"Lynn, that heathen could have cooties! Don't let it

get all over you, I'll never forgive you if you smell like it."

I normally start my bike rides from the same parking lot,

9 times out of 10. It is within spittin' distance of a grain

elevator and I am hoping this handsome devil lives there.

I have never seen him in the entire bike season until just

one day not long ago. He is a huge kitty, and very very

friendly and loud!

He never stopped talking the whole time I stood there.

I did lean over the bike and pet him a bit, but I didn't want

him to try to follow me too far down the path, away from 

where I hoped he lived. 

He certainly was not afraid of the bike or me. I do see

a few regular cats on my ride. Some I know they live at

a farm house close by, and others I know are feral as they

are miles from anywhere civilized.

I'm sorry to say, this was one of my last rides this year.

I am a fair weather rider. I'm retired, I live too far from

town to bike for groceries, and like one fellow I read,

I don't have to bike to work! But, boy am I going to

miss this.

Always glad to come home to my girl, Precious, even

though she can be aloof and hidden. I got this shot

just as she slipped under the bed.

" That's it. You seen the very last (tip) of me until you say you're sorry

 for taking pictures of

  that, that, that CAT!"

 

"Hurry, Lynn, show everyone what is on my wacky weed!"

I could not believe I found this Monarch hatched at 1 pm

today! We are having light rain from Hurricane Delta,

as it has blown 1500 miles north out of the Gulf of Mexico.

And every day I get Precious a leaf off this catnip plant.

If I would have damaged this, not knowing the chrysalis

was hanging there, oh my. Now it will have to wait for

the rain to stop before it flies off to Mexico. I like to think

most make it there for the winter.

"I'll be watching for you, butterfly, when you return

next year. Someday one of you will play with me."

 

"Lynn, I love it! I'll probably lay on this for a couple times at least."

I mean no disrespect to the person who so kindly made

this small quilt for my husband. It has a special design in the 

middle of a slingshot.  He has a good group of friends

in 1/2 dozen states that pre-covid would meet a few times a

year for slingshot tournaments/get togethers.

However, I indulge my Precious from time to time and 

since we were home alone for a few days,

I folded this up and placed it on the living room floor for her.

She has been admiring it draped over the stair railing for so long.

It had been originally draped so she could hide under it a bit.

For my selfish interest, I wanted to see her in the open,

where I can remind myself, occasionally, I have a sweet

pet cat. Instead of just in my imagination.

"Aw, Lynn, I didn't know you cared enough to give me 

this forbidden blankie, or you missed seeing me when

I'm in hiding."

I'll end this with a photo of a beauty that hatched

out just 2 days after Precious's last post about

the caterpillars.  Now I have 3 chrysalis to over

winter in the pot with net and hardware cloth to

keep out invaders.

 This is what Precious loves to watch,

butterflies. 

 

"Man, Lynn, can a caterpillar be more boring?"

"I've been watching this one all day, and it only moves it's

head back and forth as it eats. I'm not even that hungry or

food greedy, mostly."

"Give me a butterfly to watch any time!"

Not a good year for butterflies here.  I only had 6 that have

stayed alive and turned into chrysalis. So far 2 of those have

flown and I am keeping an eye on the other 4.  Last year

I had 28 fly.  The Monarchs did better than the Swallowtails.

I have had a couple dozen Monarchs fly off this year out of

my flower beds.

 

 "Lynn, this isn't big enough for my tiny tushy. No way it

will work for the orphans."

I know, Precious.  I'm just getting started. If you would stay awake

long enough to see me work on it, you'd understand the process.

I'm using your puny 17 pound hiney for the measurement of this.

I figure if we can get you on it properly, then it will be big enough

for the orphans. Then I have to crochet the boaster and stuff it with

fiber fill to make a nest. With enough yarn to make 3 of these, I'll

be busy as Fall moves in and I have to stop riding my bike.

I got the idea to crochet these from timmytomcat.blogspot.com 

Timmy received a purple and white crochet bed for his birthday.

I rode 40 miles a few days ago on the trail that starts close to home.

Goldenrod blooming.

Ohio native sunflowers. As you can see they are

a magnificent gold color, but not near the size of

the domesticated version used for people and bird food.

Yellow seems to be the herald of Spring and Fall.

In the Spring, it is dandelions and coltsfoot and of course,

daffodils. Here in the Fall it is these 2 above and yellow

jewel weed.  The jewel weed (native impatient) are starting

to be less showy, and as they dwindle the humming birds

know to start moving South.  I still have rose of Sharon

blooming and the hummers are still here, or they may not

be the ones I have had all summer. They may be from as

far north as Canada.

"Lynn, I have to give it the sniff test. And if you ever

get one finished, I'll have to try it out and make it smell

cat like so the orphans will know what it is for."

More Murals, for Precious.

"Lynn, show people my favorite 2 pictures.  I only like these 'cause of

the kitties and birdie."

These are taken of the Masonic Hall building in our big-little city.

They have painted pictures onto the old windows. There are more

that have people in them, and one with a blue jay landing.

Precious likes the first one, as she thinks it is of herself. One cat is

gray and the other a marmalade. The lower cat is a tuxedo with

a vase of flowers. Just in case you can't tell, the large bush next

to the man/window, is really live.  It is a hydrangea.

Above, we have the larger wall of the building showing some remarkable

pictation of the Masons.

And lastly, these 3 are just part of a very long low building mural. 

You can't do it justice with one shot and I didn't try to take every

part. It just shows the importance of the train through this city years

ago, and some of the industry that thrived at one time.

"Lynn, I just wish I had a window at the top to myself. I really am 

not a sharing kitty. But the ones there are really lucky they are inside

the painting and not on the outside. See if you think I do look like

the model they used."

It's all about Precious. She'll be so pleased later, when she reads this.

Precious loves her extremely expensive blue cable TV bag so much, that 

she managed to dig it out from under her temporary brown fake

fur. In the evenings I get to finally call it a day by 6 pm, and she

has had her brushing and 1/2 her supper.  She then lays on the bag

while she washes her whiskers and does a manicure and a pedicure,

(yikes, her toe nails grow faster than Pinocchio's nose).

And there's the unlady-like belches that would make Joe the

Plumber blush.

We relax a bit and about 7 she's finally ready for some action. The

frog comes out and she loves to zip around my side and have the frog

sneak under the bag. Then the attack starts serious.

This goes on for a bit then she remembers the other 1/2 of her

supper is in the jar!  After I dip it out onto her dish, she sits

and waits for the frog to flip over from me to her food, then

she goes for the frog first, to chew it and then to eat.

She's been sleeping with me every night for the past 3 weeks. I 

never really know when she will or when she'll stop. But now

it is curl up against the bottom of my feet and she will stay there

all night long. She gets up around 4:30 or 5 am and walks up the

length of my legs and torso till she can put her nose and whiskers

in my face. I pretend to be asleep and after a few moments, she'll

jump down. I refuse to get up before 5:30. But of course, I am fully

awake after all that. I have titanium plate and lags screws in my

left thigh, and it is a bit painful.

I wouldn't mind getting up, but I know the earlier I do the earlier 

Precious will start this process, soon I just won't go to bed.

"Lynn, I don't see any pictures of my beautiful face to go with

all this purrsonal information!"