2000-04-01

Journal by Sil

April 1, 2000

Anybody want a kitten? Thursday morning, I awoke to squeaks and squalls of an unmistakable kind. Kate was washing off a little black kitten, while Lucy Light was taking care of a yellow tiger baby. Yes, she had them on the bed, right behind my knees. They are as cute as buttons, both boys. I put them in a sweatshirt, and stripped the bedding off to wash. By the time I got back, Lucy had moved them into the linen closet in the bathroom, which is the preferred place for my mama cats. In there she produced another, a dark tiger with a light face, much larger than the first two. They are all double-pawed, as she is.

The mama cats like the second shelf, so this time of year, I keep old raggety towels and suchlike on that shelf. It's just the right height for Kate, also, so she can look in on the kittens easily. She thinks kittens are just too cute for words and is really good at taking care of them, too. The mama cats take advantage of her nanny skills regularly, leaving the kittens with her when they go out-of-doors to prowl around and do cattish things.

I hope the percentage of boys to girls is better this year. Of the 15 kittens born here last year, only 2 were boys.

When I opened my e-mail this morning, my first reaction was that I was the object of an April Fool's joke. I found a message congratulating me on winning 2 airline tickets to Ireland! I guess it's for real, though. Today is an honest-to-goodness spring day. Pussywillows and poplars have sprouted their catkins. Kate and I went traipsing down back to the bottom of the field, observing all the signs of spring. That bird that goes "Peet, Peet" is back, making his demanding call. The silly thing will respond to my whistle, and we call back and forth until I get tired of the game. He always has to have the last word, though.

Ah, well, the clocks will be an hour later tomorrow at this time, which is just before sunset. T'was a beautiful day today, sunny and warm { high 57° F / 14° C} with a gentle breeze. Wonderful drying weather! I got 3 loads of wash out on the line.

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