Thick Skin

Want to help cats?  And your community too?  And people while you are at it?

You better have a thick skin.

I was reminded of the automatic labels a person acquires if they are a woman and help cats again yesterday.

A neighbor who lives down from me has never spoken to me before.  I was over at the mailbox when he walked by and suddenly stopped, looked over and said, "How many cats do you have in there?"

He doesn't know my name.  I don't know his.  The first thing, the only thing he wants to know is "how many cats do you have in there."

I steeled myself and said, without emotion "It's none of your business."

It isn't any of his business.  If I have cats or don't, it affects him in no way at all.  I don't let my cats free roam the neighborhood.  I have gotten 48 unfixed cats fixed on the block, however, plus a stray rabbit rehomed.   I took care of then rehomed old Jack's three cats when he died.

But none of this creating a better neighborhood matters apparently, because I have cats inside that house of mine which means I'm nuts and must not care for them and he has to know how many are in there.  WTF?

Old Jack had his faults but he was the one who was nice to me.  With him gone, I feel alone and am left without anyone to send a nice word my way.

Nice day today, bright, sunny but windy here.  I did all the things people usually do on nice days.  The lawn is cut.  The weeds are pulled.  The car is washed and even vacuumed out inside.

Slinko dancing (laser pointer dot out of sight)

Stiletto!

Raindrop, who is cross eyed

Huckleberry!

Vino!

Old Vision, my twenty year old, a Corvallis river cat, who lived with me along the Willamette once so long ago, when I had no home either, is beginning a decline.  She sleeps over the heat vent and now comes out more to sit near me, or cuddled against one of her best friends.  I've seen this behavior so often, like cats know their time is short and want to take in as much as they can before its over.