcement doesn't participate in immigration roundups.  This is largely a financial issue and because immigration enforcement is the responsibility of the feds.    When there's a warrant, locals cooperate, but otherwise I don't think they want involved in rounding up people at random, without knowing the truth of their status.  Who would?

But now the feds are threatening states that don't let local law help ICE, with withholding federal funds, but only federal funds that go to help illegal immigrants.  I have no idea what that involves.    I saw this on the news last night.  I think a quarter of the population in this town might be immigrants whether legal or not how would I know.  I don't know, so I stay out of all this.  To me humans are humans and I'm not god in heaven or the current admin to want to have the power to judge and punish.  

Anyway, if Oregon is expensive now, just think how its going to be in a year or two, with the loss of all that federal money for health care and food assistance.   The food assistance helps also farmers and grocers out.   People scoff at those who can't pay the extreme rent costs in this state or the high food prices, yet at the same time, they want their low wage workers employed at the big box stores, the tourist trap hotels, the food places, the maids, the dishwashers....they don't want to pay them enough to otherwise exist.

If we get nothing from the feds, in the end, nobody will have to pay federal income tax at least.  Why would they?  

Younger Crowd

 Besides the mostly very elderly cats here, a younger crowd provides entertainment.  For the most part, they're happy healthy and insanely funny.

Tickle, from Quartzville road is curious, a bit odd looking with a lanky body and small head, and fun loving.

Prissy from Quartzville road with elderly Hawkeye in background

Prissy also enjoys hanging out inside and literally hanging out upside down on my ancient cat trees.

Prissy is full of expressions.

Machi from the 7-11 colony in Sweet Home.

Tball--the master of dramatic pose.  He and his sisters are more middle aged.  

Dramatic pose boy Tball could have a career as a cat model.  This was him, striking a pose, even before he came here, in the park, where all four teenagers resided until the camp host warned me of a cougar seen just above the berry vines where they were living.  I went back that night and recaught them all, unable to sleep to think of them hanging from the mouth of a cougar.  I call them the cougar bait four.  

So these are the younger crowd, even though the Waterloo park kids are now middle agers.  

Our weather, unbearably hot the last few days, today is in cool off and national weather service claims we will experience a category 3 atmostpheric river event starting tomorrow or Saturday.  However, local forecasters are having none of that, although they, out of courtesy I suppose, let us know its been forecast by the big chiefs now of weather.  We the peons shall just wait and see, as always.

Well, I look outside, and we had rain this morning.  Wasn't supposed to rain til tomorrow.  I'm out of blackberries, ate all the ones I picked around the lake.   I need to get back up there, get some more.  They must be so fat and ready by now.  Fat, dripping blackberries---they haunt my dreams.  Tis that season.