Me Nervous ?

Nah ! Look at my teeth ......

Swans and Geese at Bolam Lake Northumberland

Windy walk this afternoon .

The wind makes Alice nervous and she glances repeatedly from side to side like Private Somebody or Other ( Marbles Moment ) from Dad's Army played by Ian Lavender .

Equally tall and skinny and usually with a piece of greenery sticking out of his hat , just so like Alice out on a walk on new territory . She glances round , checks on D and me , licks her lips as if her mouth is dry and if approached by anything bigger than a squirrel presses herself between us until the Danger is safely passed .

On "her" beach of course its a different story . She 's full of herself , assuming there are no boxer dogs about , and charges at anything and everything , full of gusto and sometimes rushing at little teddy bear type dogs as if there was no tomorrow , rolling them over and pushing them around . Most of them love her and like to chase her , snapping at her ankles until she gets too rough .

But bring out that wind and put her in a different field and she's a different animal .

What is that man's name ...?

The day CatCaller learns to inject insulin

I don't usually refuse anything much and consequently find myself doing all sorts in the name of cat minding . Most tasks are fairly obvious , and its some of those I would never have thought of that I enjoy the most . One of my longest standing families have a wonderful garden known to us as the fairytale garden and numerous bird feeders all of which have to be replenished on a daily basis . This is idyllic in Summer but even in Winter as I slip about across the flagstones as the wind chases me and the watchful cats , its still a source of some joy just to be doing something I wouldn't normally be doing at home .
This morning was learning how to inject a diabetic cat with insulin . I had felt fine with this until just a few seconds before the insulin , the syringe , the needle and the list of instructions loomed large before my eyes at nine thirty . Then suddenly it hit me . Not only had I to follow the directions to get the right amount of drug into the syringe with no air in there and then catch the cat ,by then lurking in the bedroom , I then had to somehow jab the cat with the needle in the right place . And , the poor cat had to have eaten something prior to this assault . And poor lamb she had never met me before . After a quick chat we adjourned to the kitchen and I learn how to roll the insulin gently rather than shake it . A quick break in the proceedings . I need to remove a few layers . I do the rolling and then pick up the syringe , eyeing up the needle . Another false start . This is going to call for my glasses lest I draw up an air bubble or the wrong amount of stuff. J , who is showing me the ropes , is very patient and calm . I'm not sure how I would be in her shoes .
Suffice to say the insulin is soon drawn up , air bubbles expelled , and the syringe is all ready . Now , where is Puss ? We find her in the bedroom . She is exactly the cat I wanted when we got our Kitty . A black and white cat with little white paws and white whiskers . Cute and gentle and not too wriggly given that she is being chased by an incompetent attempting to conceal a needle in her hand , tension starting to mount although the overall feeling still being that once I was close enough the deed would be done in seconds . As indeed it is . Lifting the skin , angling the needle and that was it . J had made everything easy by giving very clear instructions and seems pleased with how things had gone . Puss seems happy it is done and bears no grudges setting up a loud purring and later bringing me her toy ball with a yowl as if she is delivering a fresh mouse .
CatCaller learns a new skill ... not bad for an hour on a Saturday morning in February....