Hello, Readers.
It's story time!
Stealing the spotlight for lunar stories
is the Super Blue Moon this week.
The sun had its day also
last Friday as it set over the Hickory Hornets stadium
down in Hermitage, PA.
The following snapshots are from last week's game.
The Huskies ran into an angry hive of Hornets in Hickory
and the team got stung on the season opener.
The dogs got their bark back together,
but lost a close one last night,
clawed by the Tigers out in Fairview.
Starting a season with back to back losses is no fun,
but it teaches a good lesson on resiliency.
Get your tails wagging
and get back to work!
The game next week is THURSDAY at home.
Sam and his headwear:
football field
America Night at the volleyball game.
At least he's easy to pick out in a crowd.
Do you see it, Readers?
How about now?
Fall fanatics,
the leaves are starting to change!
Now,
as promised,
The Story of Gus.
Gus is the stray kitten
that wandered his way into our lives
this summer.
But first the prequel.
How did this self-proclaimed
Dog Lover Blogger
come to care for so many cats?!
It all started with this pair
that I took in during the fall of 2015.
They were strays a co-worked found
and she was desperate for a place to put them
as the shelters were full.
Stealth on the left is the Queen Mother of the Firman West Clan
and still comes for breakfast every single morning.
When she approaches the bowl,
the others part allowing her space to eat first.
The cat on the right was named Sometimes--
because sometimes you could touch it
and other times not.
Sometimes disappeared that first winter
and I renamed her in my memory as Never.
I can't take credit for those cool names though.
My dad named them.
He can be clever when he wants to be.
Stealth eventually found a partner in crime.
I named him Sneaky Pete.
Together they formed a little cat clan,
as I was never able to catch Stealth that first year
to get her spayed.
The cats began to populate
and within a year
we went from
two
to six
to fourteen!
Try as I might,
I could not catch Stealth.
This is Franklin.
He was born on the Fourth of July
and my favorite feral.
After much research,
pestering,
and begging the local vets to help me,
one by one,
Eloise aka Cat Hunter
caught every single one!
I worked with a local vet
for spaying/neutering/rabies shots
for all of them.
I trapped the elusive Stealth
and her sidekick Sneaky Pete
on the same morning at 4:00am
(on a school day......).
The hooting and hollering
happy dance I did in my pajamas in my driveway
was a celebration of all celebrations.
If we only had our outdoor cameras then!
I would have won the Grand Prize
on America's Funniest Home Videos.
Since that time,
other cats have wandered into
the light of the Lamp Post.
We found starving,
heterochromic Charlie
in November of 2021.
Charlie brought Dot home
in the fall of 2022.
They are fast friends.
And have also made friends with my dogs.
This was a surprise
and took a little bit of exposure work
as Penny is a mix
of lab, beagle, pitbull, and spaniel,
and her predatory-prey instincts are strong.
Fortunately,
my mother is even more stubborn than I am
and convinced us she could make them friends.
And she did!
about five weeks ago,
along came Gus,
a starving,
ragged,
six month old kitten.
Ellen has inherited my Cinderella-like
concern for animals.
Cinderellen has taken this guy in,
and named him Gus.
He was found in August
which is one of Ellen's favorite Taylor Swift songs
and song characters.
Swifties and fans of the Folklore album
will understand the term
"song character"
as well as understand the twist on today's blog title,
The Story of Gus.
The Story of Us was our Surprise Song
in Pittsburgh Night 1 of the Eras Tour.
We knew it was a sign
when the duo on the Purina Kitten Chow bag
looks just like them.
Gus,
by the way,
is also the name of Cinderella's mouse.
Gus had it hard outside for a few months.
He was in very bad shape.
Probably the worst of any cat I've cared for.
We brought him into the barn
minutes before a monsoon rainstorm
that we are sure he wouldn't have survived.
Gus sought shelter in the rafters
and this old dollhouse
handmade by my Father-in-Law Sam.
My children never knew their Grandpa,
so it is nice that we have some pieces of his craftsmanship,
handed down through the generations.
This dollhouse.
And two baby cradles.
A huge thanks to the ANNA Shelter pet care satellite in Corry, PA
for getting Gus in so quickly
and providing the most affordable vet care.
The unfortunate news is that
the satellite center for the folks in the rural areas
is closing at the end of September.
ANNA will continue care and shelter
at their two main centers in Erie.
Now Gus is getting educated
with Ellen
out in Edinboro.
Gus is healthy and gaining weight.
He's not spoiled at all.
And Miss Penny is anxiously awaiting
Gus's return
over Thanksgiving vacation.
Weekend Homework
(since you have an extra day)
Here is some interesting reading about stray cats--
many believe they find you for a reason.
Eloise
