Mew-on-day, Nest Building Edition

 

Close-up of Klawock Lake nest with ax for scale.

            Suzy had been looking over my shoulder, catching up on the Squatchie news . Somebody must have mentioned finding huge nests built up in trees, the apparent resting places, or perhaps the nurseries of resident Squatches some place on the American continent.

            This fired her imagination, predictably. She does take notions.
            “P-lady?” she said, from near my right elbow in a small creaky voice.
            “Yes, I’m listening,” I said, encouragingly.
            “They said those big forest people made nests in trees. I heard that,” she said. “I thought just birds did that?”
            “Well,” I said. “Back away from the literal nest part for a minute. You know everyone needs a place to sleep, of course. Some creatures dig holes to make a sleeping place, or you might call it an underground nest. Some things even burrow inside logs. Some sleep underwater.”
            “How can anything sleep underwater?” said Suzy.
            “Whales and fish and everybody in the ocean or lakes or rivers has to sleep somewhere. They can’t come up on dry land and build nests,” said I.
            “Can I have a nest in a tree?” The obvious next question.
            “It would be a lot of work,” I said. “One time long ago, one of my human kittens and I talked about doing it. But it turned out to be too much work. First you have to find a tree that is shaped just right. Then you have to find or cut a lot of strong branches and carry them up into the tree somehow. After that, you have to weave them together into a strong bed which won’t fall out of the tree while you are sleeping!”

            “Oh, no!” said Suzy. “I had no idea!”
            “Last of all you have to make it soft somehow. Birds use fluff and bits of string and anything they can find. Gorillas and Squatches use leaves mostly. That would take a lot of leaves and grass or maybe cattail fluff, pardon the expression!” I continued. “I think all of that soft bedding keeps the wind out too and makes them warmer, if they live in cold places, like we have here a lot of the year.”
            “I like to be warm. I need to be warm!” said Suzy.
            “Is being warm the most important thing?” I asked her.
            “Meerrp! Yes! Being warm is the best thing!” she said. “Sometimes I’d rather be warm than bother with eating!”
            “You’re a cat, for sure! Cats love to be warm,” I agreed. “Of course, we all do, more or less, depending,” I giggled.
            “I think you’re better off in the house here, than up a tree, where the owls might find you!” I said.
            “Owls! I forgot about owls!” she said.
            “Besides,” I said, “You have about fifteen little warm nests in the house here! I think a cat sleeping in a tree would be just asking to meet an owl.”
            “I do? Where are my nests?” she wondered aloud.
            “I don’t know where all of them are, but some are the back of the sofa, my closet, back behind the boxes on the back porch and who else knows where. You know better than I do!”
            Willie strolled up to add his two cents.
            “I know where they are!” he said.
            “That only makes sense, Willie. You nest up in the same places, plus my pillow,” I said.
            “Your pillow is my favorite,” he said, and continued on his way.
            “I have another question,” she said. I looked at her, waiting. Her questions can be quite far-ranging.
            “What is the most beautiful color combination?” she said, looking deeply into my eyes with her shimmering green eyes.
            “I think it must be the deep dark blue of the sky on certain days next to the deepest richest, almost orange yellow you could think of. Like the color of some poppies that you see in the summer along the roadside,” I said.
            “That does sound beautiful,” she said dreamily. “Will you take me to see them when they bloom?”
            “Yes. Let’s plan to do that. I think it’s time to go for a ride. Maybe even before the poppies bloom again.”
            “OK,” she said, and yawned delicately. Then she left my side to go sleep on the top of the old gas heater, which has been popping on lately, since it’s getting later in the year.

🧡💙