Lovely
Sunday morning. Leisurely coffee, continuous demands for attention from Silver
(none ignored). I was still trying to decide what I’d like to do today, when I
heard my neighbour moving her car – so I went out to show off my new hair cut.
She asked for some help with curtains then planned to come sit outside while I
maybe work in the garden – but it was simply too cold! Not so much the
temperature but the wind! Sitting down on the ground was bearable, but on a
chair? No way! So we had our chat over coffee, inside, instead.
She showed
me her recently acquired prize, a book she’d loved for years but could never
find anywhere, now it was on sale and she finally has her own copy! It is the
most charming book I have ever seen, called ‘The Country Diary of an Edwardian
Lady’ by Edith Holden. It is a facsimile of her actual book, as she had written
it, rather than a printed publication – as she had adorned every single page
with watercolour drawings of her subject. And, rather than cursive, she had
used print – writing each letter as it would be printed – so it is easily
legible. I had a hard time trying to put the book down – it was just such a
charming masterpiece! Its content is simply one year in her life, going through
the countryside almost daily and recording and drawing the flowers blooming
that day. As a schoolteacher she also recorded the Latin, botanical names.
Apart from its own charm, it also took me back to my childhood as I recognised
so many of the flowers I would pick when I was a child. I kept paging back and
forth through it, exclaiming at each find the German name I had learned as a
child.
She shared
some of the horror stories of how people treat books, from her days as a
librarian. Just thinking about it now makes me shudder! How can people, who use
a library, have such little regard, nay contempt even, for books?!? With today’s
trend of digging up some obscure snippet of outdated customs and turning them
into fashionable lifestyles (I’ll not mention even one example!) yet reading
books – which contain knowledge researched by qualified specialists in their
field (even if their field is ‘only’ the proper use of words and grammar) – is somehow
an inferior activity? Give me strength!
We also
discussed Silver. We both agree, that, when I do move, it would be better for
Silver to leave her behind. I doubt very much that I would be able to move into
a situation where she would have the kind of roaming room she is accustomed to.
I mean, she’s roaming at least one block, if not more! And I usually live in a
flat. I write this with a heavy heart, as I don’t like the thought at all. I’ve
grown rather fond of her pink, expectant nose whenever I arrive or go into the
kitchen. Once she’s had her litter, I’ll take her to CatCare to be spayed – and
if she needs vaccinations, have them given as well. For her sake, I do hope she
moves out of her own accord, once her kittens are grown enough – because the
thought of having to leave her behind is just too much for me. I would be able
to keep at least one of her kittens, though. And she wouldn’t be abandoned,
after all. There are neighbours all around who already feed her, albeit
irregularly (considering how starved she was when I first started feeding the
strays) – but my neighbour will gladly keep feeding her regularly. So she won’t
be starving again. And, after all, it was my neighbour who first put out food
for her – I just followed her example. Though neither of us can figure out why
Silver suddenly moved in with me, rather than with her! Except maybe her Tomcat
being hostile.
We finished
out chat with a tour through my side of the garden, and we were just inspecting
the rockery, when an acquaintance of my arrived. I would have said friend, but
his behaviour today does not warrant the use of ‘friend’. He joined us at the
rockery, then looked down at the grass and mansplained to us how and why I
should weed! I’ve never experienced such a classic example of mansplaining
before – it was quite irritating, I must say. I have no idea what was going on
with him, since I don’t know him like that. Nor do I have any idea what his
visit was about. He didn’t stay long.
When he
left, I needed to go to the bathroom and my neighbour was getting quite chilly,
so we said our goodbyes and I dashed up. Back down I spent over an hour
trimming the Nasturtiums – trying to get all the yellow and dead leaves out, to
make some room for all the flowers in full bloom at the moment! When I started,
I thought there were just a few dead leaves to cut – but once I started opening
up, the number of yellow leaves still sapping the life out of the plants was
incredible! I found loads of wilted leaves, where the stems looked still strong
at the base, where they connect with the plant! The leaves twist and wind and
grow quite a long way! But it really wasn’t pleasant outside today, so when it
was time for a break, I packed up and left.
It’s
overcast and windy, so I’m hoping for rain.
Silver is
staying very close to me today. When I was talking to my neighbour over the
fence, she strolled as far as her garden, but when I quickly went upstairs
before visiting my neighbour, she was right beside my feet again. I don’t know
where she was whilst I was inside my neighbours flat, but when we came out she
was not far. Even the ‘friend’ commented on it. I didn’t pay much attention
while I was busy with the Nasturtiums, but she did make a few trips past to see
me. Now she’s curled up on her chair, while I’m busy here, on mine. When I get
up to go to, say the bathroom, she perks up, looks at me and gives me one of
her throaty mrrreows. Not sure what that’s meant to say, though. Her tummy is
really tight now, as if it’s stretched to the limit, so I think her time is
very near. I’m not keen to leave her alone in that condition, but it’s not as
if I can take cat-granternity leave. I can but hope that she prefers to stay at
home when I go off to work.
And that she
maybe figures out the purpose of the litter box. That would be good. I’ve put
some potting soil in it so maybe that will help. But mostly she still goes
outside.
She also has
this really weird Pan Tau like habit, of seeming to appear out of nowhere! She’ll
go into a room, say the spare room, and hide somewhere there. Then, after a
while I follow to see where she is and what she’s doing. Can’t find her
anywhere. I’m looking in every corner, behind every nook and cranny until I
give up. Turn around. And there she sits! In the door. Looking at me as if to
say “Are you looking for something? Can I help?” This is not a big flat. There
aren’t many hiding places. But for the life of me I can’t figure out how she
always manages to get behind me into the doorway while I’m touring the room
looking for her!
I think Pan
Tau would be a good name for her. Which tells you a lot about me. Pan Tau is
male, dressed in a suit with a bowler hat and he’s mute. I also named my black
tomcat Mynx.
I wanted to
put up the photo’s I took today, but my PC is disinclined to cooperate.
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