Messages from Tom Cat - 2

[agate]

And this is from March 8:

Let's see if I can get back to you, Rose and Joan and others on BT. I'm having problems with this Kindle this morning. I can only type out for 15 to 20 minutes now without getting blurry vision, and need to stop. This has been going on for over 4 years now, after I had cataract, laser surgery in both eyes. It's frustrating, and they've done follow up, laser on the scar tissue, to smooth things out, but I don't see any improvement. So, enough of that.

Back in a minute. Need to get some coffee and a little breakfast. 12° out there, with fresh snow Sunday, and rain and wind and up to the mid 40's the day before. Crazy weather.

Well, that was a long time getting back, yes? In between I had the breakfast, 2 coffees, removed more snow outside with the ATV, and got the mail 4/10 mile out. Then I put together a lunch. It' s my main meal of the day and pretty well balanced. A mashed potato base, usually hamburger or shredded beef or bacon or Atlantic salmon on the heated potatoes. I break up some cauliflower and broccoli with carrot pieces and saute them with the rest. Some soy sauce or other. Makes a good meal for the midday.

And I take a couple or breaks or so with the cats on the couch. Maggie on the couch cushions and Smudge on my lap.

The birds are all over the feeders and the ground. Deer on the corn in early morning or late evening. Flocks of gold finch, mourning doves, and juncos. A couple pf cardinals, some 3 different woodpeckers; downy, red-breasted, hairy, plus a pileated once a week or so. Up to a couple of dozen Canada geese flying over each day, and occasionally a bald eagle. Have some pine siskins, purple finch, with chickadees coming in too.

Oh yes, about the Christmas/Easter cacti. I usually let them dry out a bit before watering them. That puts them in a little stress, and they bloom then. I usually get about 3 bloomings a year. A little fertilizer helps, but it mainly gets vegetation green growth.

Take care.

[agate]

Today Ralph posted this photo--I believe it's the cactus that has been under discussion?

[Virginia]

What a beautiful plant and just look at all the blooms. I wonder what Ralph is feeding it?

[agate]

From Tom Cat this morning:

It's a cool 31° morning, damp and hazy out. Might make it up to 40° today. Trying to get some ambition up. Did get some breakfast with corned beef and horseradish cheese spread on toast, plus a nice cup of coffee. I've always done the breakfast in the morning. Ann wasn't a morning person. She was a super cook of the midday meal. Liked to o all kinds of ethnic dishes. Our mothers were neither great cooks. I find cooking fun but difficult to do for myself. I think meals are more enjoyable shared.

And for Virginia, my secret for Easter/Christmas cactus is neglect. To get them to bloom the soil needs to dry out on top between waterings.

Having difficulty getting going this morning. It's one of those days where you want to crawl under the covers for the day. I might just throw out another bowl of corn seed and sunflower seed in front and back and see if I get mourning doves, turkeys, juncos, crows, or deer back.

Take care.

[agate]

This is from a couple of days ago. I had asked him about the care of a jade plant:

Okay, I'm back. Had my first and am on my second cup of coffee. Had a piece of my corn beef on toast with a horseradish cheese spread. I should be set for the morning.

Did a bit of reading on jade indoor plants. As I thought, overwatering is the biggest problem, the same as with Easter cacti. My way of watering these plants is to stick my index finger to the first joint into the soil. If the soil is damp, fine. If wet DO NOT water it. Watering every other week in summer is fine. Once a month in winter, with house temperature around 65° should be fine. I sometimes push my finger into the soil to the middle joint, about 2 in. If it is getting dry there I'll water heavy in a well draining pot. DO NOT leave pots with these plants in standing water in deep saucers. My pots sit in a boot tray, so the excess water drains off. I'll get back to all of you on soil planting of house plants and small vegetable gardens if you like. I got very sandy soil where I' m at now.

And again:

Well, we're back to winter for the day. It's been going on and off like his for a week or so. 30°'s by the day, a 40 or so thrown in a few afternoons and high 20's at night, with 2 nights at 1°. It is still March after all. That's why in this area most crops don't get planted until about May. We'll be in the 40's the next 3 or 4 days. It's 29°F out right now, with an inch or so of crusty snow. I got the cats their teaspoon or so of canned food, morning treats, some corn and sunflower seed out for the deer.

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I just got these pictures in the front yard. There are 16 hens and 3 tom turkeys out there. The guys are doing their best displaying for the ladies. Some of the hens are out of this camera's area. Note the one hen on the handicap ramp rail. She's about 6 feet from the kitchen window. The bronze, green, and other metallic colours on the feathers don't come through with this camera, plus shooting through double planes of glass doesn't help. Note the snow on the ground.

Time for another coffee. Cats are all curled up for the morning. Take care and some virtual hugs for all of you.

Here are 4 deer under the living room window in the back yard. You can't see it, but one is a button buck, with 2 little bumps on his forehead. I got to see his head with the bumps when he was right under the window. Kinda neat, eh? Take care.

[Ikoiko]

Thanks for the info about watering Christmas cacti. I had one that I was able to keep looking great for 15 years. I could go out of town for 6 weeks and it still looked good. It only died off when I was away for 6 months. Now I need to get a new one.

[Virginia]

Wish Ralph had my Bromeaid so he could possibly bring it back to life. Maybe I should try sticking my finger in the soil and see if that works and helps with watering it. I have been watering it very little since Linda told me to treat it like a cactus, but it doesn't seem to do much good.

[agate]

From Tom Cat on Sunday:

Here is the back yard and the drive this morning. Snow free, until tomorrow. And the tom turkeys are strutting and displaying for the ladies, in the front yard. There are 8 hen turkeys just out of camera range.

Today:

I want to get back to Virginia and her bromelaid. I'll try to do that later in the day. Need to get fully dressed and get some groceries now that last night's sleet andnow has melted down. It looks like a week of sloppy weather. Light snow and/or sleet at night, and some rain through the day. Temperature is like 29° at night and 34 to 40° in the day. Makes it hard to get motivated each morning. Take care.

[Virginia]

Wisconsin is still having snow!!! I remember Ann talking about how much they had and how long it lasted. Since I am cold natured I use to wonder how she could stand it so long. It has rained a lot here this afternoon and tonight. But we definitely get warmer weather here sooner than in Wisconsin. However, I think it still gets quite hot there, maybe just not for as long.

[Earth Mother 2 Angels]

((((((Ralph)))))) ~

You live on the North Pole, and I live in Hades right now! Today the temperature is 100 degrees, with 2 more degrees possibly ahead.

Although I have central air conditioning, I don't like to run it for several reasons: 1) it is congesting (a problem for my sons and husband, and now me), 2) it is expensive, 3) too much drain on the power grid, and we lose power, so I conserve, where my neighbors do not, and 4) my condenser is quite old, and it's likely to give out anytime.

Also, unlike my neighbors, I conserve water as we remain in a drought. This morning, I watered front and back yards. The backyard is dirt, where grass once graced it in a luscious deep green. I water the plants surrounding the dirt. What is amazing to me is that I can't grow succulents, but weeds seem to be my specialty! Hence, the phrase, "growing like a weed." I get it now. You don't have to do anything to make weeds grow. I am an expert there.

We will all have to adjust, and by we, I mean every living thing on the planet, to the changing climate. Of course, there are multitudinous things we could do to try to reclaim Earth, but we all know the obstacles obstructing that goal.

The reason why I watered this morning is because I fear fires. This heat, low humidity, dry brush and chaparral, and thirsty soil often combine with fire as the outcome. The USGS states that there is no such thing as "earthquake weather." I know many Californians, who disagree.

Having spent the majority of my life here, I try to be prepared for anything. But a heat wave over 100 degrees in early April is a red flag about the future.

May we all stay safe, warm or cool, depending upon the climate in our neighborhood ~

Stay strong, Ralph ~

Love & Light,

❤️❤️❤️❤️

Rose

[agate]

From Tom Cat on Sunday:

Started the day at, 26°, but up to 50° plus now. Rain by day, and light sleet almost every day for a week or so running. Cooler for spring, but warmer overall for winter. Less snow than usual, but double the rainfall this last month.

Doing the 8/10 of a mile walk, to and from the mail box these days. It gets the legs back in shape, even though they get sore. Raking up the front yard prairie garden and other areas for overseeding, needed after plow damage to the yard.

Cats are doing fine. They perch on benches by the windows and do a bird and squirrel count each morning. After that they have been lying on a patchwork quilt on the living room floor. It's there waiting for me to hand-sew some of the loose patches up.

Other than that, its been a lonely time. My friend Joe stops by every week or so, has a cup of coffee and leaves.

Having a time finding help with equipment repairs, getting my boat ramp out, etc. Just run out of energy and motivation some days. Haven't taken a meal out at a restaurant in a month. No one to go with. Trying to figure out how to take a trip to my native friends, 275+ miles out, for a couple days. I'm closer to them than anyone else. Need a cat sitter to check on these cats every day.

I need to get get back to Rose on climate change. It's worse than Al Gore ever expected it to be, some 20 or 30 years back.

More later. Another cup of coffee and a noon meal. Take care.

And from Monday:

Waking up this morning round 6:30, my normal times. Need to have a morning pill, then wait a half hour before I can eat or drink anything. It's for a blood disorder, as are the biweekly blood draws and shots I get. So far the meds and shots have kept me going. The low hemoglobin and excessive iron are more than likely genetic disorders.

Well, I fed the outer critters this morning. Almost exclusively squirrels out there now. It's 43° right now with clear sky. Will be having my usual grilled cheese and coffee in a minute. Then it's clean up and get ready for my trip to the hospital, 24 miles out, blood draw and hemoglobin shot. Actually I look forward to it. It's nice to talk with people tete a tete, if only for a few minutes.

Time to go. Need to eat, clean up, and get on the road. Take care.

[agate]

From Tom Cat yesterday evening:

I did get a couple of dry days this week and got to till up about 5000 square feet of prairie and a game food plot. I'm having a hard time leveling the ground where I want to reestablish some new prairie. I couldn't get the sod clumps from the dead grasses to level off. I usually hoe grooves in the soil at different depths for the various seeds.

It's raining on and off today, and at 42° or so I'm not spending much time outside. Being wet and muddy doesn't do anything for me.

Doing some wash today and general house cleaning.

Oh, won't be sending you pictures for now. The Kindle isn't taking regular pictures now, but is doing selfies. Don't ask me why. I'm told there are a couple of ladies at the local library that use Kindles and may be willing to help me out. As you know, this cyber space stuff is definitely not my cup of tea.

Time to get something done in the house. Take care and virtual hugs. Your and all the others' correspondence make my day. Thank you , or "miggwech" as my Ojibwa friends would say.

[Ikoiko]

Looking good, Tom Cat!

[agate]

From Tom Cat on Friday:

Well, I changed back to an old med I had for my stomach. That has helped quite a bit. They took the med off the market, but the new med hasn't worked well at all. I'll get back to my GP on Monday, when I have a blood draw at a hospital about a mile from him. He and the hospital I use are about 22 miles out. I'm trying to take it a little slow, after 3 day under the weather. It made it into the 60's yesterday and is supposed to be in the 70's and above for several days now. That should be great. Take care.

And an update today:

Well, doing better today. Readjusted my med schedule so I'll be taking antacid meds 3 times a day. Hope that helps. I got an appointment with my GP Monday morning, a couple of hours before my blood draw. It should be a full day.

Some of the stomach/chest pain I had goes back almost 40 years. They figured it was anxiety-related then. You never know what may return to get you, eh?

The weather is mild, in the 60's for the whole week, and dry for the most part. Now I just need to get my body in shape.

I want to wish all the moms on BT a HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY. Take care and always thanks for the messaging.

[Virginia]

Ralph, I hope you are feeling better now that you have adjusted your meds. Still, I think it is a good idea to take this up with your GP that you are seeing. I hope the blood test comes out good this time. Keep us posted on that.

We have your weather today. I have my fireplace on because it is so cold here. It is only 52 degrees today. Been really cool for several days, but will get up in the 70s in a few days and by the end of the week will be in the 80s. I do not look forward to the really hot weather this summer.

My bromelaid died. Now I've got to figure out a way to get it out of the house and throw it away. I don't want my next door neighbors to see me because they gave it to me. Guess I'll have to put it in a trash bag and sneak it out.

I hope all the critters around your place are doing good. I am sure they all enjoy you feeding them and look forward to it. Please take care of yourself.