saucy_dryad

*waves frantically* Hey, guys! Look at me! I'm still here!

Am flailing, trying to keep afloat in the Sea of HolyCrowSoMuchGoingOn. One of these days I'll sort it out, get back on track, chin up and what ho, or something very like. In the meanwhile, know that work is a bit better. I'm a bit too tubby and considerably out of shape. Got a clean bill of health in one aspect of womanly life; am waiting to retest in another. I've a new ukulele, and though its far from high-end it's still a much better instrument than I presently deserve. I'm writing: reviews (so far behind!) and fiction (snippets, scenes, rehashing old stories), but nowhere near as much as I ought to be. Am stressing about getting old, looking old, having bad skin (thanks, psoriasis!) and bad hair (thanks, scalp psoriasis!) and achy joints (don't even THINK about it, psoriatic arthritis!). Am delighting that my big sister has found her feet at last. Am concerned for my SIL, am missing my big bro.

I could dive into any and all of these things in depth. I'm just so very tired, so thoroughly spent. Wacky antics can wait for another day. In the meanwhile, I give you... ( Laundry kitties! )

Handsome Tom has this rather sweet thing he sometimes does when he sits on something that's skritch-level, say a table or the back of the couch. He tucks his chin down and places the top of his head against my chest. He'll stay there for minutes, whether I pet him or not.

The other day, he lowered his head further still, which I thought was adorable until I realized he was only doing it so he could attack the drawstring on the pj pants I was wearing. That's my boy!

At the foot of the bed, we have a square of grey material that is supposed to be all manner of magical and enticing to kitties. It holds their body heat, I think, or administers surreptitious belly rubs, or sends soothing brainwaves. Whatever the case, Handsome Tom has claimed it as his own. He loves it. He loves it to bits. Seriously. We've had to replace it twice, now. While he enjoys curling up upon it, he is equally fond of attacking it, wrapping all four legs around and ripping clumps away with his impressive tom cat teeth.

The other day, he found a new way to express his delight. He leapt up on the bed, stuck his enormous head beneath the magical grey square, and curled up beneath it.

Never mind it was one of the hottest days of the summer. Under the kitty bed Tom wanted to be, so under the kitty bed he went. He watched me take pictures for all of thirty seconds...






... then stretched out and got down to some serious sleeping.






He may pester the old ladies. He may puke in the most inappropriate places at four in the morning. But he gives me this sweet, sleepy face, and all is forgiven.






I am such an easy mark.

Today has been A Day.

It all began at 4 a.m. and the sound of a kitty retching. It was Handsome Tom. Yes, I can tell just by the sound which kitty is getting sick. It’s good to have skills. Bleary eyed, I stumbled out of bed, snagged a roll of paper towels and a spray bottle of cleaner and set out to find the site of the evacuation.

( wherein Kelly rambles )

It's not easy to get good pics of Handsome Tom. Problems with photographing a black cat aside,* he's not a great subject. If I'm using my good camera, he wants to play with the strap (more on that in another post). If it's the iPhone, he must come trotting over to investigate the clicking sound and/or demand skritches. At last, I decided to try PhotoBooth. I held him up. He squirmed away. I tried again. He made noises of extreme displeasure.

Then this happened.







*sigh*




*fairyrune, I know you're busy with house stuff and finding a new job that appreciates your awesomeness, so no rush... but I am REALLY looking forward to our lessons!

There are mice in my house. ( click if you dare.  )

This is the scene in my basement.



"We few, we happy few, we band of vermin..."



This is our Stalwart Champion.





Sure, she looks sweet and fluffy. Sure, she only has one good eye. But let's not forget she also has... a sidekick!





... right, then. The battle is pretty much going exactly as you'd expect. Further info on the morrow, assuming I'm not on catch&release/stretcher duty while HT keeps staring into corners as if he has the faintest clue as to how to catch anything.

The ever delightful ravenclawizard has cheezburgered the stalker-HT photo ( ...twice. )

Handsome Tom lurks. Not so much as he used to, but he's still rather lurkful. The older kitties have always borne the brunt of his lurkiness; it wasn't that he didn't lurk around Esme, it's just that she wasn't terribly fussed. It's this very lurkitude, though, that's brought us to our current straights with the old ladies. Their every move was shadowed by an enormous, thickly muscled and endlessly playful tomcat trying to find his place in the hierarchy or the household. It took a toll on their delicate, elderly kitty nerves.

It's lovely, then, to see Isabeau step outside of her safety zone (otherwise known as the coat closet; Jilly still spends most of her time in the linen closet *sigh*). Of an evening, Isabeau will hang out on the couch with Don and I, or sprawl upon the hearth before the wood stove. Sometimes, she'll curl up in the bay window or plop herself down next to my computer. Inevitably, HT will take notice. To my delight, he's calmed down considerably. Where he used to launch himself at her, now he'll just as often curl up and go to sleep.

There are those moments, though, where Isabeau really puts herself out there. Where she feels utterly protected and safe, and where I'm certain she is. Where the coast is clear, no danger in sight, and then, suddenly... he looms.






I chose to grab my iPhone to take a picture rather than mediate the imminent battle. Judge my kitty ownership skills as you will.

Handsome Tom goes through phases. I didn’t notice it so much when he was outdoors, but then I was only seeing him every so often (until we semi-adopted him, but even then he would still come and go and worry me to bits when he didn’t show up on our doorstep first thing in the morning). He’s been an indoor kitty for just over a year now. I’ve had a chance to witness his moods.

( kitty blitherings )