In other cat news: after Mena disappeared, I tried to catch Toby. Indeed, I intended to push him into a crate and take him to the vet (whose receptionist has been understanding) and have his nadgers cut off, which is just what he fears. He managed to get loose, and he has decided I am the Antichrist and will not be my friend. Marten is usually busy and distant. Asterix has been quite charming, if wanting to be close, and sits outside with me. Even Doug's entirely neurotic cat Digger is coming out to enjoy the fresh air.

We are thinking of finding Spike a home with people who eat chickens they have met. Doug has problems with the chicken way of life--constant rape and feather pulling, and it isn't that the hens have nowhere to run; they seem not to care, though they look tattered--and I am tired of Spike crowing almost constantly. He and Faith (the other rooster) are visually lovely birds, but there are limits.

I had a very productive weekend. Saturday I made great strides in cleaning my
room. I'd become fond of some of the stains in the bathroom sink... We went to the dump/recycling center -- I swear most of what we throw away is
cardboard, but that's because the plastic wrapping squeezes down smaller, cat food cans come a close second. I liked it better when they ate kibble. I put two bags into the Goodwill bin, because I have many clothes I never wear and don't need. It may be stretching it to say others need some of these clothes more, but at least others will have a choice.

I washed the dishes and tidied the kitchen about half as much as it needed. I repotted plants.

And Doug moved his weather station up to my deck, so now we should get more
accurate wind readings, thank God. He also finished fixing a friend's antique
spinning wheel (he had to make new parts for it). It spins really nicely and
looks good. He took so long putting off working on it he refused to take
payment, and says if I had not bugged him he would still not have worked on it.
I don't think he is as bad as that, but I was happy he got it done so the poor
woman could have it back.

And we went to Daniel's for supper, which is too expensive. But it was tasty.

The potholes on our road are unspeakable. I think the graders are off trying to repair roads that are really washed out. The considerable rain was the third hundred-year flood in 18 months.

Three young greenfrogs have appeared in our pond, and others have been seen crossing the road. No immediate local noise of peepers, but the greenfrogs say, unimaginatively, "Frorg." There are crocus and daffodils and mini-iris and phoebes and the birds are chatty. Doug thinks he saw a blackfly and when I checked out the frog in the pond with binoculars, I had a great view of mosquito wigglers. Think about how much you like flycatchery birds and bats.

Sunday I folded and put _all_ the laundry away, including the laundry I did
Saturday, and changed the sheets, and did a certain amount of preliminary
packing. I am going to Austin and Dallas for a week on Wednesday, first to the SAA conference, and second to visit my very nice aunt. Getting away will be good, but I _knew_ it would be just as it became lovely-weather-why-would-I-want-to-leave-home.


I tried to clean up the living room. This involved going into the loom room to
find a thing I wanted to send someone, and then plying a bunch of yarn into skeins
and plunging them into hot water and letting them dry. Strangely, the living
room looks very much the same. We had sun except in the middle of the day, and
it was lovely around tea time (tea, outside, on the porch). I felted the tea cosy I have been making my ex. It had been ready for the next step (it's needle-felted) since just after Christmas but felting is wet and messy and needed to be outside. It dried really fast so I was able to do a bit of embroidery on it (to define some edges, also it's fun). By the time of year my ex will not even begin to want HOT
tea, let alone that the pot would cool, the cosy should be finished. It's folk art all right (what are those folk ON?).

While tidying the living room I also put Delight paperclay into the Sculpey-brand latex mold I bought to make myself a badge to say NH SCRAP
because I don't want to wear t-shirts all the time I am at the convention in
Austin, not that anyone will notice one way or the other. Then I spun some of
the raspberry sherbet-colored neppy Rambouillet roving that has been around looking like entrails. It is a step in the right direction, but it has still not cleaned up the living room.

I put hummingbird feeders.

Today I need to finish the SCRAP pin I am making, clean the perished-ables
out of the fridge, buy cat food, get a haircut, and finish packing. Oh, and go to work. Part of finishing packing will include selecting an infinite number of potential pairs of socks and that will, of course, help tidy the living room.