Quarantine Diary - Valentine Cats & A Bit More

 Mittens like to sit on the windowsill and look in. Ellie is not happy about this.

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” ― Lao Tzu

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Yes, the offer is REAL! Send me photos (maybe 2 or 3) of your pets and I will post those photos here this week. This will be our Valentine to each other.

If you don’t have pets now but you have a photo or two of a fur friend of yore, that’s good.

If you have pix of outside animals you love (birds, deer, rabbits, wildebeests) that’s cool, too.

Write a sentence or two about your animal.

I will include quotes as seems fitting.

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Kathryn’s awesome ‘all breeds inclusive’ cat.

Here's Ellie, age 6, who came to live with us in August from Kindred Kitties in Kenosha. She's the most affectionate cat we ever had.

“I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best.”
― Marilyn Monroe

Here's Mittens, who lives on our porch and prefers to live outside.

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From Joyce:

This is Bijou Lisette, we got her at 8 months of age. She had been living in a friend’s daughter’s barn as the mama cat would not allow her into the house! She has pretty good manners for living in a barn!
She is almost 11 months old now. She’s a busy little cat, spending hours playing and teasing our 50 lb. dog.
We had not had a cat in 3 years, after our last died at 22 years. At one point we had 2 large dogs and 6 cats. I do not see us getting up to those numbers again; however, I think Bijou could use a kitty companion. Puppies and kittens are not readily available where we live; shelters have to import them from southern states!

“Never love anyone who treats you like you're ordinary.” ― Oscar Wilde

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These are Karen’s cats; the B&W is Nigel whom she has had a long, long time and the Siamese is Owen, who came to her as a kitten in, I don’t know, how many years has it been now? Owen was Karen’s last name before she was married. I believe cats are glad to carry family names - as long as the names are not too heavy.

“What's your name,' Coraline asked the cat. 'Look, I'm Coraline. Okay?'
'Cats don't have names,' it said.
'No?' said Coraline.
'No,' said the cat. 'Now you people have names. That's because you don't know who you are. We know who we are, so we don't need names.”
― Neil Gaiman, Coraline

 “I love cats because I enjoy my home; and little by little, they become its visible soul.” ― Jean Cocteau

 “I have lived with several Zen masters -- all of them cats.”

― Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment

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The impeachment hearings and trial begin this afternoon. I plan to watch some of it.

I was thinking more about Overstory last night. (see yesterday’s book review) We humans invent big theories and myths of good and evil, God and the devil, faith, and what we decide is heretical disbelief. We go to church, to religion, to whatever we hold as holy scriptures to find proof of whatever we already believe.

I think Overstory was saying - don’t tell me what you think trees are about. Go into a forest and pay attention to what you actually see, hear, feel. Notice what repeats itself and what seem singular. Don’t tell yourself and others what is true. Go out and pay attention and discover what is true – and then fit yourself into truth.

We are living in an extraordinary political time. I think disgust with all politicians is as wrong as hero worship of some of them. Today might be a day to have less opinions, to listen to what is said, to pay attention to what we feel inside as proceedings proceed.

In the middle of the cacophony of opinions and pressure – what we will watch is humans trying to govern themselves. This is the real thing. This time will be one more place and time where humans sort out honesty and power.

And maybe, at the end of the afternoon, we ought to go outside and hang onto a tree.