Ed Duff

I've asked Ed Duff several times to paint my skies here - neanmoins, I do have the real thing to look at every morning! A good part of the beauty lies in the constant change.

Kathy came up for Thanksgiving and brought a feast with her. We had a traditional Thanksgiving dinner after taking a long walk in the Pine Cathedral/waterfall forest. We always have loads to talk about. Easy conversations. Our ancestry and our stories are similar; I truly enjoy our times together. She has more dogs than I have; one mutt, one Icelandic, the rest are Goldens. She has several OTCHs; if I'm lucky, I qualify.

Kria has been very ill for almost two weeks but she is finally turning the corner. I think she must have eaten a dead bird from the yard and had a violent reaction. The nearest vets are in Sandusky about half an hour away. Vets here are mostly large animal (horses, cattle, etc.) vets. Yesterday Kria regressed and started throwing up again so we went to Sandusky to a vet, Town and Country, that Roni suggested. We're back on track - I hope.

Here Kria is with I Ching - the cat who refuses to be brushed and therefore, like a turtle, has a bullet-proof vest (of clotted fur) on her back. I Ching doesn't look happy to be sharing but she will NOT give up HER chair for anyone except me.

Fred and Annette have a pileated woodpecker on their property! The best I can do is a red-bellied woodpecker - don't know "why" it's called red bellied; the back of its head is red but I haven't seen any red on its ventral side! Except for that red head, look how well it blends with the birch bark tree! Clicking on photos enlarges them.

I have seen two cats, a black one and an dark orange tiger, on my property. They are both sleek and beautiful with shiny, thick fur; I've seen their paw prints many places and think they're feral. I don't like the idea of feral cats because of the damage they do to wild bird populations but - - - - . I wonder if Kria's possible bird/carrion issue is feral cat related?

Today I go back to Port Huron to the endodontist, Derik DeConinck, for additional root canal work. If all goes well, then I have to go back to my new dentist, Anthony Burdua, for a new cap. What fun. I'm meeting all kinds of new people up here!