Cat Tales

Normally, Friday is Cat Blog Day, but I'm running behind.  Thisbe, who is in mourning for her housemate Annie, has acted strange of late.   She's always been an Extreme INDOOR cat, never venturing further than the garage or the front porch.  We've let her out on the deck a bit lately, and she's been content to sit under the table or a chair, and race into the house at the first sign of danger.  Noises, strangers and who-knows-what are Thisbe's idea of danger.

A couple times she wandered down the stairs and into the yard and seemed to be somewhat clueless about how to get back to the deck.  Once, I met her around the house and let her in the front door, which she found most MYSTERIOUS.
Yesterday, from her perch on the deck, she spied one of the baby chipmunks.  Ahhh!  Cat toys!  She left the deck and gave chase, but didn't even come close.  She returned, and sniffed around the neighbor's deck and seemed, well, confused.  Decided to go back to where the chipmunk was last seen. Went under the neighbors bushes and then their front porch.  Most uncharacteristic behavior.  I was in hot pursuit.  Thisbe jumped onto neighbor's front porch and wanted in the door. 

Listen, the fuzzy imbecile, this is NOT OUR HOUSE.  She sniffed around and acted obtuse.  Don't know where their dog was, or she would have been catatonic.   Finally I picked her up (all 16 heavy pounds) and carried her as far as I could before she let loose with the claws and wriggling and then growls and hisses.  She lay in the grass and sulked. 

I called her from the steps of the deck.  More confusion.  Can this be MY house?  I thought it was the other one.   Hmm.  Guess I'll check it out.  Oh!  It is my house.  Yikes.  I think I'll go inside and chill and think about this business.  Do I have two houses?  Where are the cat toys?  

She lay on the floor in a state of prostration.  Stress is stressful.  Her housemate, Annie, never liked it when Thisbe went outside.  She has no brains and will get lost immediately.  How true.

One of those cats with no sense of direction.  Who knew? 

Poor Thisbe,  I had to give her extra treats. 

Nature Notes from our Backyard

Out planting yesterday, and I thought that the giant bumblebee that hang around out in front was attacking me.  No!  I was being "buzzed" by the hummingbird who thought me too close to the newly put out feeder.  Eeek!  He took off after a rival.  So happy to see my birdies back.

Yesterday late afternoon the bad hawk was right out in the woods looking for my birdies and I went out and shouted and clapped my hands at him.

Young chipmunks still popping out of their hole like jack-in-the boxes.   Goldfinches on the feeder.  Suet robber still in evidence.  Life is good.  The hummingbird's ruby throat was very red.  Just lovely.  

Baby Chipmunk

We had a chipmunk living in the wood pile on the front porch all winter, very close to a bird feeder. How handy!   The cats loved to go out and sniff around and yesterday Thisbe showed particular interest in the woodpile.  No wonder!  There were cat toys!  This morning S.O. saw three little critters crouched around a hole by the sidewalk.  He was able to get a couple of photos before they skedaddled back into their underground bunker. 

The essence of cute.   With all the predators about, I fear for the little tykes.  They are so fat and sleek and frisky.