The Tree House Apres Tree Going Through The Roof

Tibet

Tibet came to me in the late autumn of 2009.  He had been a stray kitten on the streets of Tampa that had been taken to a shelter dehydrated, emaciated, upper respiratory infection, and infected with worms and other parasites.

My niece, who volunteers for a cat rescue organization in Tampa ended up nursing the approximately six month old "Coco" back to health and fostering him until he could be placed at the local PetsMart for adoption.

How did he end up here....  I will have to come back and edit the story later.

Here is a slightly older photo from this past winter of Tibet that shows the fur on his body before changing from Siamese kitten off-white to seal point chocolate brown.

Lucy Lui

Updated Status -
Lucy Lui will be moving at the beginning of February 2011, as my cat lady neighbor had wanted to keep her after she took her to the vets in June 2010.  But, was unable to at thaet time.

She should be much happier, as my neighbor is the one that fed her for the majority of the years she was a stray/feral and is actually able to pet her.

Lucy Lui, also comes running to great her when the neighbor comes to visit.  (No, she doesn't do that with anyone else nor is she sociable with other cats.

History:

Lucy Lui has been in the neighborhood since at least summer of 2006, as a young adult, when I first spied her and very similar looking sibling together a couple of blocks from my house. 

Lucy Lui in her classic doorstop pose

After I caught Mason, in the late summer of 2006, I was told by a couple of other neighbors that they had seen another orange and white kitten also coming up to my house during the day to eat the food. 

Concerned for the health and safety of the other kitten, I contacted Cats Are Tops and one of the members, Lydia came to the house several times, in the mornings to bait the trap and wait for a kitten or a cat to come.

We never saw or caught the other orange kitten, but Lucy was immediately enticed by the fish and was caught and taken to the veterinary hospital for a check-up, shots and to be neutered.

When Lydia brought her back to release her, she told me that the vet had decided not to clip the end of her ear, as he couldn't tell if she was someone's pet or not.  She also informed me that according to the vet she had at least one litter of kittens in her life.

From 2006 to the winter of 2009, Lucy remained a feral and was mostly fed by my cat lady neighbor. 

Lucy used to come through my tree house yard at dusk.  Skim along the edge of the back property line and make her way through a hole in the fence on her way down the street for dinner.

Here in VA, we had a not so normal winter of 2009.  In December, we had the first large snow storm and then proceeded to get hit repeatedly through February.

Not only was the cat lady neighbor able to convince another feral cat that she was feeding to take shelter in her garage, but Lucy, in spite of Black Jack's, alpha male territorial dominance stuck her ground and made her home in the garage, as well.

Come late spring, cat lady said that she thought that she might be at a point where she could pick-up Lucy and if so was going to take her to the veterinarian office for a complete check-up and shots. 

What prompted this was of all things, Animal Control cited her for not having rabies shots for Black Jack and Lucy Lui.  They told her, if she was feeding them, etc. than they were her cats and were required to have rabies shots and if she failed to comply then a court date had already been set for her to appear (so much for human kindness).

Imagine that.

Next came the million dollar question, laced with some Jewish grandmother guilt from cat lady neighbor "I have a huge favor to ask.  But, seeing how "I" have done so many favors for you.  I was hoping that you would give Lucy a chance and take her into your house once I am able to get her to the vets."

Well, there goes the next eighteen years of my life paying back what?

We were both amazed that after so many years outdoors that Lucy was actually free of feline leukemia and feline aids.  (Thanks for Lydia and Cats Are Tops for coming and trapping her in 2006 and having her fixed and shots, etc.  I am certain that that intervention was critical for a female feral cat to survive in the wild.)

Also, once again, with a different vet, she was gentle and froze, as opposed to going into defensive mode when she was taken out of the carrier for her check-up and shots.  (I swear she is a beautiful cat and at one time, early in her life must have been someone's pet kitten and/or cat.)

Since June 2010, Lucy Lui has been a member of the household.  At first she took over the guest bedroom and was often in the company of Tibet ("I love you Lucy" cat lady and I would sing out as he followed her gently) who admires her and has been desperately looking for other feline companionship.

Come mid August, I finally decided enough of her being enclosed in one room and the other cats feeling as if they were being kept away from something and I opened the door and she has been out ruling the house ever since.

Unlike, Mason, when the doorbell rings or the telephone rings she stays still right out in the open.  Mason, still heads into the safety of a hiding place.

You can't tell me that this brave girl wasn't someone's pet at one time.

The name Lucy Lui, I gave her long ago, as she has a part Siamese and exotic appearance to her with the bright green blue almond eyes and the dark markings of her tail and face.  The majority of the remainder of her body is all white.

She still mostly stays under cover during the day and once dusk comes she is wandering back and forth to the windows wanting me to at least open them a crack so that she can catch the scent of the wild outdoor air and the song of the crickets.

Lucy Lui breathing in the wild outdoor air

Tibet still pines away after her.  But, there has been progress.  She allows Tibet to be within a foot or two of her and this week has even allowed Tibet to be next to her as they both gaze out the open window into the wilds of VA suburbia.

The photos above doe not do her justice.  I will need to get a better photo of her showing the true color of her eyes and post at a later date.

Lex

Status Update:

Lex passed away suddenly on Saturday, 14 August 2010.  He was only three (3) years old.  (He was extremely hyperactive.  More so than Tibet who is only a year old.  Active as a three (3) month old kitten and literally ad climbed the walls and used the hallway wall as a turn as he raced from one room to another.  He also would often pant after having exerted himself physically.  (More than likely, he had an enlarged heart and died of a heart attack.)  He was such a gentle soul and Mason's best friend.)

Lex, formerly called Mr. Whiskers by the neighbor girl that adopted him quickly became Baby Who and I would "borrow" him for play dates with Mason.

He was only about seven weeks old and still had blue eyes and fur that just stuck out making him look ever so cute.

He would come over for his play dates and the teenager that had adopted him would leave him for a day or more at a time.  She had him for weeks and scared me when she asked what to feed him and told me she didn't have a litter box, as of yet.

I packed up some food for her to take home and caught myself not to be an enabler and decided that a litter box is essential.  But, a rather simple thing that as the new caretaker she should be able to provide.

When Baby Who would come for visits, he was such a good little boy.  He immediately used the litter box.  Then he would scout out the food and water bowls and satiate himself.

Mason.  Now Mason just got all wide eyed and glazed eyes when he first came into the house.  What was this larger than a mouse sized creature and what was he to do with it.

It didn't take long for Mason to figure out that unlike Grant that this cat like creature was willing to play.  Play, play, play, non-stop and boy was he a lot of fun.

These two would play until I finally realized that I needed to separate them at night.  I would have to take Lex into the bedroom with me and shut the door and place him on my bed to sleep.

Kittens are either on or off and as soon as he was left alone he would fall into a deep slumber and store up his energy for the next day.

Lex became a permanent member of the household after the teen's brother obtained an adult pit bull.  Not to be one-upped by his sister.  Good grief!

Rather sad, but true, when I went to ask her if she still wanted the kitten she breezed right past me to the waiting car and without any emotion told me "You can keep him.  We have a dog now."

Yes, I was well aware and worried that the dog would make a meal out of the poor kitten.

That was spring of 2007 and Lex was quite the character.  If only others could have seen him run so fast from the living room to the hallway that he'd hit the wall with his feet and run across the wall before launching off and taking the corner to a bedroom.

Lex was the Prince of Annandale Vet Hospital during the time I had to board the cats there due to the tree falling on the house.  Mr. Personality and if he was up for adoption, he would have had someone in a heartbeat.

Mason

A member of the household is Mason, a.k.a. Lord Fairfax, Urban Tiger or Mr. Who.

I caught him when he was approximately twelve weeks old in a cartoon like set-up using a decorative wicker pet carrier basket with food inside and some twine strung through the screen door, as I waited for the feral kitten to get hungry and come for food.

It was the late summer of 2006 and I had one elderly diabetic cat, named Grant and I told myself that I would find this little guy a nice home.

How could I not fall in love with this sweet little orphan.  He had ear mites, fleas and was so tiny.  He would growl and make ferocious noises when I approached him.  Then he would be so content and purr non-stop once I picked him up to hold him.  He even purred through his first bath in the utility room sink where I did my best to clean his little body of mites, fleas and dirt.

Four years later, he rules and thinks that he is now Alpha Male of the household.

Although, he is like the phantom cat to anyone that comes to visit the house.  He is just the opposite when left undisturbed by strangers.

Mr. Who, is the most loving cat that likes to jump on my lap or get onto my chest in the early AM and trap me for some MeMe time and fur petting.

Ah, to be so peaceful and drugged with sleep.  This is why I have to work.  This is why.  Seeing his peaceful face and knowing that he is safe is one good reason why.

Removing Cat Yak Stains from Carpet

If you have an indoor cat, at some point, more than likely you will have to deal with the clean-up of cat yak from your carpet. 


Why?


Because a cat will not run to the porcelain god when they feel a hair ball tickling the back of their throat.  Oh no.  Even if they are on the cool tile of the bathroom floor when that tickle hits them they will move post haste to the lightest and softest carpet that they can get under their feet before they purge.


Hopefully, you did not discover the "gift" on your zero dark hour trip to the bathroom with your bare feet.


As soon as you find said "gift" it is time for the human to spring into action. 


If cat is still hacking and coughing and you think there are more gifts to come.  Quickly scoop them up, no matter how much they protest and deposit them within the confines of the bathroom and shut the door.


Paper towels!  We need paper towels!  Waste basket, where is the wastebasket?


Get both of them in hand and scoop up as much of the gift, as you can and deposit in the trash can you have by your side.


Next, if the area is still stained and has residue.  Soak some crumbled paper towels in water and dab the stained area to attempt to get up as much gift residue as possible.


One item that is your friend, human who keeps cat(s) in your house, is hydrogen peroxide.  Not only is it antiseptic for when your cuddly kitten rakes you with their claws.  But, it is also going to help you now remove that lovely gift stain from your synthetic wall-to-wall carpet.


More crumbled paper towels are needed and saturate with a copious amount of peroxide.  Dab up as much of the stain as you can gently.  Then get a clean paper towel and saturate that with peroxide and rub vigorously to remove the remaining stain and residue.


Voila!  The stain is gone.

Carpet Before:

Carpet After:

O.K.  Relax and wash your hands and make sure you remember to release the furry gift giver from the bathroom.

Magnolia

Pottery Barn has a new bedding collection called Magnolia.  Amazing how one word can flash your memory back to another time and place, such as the word “magnolia” does for my memory.

My freshman college roommate and I both ended up, unbeknownst to one another, applying to other school programs after our second year and she ended up at the University of Texas in Austin and I ended up at University Alabama at Tuscaloosa.

Now she had a slight advantage in terms of life in the south, as she spent many a summer of her youth with her maternal side of the family in North Carolina.

Me, I had spent the summer after my freshman year of college in the suburbs of Houston, TX living with my paternal uncle and his family and had held two summer jobs.  One job was at the Holiday Inn NASA, across from Johnson Space Center as a waitress and the other at a privately owned BBQ restaurant.

Having a pool in the backyard was a daily refresher and source of enjoyment, as was the local young social aspect of “pool parties”.  But, other than developing a bit of a southern accent over the summer, I was not afforded much of an opportunity to the other aspects of southern or southwestern life at that time.

I tell you, nothing compares to the actual experience of landing in Tuscaloosa in the midst of a steamy August day.

The campus, French House where I was to live was locked and unoccupied when I arrived after my long trip from New England to Alabama.  What to do?

Now, we are talking about a time and place before cell phones, global positioning systems (GPS) and even bank automatic teller machines (ATM) kiosk were just coming into existence.  So, I had to look up the address of my program counselor and locate her building in hopes that she would be in the office to assist me with my housing situation.

The French House was a dead end, as the person with the key was the resident French professor that still had not made it into town and wouldn’t arrive for another couple of days.

Now what?

My counselor noticed that I was a member of Delta Zeta Sorority and her next call was to the Delta Zeta Sorority House Mother on Magnolia Drive.  Who as polite as could be told my counselor to please send me on over to the house, as they would be glad to accommodate me for a few days in the house guest bedroom.

I got my bearings via a map of the area and some assistance from my counselor and off I drove to Magnolia Drive.

What a different place for a northern Yankee, as I approached Magnolia Drive I was rather caught off guard by the houses on sorority row.  Tri Delta, former home of actress and model Selma Ward loomed on the corner and down about half way was the Delta Zeta house complete with long white pillars and charming white porch rockers under the cover of the piazza.

Wasting no time in being gracious, I was greeted by one of my Delta Zeta sisters as I drove up into the driveway. 

She was as friendly as could be and quickly made me forget how messed up the permanent housing arraignments were.

I opened the door to the back seat of the car and reached for my suit case and was quickly told “Oh, don’t you worry about that.  Willy will get your bags for you.”

Willy?

Why “yes”, Willy had appeared and to my shock took my bags and whisked them into the lower floor guest bedroom.

Once shown around the house, I learned that sisters were partnered with others for a private “day room” that usually housed a day bed, desk and personal items.  But, at night, they all slept together in bunk rooms.

The dining room was pristine and the ladies that ran it had service down pat.  There is where, I have memories of my first servings of grits and recall the condensation on ice water and iced tea pitchers that were generously dotting the tables.

What a little bee hive of activity and sub-culture of southern lifestyle that house was.  I would literally see my fellow sisters transform over their hour of morning rituals from the girl next-door to picture perfect cover girls in colorful sun dresses.

I was invited to join them as they entertained prospective candidates through rush.   On sorority row, this ritual is called “ice water teas” and consisted of sisters dolled up in their finest sun dresses and as polished if they were going off to the garden party of the season.

Girls rushing the sororities would move from house-to-house on a timed basis and the term “ice water teas” refers to the only refreshment that they were legally allowed to serve for the event.

Those rushing would be greeted by a whole household of Delta Zeta sisters singing “…Daddy thinks it is funny.  How we spend his money.  We are the Delta Z’s.  Talk about the Delta Z’s.  We are the Delta Z girls!”

Then the rushes would stream in and you would attach yourself to a prospective pledge and chat with them up for the allotted time.

It was a period of time, a snapshot of the 1980’s where my memories are a collection of Lanz of Salzburg sun dresses, gold add-a-bead necklaces, colorful and preppy wrap belts and bright embroidered muumuu dresses.

It is also a snapshot of young ladies that know who they are and have the ability to transform themselves into current day gentile southern ladies.

In retrospect, I wish that I had not been so much of a darn Yankee, independent and had stayed in the fold of the comforts of my Delta Zeta sisters and the house.  I can only imagine the memories that I might have gathered up and held in a memory of glossy magnolia leaves and huge beautiful lemony scented flowers.

What a beautiful evergreen tree that has a regal presence when skirted with snow and yet does not fade or droop with the heat of the hot southern, summer sun.

My friend that headed off to UT and I have our own little phrase for that time in our lives, “Say it buddy.  Say “MAG-NOL-IA”.  MAGNOLIA!”