Oh, No, You Di'n't! 🫈

 

 
            Firewood was getting a little sparse on Ralph’s side of Highway 20. There is a limit to a season’s deadfall, and even with Jim’s help, the pickings in the Great Forest were getting pretty picked over.
            “Why don’t you take Jim and go across the highway and up that forest road over there?” said Ramona one morning. “Maeve and I think there should be lots. After all, loggers don't pick up branches off the ground.”
            “What a good idea,” said agreeable old Ralph. He knew his duty to the almost constantly burning fire, and to Ramona, of course.
            “First, I have to find him,” said Ralph. Finding Jim involved a stroll into the snowy small meadow, with a stop to see Bob and Suzy, to confer on the firewood situation. Uncle Bob said he’d like to come along. It was always more fun working with Ralph than alone.
            “Do you have a piece of rope?” said Ralph, “I have an idea, if Jim will go along with it.”
            “I do, Ralphie! Maurice gave it to me. It was in his house. It’s inside! Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”
            “Well, we’ll have to see if Jim can swing with it. He might go on strike again,” said Ralph, laughing.
            They found Jim up by the road, digging through some snow and eating the grass he uncovered.
            “Good morning, Jim! Enjoying the grass?” inquired Ralph.
            “I’ll be glad when I don’t have to dig it up, but yeah, grass is good. Mama said so, and she was always right.”  He still looked like a mountain of dark fur with little gray eyes. Little billows of steam came from his nostrils in the frigid air.
            “We’re going to go across the highway, and go up the forest road over there to find some more firewood. The Firekeepers need a lot of firewood. Would you like to come along?” said Ralph.
            “I guess so. I’ve never been across the highway. What’s the rope for?” said Jim, eyeing the coil of rope on Ralph’s arm.
            “I have an idea, Jim. I thought since you don’t have hands and you walk on all of your four hooves, that maybe I could tie some firewood to your back, so that we can bring more home. What do you think about that?”
            “I don’t know. It would be a new thing. I don't do many new things, Ralph. I’ll have to think for a minute. It’s not eating grass, or roaming, or running. It’s not knocking over dead trees either,” said Jim. “But since it’s you, and you didn’t eat me, I guess I’ll try. I hope nobody sees me!” said Jim.
            “Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that!” said Ralph, confidently.
            As Ralph, and Bob, and Jim walked back down by the Stump House, they collected Suzy so she could go spend some time with Ramona and Cherry.          

            She was tickled to have a visit with Ramona.
            Ramona and Cherry were likewise happy to have Suzy for the morning or however long it took before they saw the firewood gatherers again.
            They came out of the Forest at the wide spot where Millicent parks. No one was around. There was packed snow on both sides of the highway, and sort of a bare frozen trail going each direction on the highway. Leafless trees trees and dark firs lined the highway.  No traffic was in sight. The wind blew some snow down on their backs.
            “Let’s go,” said Ralph, and he led the way. Then came Uncle Bob, and last in line was Jim.
            But just as this convoy was crossing the northbound lane a late model Honda Civic with a college girl at the helm drove right up on them, and slammed on her brakes. She frowned in disbelief and stared through the windshield. She was too dumbfounded to be scared.
            Ralph didn’t know what else to do, so he grinned and winked at the girl, then he kept going. Then Uncle Bob proceeded in front of the Honda, followed in a couple of seconds by Jim.
            When they got to the other side, Jim said, “I knew that would happen.”
            The girl, Renee, got her wits about her all of a sudden, and remembered that the whole world would like to see a photo of this. But by the time she had her phone ready the boys were just about gone up the forest road. She tried anyhow, but it came out blurry. She must have been shaking or something.
            Then she sat there right in the middle of the highway and called the Milltown paper. The lady on the phone put Renee through to Millicent. Millicent laughed and said, “Tell me about it!”
            Renee realized where she was then, and backed into the wide spot.
            So, Renee described the big Sasquatch, followed by the shorter one, and then the big brown bison following them.
            “He winked at me!” yelled Renee at last.
            “Oh, come now!” said Millicent. “Is this a prank? I’m a busy woman. Do you have a photo?”
            Renee looked at her phone, and said, “No. They got away.”
            “That’s not news, Ma’am,” said Millicent. “That’s hearsay. Good morning!” And she hung up. The only mystery to her was the part about the bison. “Bison?” she said to herself. She hoped that Ralph knew what he was doing and shook her head.
            As it happened, Ramona’s notion that there must be more deadfall across the highway was correct. There was plenty. In addition, Jim knocked down a couple of small firs who had been shaded to death by bigger firs.
            Jim allowed himself to be loaded with quite a lot of dry branches and to have the rope tied about his body so that he could carry them back to Ramona and Suzy. Ralph and Bob each dragged a dead fir.
            There was more traffic on the highway on the way back, so they waited until Ralph thought it might be OK to cross over. Then he proceeded into the southbound lane, dragging his tree, followed by Bob, with his tree, and Jim with his huge load of branches.
            It looked like they might make it, but then a delivery van coming from Darrington, heading to Milltown came barreling down the highway.
            The guy skidded to a stop and stared with his mouth hanging open. His smoke dropped onto the floorboards, and he flat out boggled. He blinked, and rubbed his eyes.
            “You don’t see us,” said Ralph. “We’re not real!”
            The guy fainted right there in the southbound lane of Highway 20. When he came to there was a line of three vehicles behind him, and somebody was honking. Frowning, he started up the engine, which he had killed when he slammed to a panicked stop. He continued his trip.
            He wasn’t sure what he had seen, and he didn’t dare tell anyone about it either.
            “I knew that would happen,” said Jim, shaking his big head.
            “Nobody will believe it,” said Ralph.
            And he was right, as always.
            The ladies were pleased to see all the firewood. Jim was unloaded, then he wandered back up into the meadow looking for grass.
            There were fried fish for lunch, and coffee. Jim had excused himself because he was hungry and he never ate fish, he said.

❄️🤎❄️

Greetings from The Skagit in November!

 

These birds paddling around in the mud are swans.

There are also huge flocks of snow geese.

A November scene around here.

I don't know where they're going.

It's just a layover, soon they will take off.

A blessed, serene Tootsday to you!

🦢💙🦢

A Week Or So Went By 🐈🐈

 

            Toots was enjoying fall. It was so nice and cool at night and just barely warm during the day. It was just the kind of weather to set a girl to thinking busy and deep thoughts. Toots is nothing if not a deep thinker!

            So, she got to thinking about her buddy, Suzy, who lives in isolation underneath the old DOD desk in Milltown. She hadn’t heard from the girl in several days and feared she could be malingering down there.

            Toots decided to ring her up by TeleMrrrp™, just to see what gives, and all like that. She was still intrigued by the idea of traveling in time too. Goodness, who wouldn’t be? There was also the question of a newly discovered planet, named ED138, of all things.

 

            “Suzy, can you hear me?” Toots sent, and waited.

            The thought waves were silent.

            “Are you asleep?” said Toots. “Time to wakey-wakey!”

            “Maybe. Not much to do down here. It all kind of blends together, you know?” said Suzy.

            “What you need is a fresh POV, Suzy. You need something to think about besides those two big kids!” Toots assured her.

            “Easy to say, hard to do!” returned Suzy, somewhat petulantly.

            “Easy for me to say, but think about it. You know how they jump into every opening, the fridge when it’s open, cupboards, boxes, anything? Well, essentially, you are hiding in just the right kind of place for them to want to get into. Maybe it’s not entirely because you are in there?”

            “I’ll think about it,” said Suzy.

            “Meanwhile, have you given any further consideration to visiting the Old West?

            “Gosh, Toots, Sure, but can you narrow it down a little? Where? When?” said Suzy.

            “There’s also a new planet way out there? What do you think?” said Toots. “It would be completely terra incognito! We’d go where no Earthling, let alone cat, had ever gone before!”

            “Sounds like Star Trek,” laughed Suzy.

            “What?”

            “Never mind. Old story. Hey, so where are you thinking of in the Old West?” said Suzy.

            “I’ve heard of a place called New Meowico! Hot and dry, and full of Indians!” said Toots, all excited.

            “Let’s just do the planet. Does it have a pretty name? How will we find it?” asked Suzy.

            “Not so much, Honey. We’ll just have to concentrate on ED138, and see what happens. But sure, we can do the planet! I hope it works!”

            So, they both shut their eyes and concentrated together, murmuring, “ED138, ED138, ED138,” several times. They didn’t peek for a while, until they felt their minds lifted up into planetary space.

            “This is further out than we’ve ever gone before, Toots,” said Suzy. “Earth looks like a little blue, cloudy marble from here!”

            “That must be ED138,” said Toots, pointing out a little rock, roughly round in shape.

            “Well, what are we waiting for, let’s take a look!” said Suzy.

            It wasn’t a pretty planet. It wasn’t round like Earth or even the moon. It looked like it had been through some kind of epic space CATastrophe! There were deep holes all over it.

            “Looks like it bumped into something bigger!” said Toots.

            “Let’s go to the surface!” said Suzy.

            It seemed to them like orbiting would allow them a better look at the whole planet. They’d done this before on Phobos. It gives a good overview.

            Two things stuck out. One was signs of recent volcanic activity.

            The second was a sort of hovering cubic object, but turned on one of its corners. It shone with a dull blue light. From what they could tell it was about the size of a large human building, so not that terribly large. It just floated there.

            “I don’t see any doors or windows,” said Toots.

            “I wonder who lives there?” said Suzy.

            “I wonder if they still live there, or if it is something else?” said Toots. “It could be a ship, or something else that we never heard of!”

            “Let’s look,” said Suzy.

            But when they got closer, the thing lit up brighter and became transparent.

            “How does it know we’re here?” said Suzy.

            “A good question,” said Toots. “Look, it’s empty! I wonder if it’s waiting for someone who has been gone for a very long time? Or, maybe, they’re about to come back right now, Suzy!”

            “Maybe it thinks we’re who it’s waiting for!” said Suzy.

            “I wonder what the cube people called this little planet? It needs a better name than ED138,” said Toots. “I say we call it Bluette! In honor of the waiting thing!”

            “How will we tell the world?” said Suzy.

            “Maybe we already have,” said Toots, with a virtual giggle.

            “Bluette! That’s a pretty name for a tiny beat-up planet,” said Suzy. “I’m ready to go home. Are you?”

            “I think naming this place is what we came here for, our work here is done. Let’s go home!” said Toots.

            It only took one instance of saying ‘There’s no place like home,” and there they were, just like they had never left.

            Suzy opened her eyes under the desk, still considering coming out more.

            Toots found that she was up in her window, that the evening was coming on outside. The sun was setting and everything was peaceful.

 

MEOW!

💙

November 1, 2026🍂 Good Morning! 🧡

 November

No sun - no moon!
No morn - no noon -
No dawn - no dusk - no proper time of day.
No warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease,
No comfortable feel in any member -
No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,
No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds! -
November!

By Thomas Hood, who it must be admitted, was a bit of a humorist, writing during the Victorian era. He was English, of course.

What November tends to look like here.

   

         I think he was kidding. Maybe he was kidding, but admitting that it can get a bit that way during the month of November.

            I think November has its own style. It's a change for sure. It's subdued, dreamlike. Often dim, and gray. A lot of life moves indoors. Well, here during the rainy season, it does, except for the fact that we of the PNW don't really hate or avoid rain completely. Heck, I remember swimming in Tulalip Bay with rain falling all around, making little splooshes on the surface of the water.

            When I think of November, I remember an old man I used to see walking in Seattle's Ballard district every day. I guess some people must take their doctor's advice seriously. He was always out there, rain or shine, in a bright yellow raincoat, like the kind fishermen used to wear, and a sou'wester hat. He pushed a wheelchair, for stability I would guess. I named him November. 

            It's a time of reckoning the year, and drawing close with a festive holiday. 

            Not a bad time at all.

            I hope you have a lovely Suzday, no matter what the weather does today!

🍂💙🍂

            

🍁October 31, 2026 Greetings!🍁🍂

May all of your pumpkin spice wishes come true!

Happy Halloween!

Boo!

Love, P

🧡

❄️For The Joy of It All!❄️

 

            Ralph likes all kinds of weather, it’s true, but he really likes snow.
            It was one of those perfect days in winter. The sky was as blue as an angel’s eye. The snow lay deep and perfect. Both meadows were covered in a couple of feet of the stuff, creating strange exotic shapes where it lay over the brush and grasses. Even the Silver River was dressed for winter with snow decked on both banks. The wind blew up from the Sound all along the riverbanks and way up to the north. Some minute crystals of snow followed along, flashing tiny rainbows.
            One reason he really digs deep snow is that he can practice his slippy-hippy glide thing. It’s almost like cross country skiing! Sloosh, sloosh, sloosh, unless he wants to be silent. It’s a choice.
            Overhead, Maeve, stark black, precise and emphatic flew in great sweeping circles. Seen from above she would have perhaps reminded a person of Japanese brush strokes, seemingly careless and yet correct.
            She allowed herself a controlled fall, to within calling distance of Ralph, then righted herself and spread her wings to break the fall.
            “Hey, Boss,” she called.
            “Hey, Birdy! That was pretty cool!” he called back, laughing at her rapid descent and correction.
            “Where are you going this morning so early?” she said.
            “Maybe out by Bob’s place!” said he, gliding as he spoke.
            “Me too!” said Maeve.
            “Maybe clear up to the road to town!” he called up into the air.
            When they got to the Stump House, all was quiet. No smoke rose from the fire place. The snow was unbroken all around. Bob and Suzy had to be sleeping in. He didn’t wake them. When they finally got up, they would see his tracks and know that he had been by earlier. Maybe he would see them on his way back to Ramona.
            Ralph and Maeve continued past the Stump. The untouched snow gave way to a sort of trampled path. He was pretty sure where that path would lead, or more precisely, who was at the end of it.
            He was right. About halfway to the road, he found Jim. He looked like a hillock of dark brown fur. His great hard head was still. His eyes were closed. Only tiny puffs of steam came from his nostrils.
            “Are you dead, Jim?’ said Ralph. Maeve came in for a landing on his shoulder to get a better look.
            Jim made a rude noise and kept his eyes shut. He was in the middle of a big trampled circle of dug up snow.
            “What’s the matter with you? Do you have a stomach ache, or does your big head hurt?” said Ralph. Maeve, kept her peace, but she was thinking. Her black eyes glittered in the bright sunlight.
            Jim opened the eye nearest Ralph, stuck his tongue out and emitted a long miserable bellow. “I’m bored.”
            “That’s it?” said Ralph, surprised.
            “It’s the worst thing in the world. My head feels like a stump. A bored stump. There are no pictures in it!” said Jim.
            “Have you been eating grass?” said Ralph.
            “Yes, though I have to dig it up. It’s boring.”
            “Have you been roaming in the meadow here?” said Ralph.
            “Meh,” said Jim.
            “First thing to do is stand up,” said Ralph.
            “Yeah? Make me.”
            “Oh, Jim! If you don’t, we’ll have to eat you!” said Ralph. Maeve chuckled under breath.
            This caught Jim’s attention a little.
             “Aw, come on, Man! Don’t eat me! I’ll get up,” said Jim, struggling to his feet. He had been sitting there for some time. Muddy snow was frozen to his dark coat all along where it had been touching the ground. His tail was frozen to his backside.
            “OK, let’s go for a walk. Moving wakes up your head, Jim,” said Ralph. “Now, what did your Mama tell you to do?”
            “Mama said to eat grass, because grass is good. And to run!” said Jim, his breath coming faster as he remembered his Mama’s teaching.
            “Look up, Jim! What do you see?”
            “I see the sky! I never noticed it before,” his mouth hung open. His eyes rolled upward.
            “Let’s run, Jim, you and me together!” said Ralph.
            So, they ran together, Ralph gliding like a cross country skier, and Jim like a one bison thundering herd. They ran all the way to the country road that ends up in Milltown if you go far enough. Maeve flew above them.
            “Hey,” said Jim, “I’ll race you down to Bob’s Stump!”
            They wheeled around and ran full bore down to the Stump House. Suzy was just coming out to start her fire. Bob was still inside, until he heard Jim and Ralph thundering along. He had to come out to see what it was all about.
            “Oh, man, Suzy! You probably need some wood, don’t you?” said Jim, like it was a brand-new notion to him.
            “Hi, Jim. Sure, that would be nice,” said Suzy.
            Jim took off for the tree line, to find something suitable to knock down for firewood.
            “Hi, Ralphie,” Uncle Bob yawned. “What’s up?”
            “Oh, I was just helping Jim to not be bored. I guess we better follow him and drag whatever he knocks down over here,” said Ralph.
            “I don’t get bored,” said Uncle Bob. “I think up songs, and hunt and find firewood. Then I sleep.”
            “That’s right, Bob, for the joy of it all,” said Ralph, as they headed out to follow Jim to the tree line to see what he had knocked down.

❄️🤎❄️

👻Just One Last Time! 🎃

 

 
            Floyd, I kid you not, and Ricky, were both 13 years old. It took some convincing, but they managed to talk both sets of parents into the idea that it would be OK one more time. They wanted to do the thing one last time. In some cultures, 13-year-old boys are officially men, and they knew that. Men don’t go trick or treating.
            Darkness comes early at the end of October. It was a rainy fall too. When Floyd came to pick up Ricky at his house, the wind blew up the road. Big cold drops of rain hit them full in the face.
            “You sure you want to do this?” said Ricky, zipping up his jacket and shivering. His plastic bag was in his pocket. His costume was his dad’s beret and a mustache made of eye makeup.
            “Last chance, Ricky. We better make the best of it,” said Floyd, who was shivering a little too. His costume was a red bandana over his mouth and nose, like a bandit in a cowboy movie. His blond hair was back in a stubby ponytail. He had twenty pounds and four inches on his friend.
            “We don’t have to stay out all night. Some people might even tell us to go away,” laughed Floyd.
            Ricky lived at the edge of the sticks. Floyd had to hike from his development, clear out there to pick Ricky up. Once they were out on the road the night felt wild. From time to time the rain let up, and the moon granted them a little pale light.
            No other kids were out there.
            “Do you want to walk back to my street and start there, or here?” said Floyd, glancing up and down the road. “Does anybody live here?”
            “We do. There’s one other place. I don’t know them, but there is a long driveway into the trees, and there is a house down there. We could try there,” said Ricky. “We just walk back the way you came, and turn in by the mailbox.”
            In about a quarter of a mile the mailbox appeared on the right side and beyond it was a dark driveway leading off into a stand of firs and alders. No light was apparent from the road.
            “OK, remember this was your idea,” said Floyd.
            They could hear their own steps squishing through fallen leaves and muddy gravel. It was a long driveway. When they were about halfway down to the house it felt like the forest closed in around them.
            Eventually, a small old house appeared. There were two dull lights. One on each side of the door. This place looked like somebody had built it himself in the 1950s or something. It had one single story, a corrugated metal roof, and a two-step porch made of lumber.
            There was a window on either side of the door. Each was comprised of two horizonal panes. There seemed to be a light deep inside the house somewhere.
            “I don’t know,” said Ricky.
            “Their porch lights are on. They must expect kids,” said Floyd.
            Floyd stepped up first and knocked. They waited for like two minutes, feeling slightly foolish, like someone would laugh at them for this.
            The door opened slowly. An older lady in a terrycloth bathrobe stood before them. Her salt and pepper hair was in curlers, not that either kid knew what those things in her hair were. Her robe was red. She had homemade knitted slippers with pompoms on her feet. She looked surprised. Her eyes were black, like maybe she was Italian or something.
            “Trick or treat!” said Floyd cheerfully. Ricky grimaced.
            “Oh!” said the lady. “Wait here.”
            Three more minutes passed. “Maybe we should go,” whispered Ricky.
            But she came back. She had a Tupperware box in her hand. In it were pink and chocolate cupcakes, wrapped in saranwrap, and some big pieces of fudge, also wrapped in saranwrap. She held the box toward them.
            “Help yourselves,” she said. “I made them today.”
            This was not how Floyd and Ricky had expected Halloween to go, but they each took a cupcake and a piece of fudge and put them in their plastic bags.
            “Thank you, ma’am,” said Floyd. “Happy Halloween!” As they turned to step down, she winked, and slowly closed the door.
            Neither spoke as they walked back down the driveway. Halfway back to the road, Ricky said, “I don’t know, man. Do you think we should eat this stuff?” But he was laughing, and they both got the giggles. 

            “Wow!” said Floyd. He glanced back down toward the house. But now, he saw only night down there. No porchlights shone in the darkness. Like the place had never even existed.
            “Hey, look, she turned out the lights!” said Floyd. He had a funny feeling in his stomach.
            “No! Look!” said Ricky. “There’s a light or something.” And there was. Right behind them, hanging in the air, a dull orange sphere, casting no light, glowered silently. Softball sized.
            “I’m done. I don’t need this!” said Floyd. “Time to go!”
            But as Floyd and Ricky turned back to the business of getting to the paved road, it seemed as if some presence paced them, just a bit off into the trees. Heavy footsteps walked when they walked, and stopped when they stopped.
            “Somebody’s messing with us,” said Floyd, quickening his steps.
            “You hope. I’ve heard some stuff,” said Ricky, walking just as quickly.
            “Nah, don’t start that, Ricky!” said Floyd, as they broke out onto the road by the mailbox, which, by the way, had no name or number on it.
            Things went better in Floyd’s neighborhood. Nice square blocks were full of Halloween decorations, brightly lit porches, laughing groups of kids. There were little kids with parents. Dogs barked here and there. The rain quit, and it turned into a very nice night.
            Ricky enjoyed Floyd’s neighborhood, and they each got a disgraceful amount of candy. Neither gave a thought to the saran wrapped cupcake and fudge getting smashed in the bottom of their bags.
            It was after eleven when Floyd and Ricky walked back to Ricky’s place. Floyd was going to spend the night with Ricky at his house.
            Once more they walked the dark country road. No one was out there. The clouds closed back in and the wind came up again. Both guys were tired, sick of candy, and glad to get into Ricky’s nice warm house with bright lights and cheerful parents.
            “So, where did you go?” said Lucy, the mom. “Get lots? Let’s see! Oh no! That’s ridiculous!” she laughed.
            “The first place we went was weird,” said Ricky. “It was right down the road on the right side down a real long driveway.”
            “You should have seen the lady!” said Floyd. “She had things in her hair, and was wearing a bathrobe.” He was giggling again. “She was real old and scraggly!”
            “Where do you mean, Ricky?” said Lucy, quietly.
            “By the mailbox, just down there a little way,” said Ricky. But he didn’t look happy.
            “Ricky, honey, nobody has lived in the old Lambert place for twenty years. I don’t know what you mean,” said Lucy. “Nobody could have been there. The house isn’t even inhabitable.”
            “No, really, mom. She gave us cupcakes and fudge,” said Ricky. “I’ll show you.”
            So, both guys dumped their bags out on the kitchen table, and there at the bottom were the squashed, saran wrapped cupcakes and fudge.
            “I wouldn’t eat them even if they weren’t squashed,” said Floyd.
            “Me neither,” said Ricky.
            With a shudder, Lucy unwrapped the cupcakes and the fudge and put them down the garbage disposal.
            Neither kid mentioned the footsteps in the dark driveway.

💚🎃💚

A Fine October 28th to You!

            Just a couple of thoughts on the subject of butter, and cats and butter, or just cats in general.

            Of butter; no one had to sell mankind on butter. Eating butter has been going on for as long as people have kept cows, or other milch animals. It's a natural trait.

            What they had to sell you was marg. and Crisco, the various seed oils. Families had to be scared into it. Obviously, these products which had only existed in the last twenty minutes of human history must be better, more health-giving. Obviously. Any fool could see it, if they squinted just right and held their breath!

            Of cats plus butter; some like it, some don't. The Scouts will take a lick or two and seem pleased, but don't finish the pat. Of course, they have never spent a hungry moment in their lives. So, they are, perhaps understandably, blasé. 

            Suzy finds the subject ridiculous.

            And there you have it! There is a wild variation in our furry little buddies. I try and try to feel their thought processes. What is it like to be a cat? 

            I sure hope it's all fun for them. They give a lot and they deserve to have a nice life.

 💮💙💮

🐈‍⬛🐈‍⬛The Twa Moggies of Space & Time

 

For display purpose only!

            So then, Suzy has a lot of time on her paws these days. There’s not a whole lot going on down under the big old desk to keep her busy. Heck, her personal facilities are down there too. She doesn’t go anywhere. I mean, not in regular space/time..

            Casting her mind about, as she does, she conceived of an idea. She was pretty sure Toots would love it. There was only to propose the notion to the girl herself!

 

            “Toots, are you there? Am I coming in?” said Suzy.

            “I’m always here, Suzy. But yeah, you’re coming in meow and clear!” said Toots.

            “I have an idea. I mean, unless you’re busy, of course,” Suzy sent.

            “That might depend a little bit on the idea, Suzy. It’s been a little while since we did anything exciting. I will admit that life has been a little normal lately. So, OK. Lay it on me.”

            “We’ve done Space, right” said Suzy, confidently.

            “Yes, we did Space, though we didn’t do all of it!” Toots was giggling a little.

            “Have you thought about Time, Toots? I mean, we live right now, right? Of course, we do, and it’s often rather bland. Of course, I am speaking from underneath an old DOD desk. Baby, there ain’t nothin’ happening down here.

            “I got to thinking. What if we could visit some other time and space? What do you think? Do you think it’s possible? Do you want to?” said Suzy, all breathlessly and excited.

            “Would we be home in time for treats and brushing?” said Toots.

            “Oh, you know how this works. I don’t think anybody would notice. We’d just be in our regular retreats, to the casual observer,” urged Suzy. “I even have an idea of where we might go to visit!”

            “Give me a minute here. I’m thinking. You know, we must be Cautious™. Remember dear Felicette!” said Toots.

            “Oh, Toots! We won’t actually be there in our fur and whiskers. Only our minds will be there! Nobody can grab a mind on the street. In fact, they can’t see one either. So there!”

            “Well, when do you have in mind?” asked Toots.

            “How about ancient Purrsia?” said Suzy. “It’s purrfect! I heard they really liked cats; I mean lions mostly. They had lions all over everything!”

            “OK, Suzy. We can try it, but just for a few minutes. It might be too weird,” said Toots. “How will we do this?”

            “Let’s just think ‘Purrsia’ together and see what happens,” said Suzy.

            So, after a few minutes of getting their thoughts synchronized, the girls opened their inner eyes on a street scene such as they had never imagine existed. They must have hit downtown. Both sides of the street were lined with large stone buildings decorated ornately.

            “I see what you mean,” said Toots. “There are lions on everything. I’m glad no one can see us, though.”

            Darkly swarthy men walked along, with carefully arranged beards and high headdresses. They wore strange fancy skirts and sandals! But they looked super fierce too.

             Not everyone looked like they were in a fancy costume play though. There were some who might have been slaves in simple garb, carrying things. There were what appeared to be tradesmen, with carts being pulled by donkeys.

            Some elaborately coifed and dressed women were carried by in carts. One had an exceedingly regal cat in her cart with herself. This cat cast a bored indifferent eye on the scene around itself. It was three times larger than either of the girls physical bodies, and covered with a spotted pattern with stripes. It yawned and the lady patted its head.

            “I’m glad no one can see us either,” said Suzy. “I feel sort of queasy. I had no idea that time travel would do that!”

            “Imagine if they could see us,” shuddered Toots.

            A large rat appeared beside them. “I can see you,” he said.

            “No, you can’t,” said Suzy, “And you have a lot of nerve to speak to us, rat!”

            “Don’t you know the fate of rats?” warned Toots. “We are your sworn doom!”

            “Nope. I’m not really here. Sorry. You’ll have to put up with me,” said the rat.

            “When are you from, rat?” said Suzy. “Or are you from this time, but another place?”

            “Not sure. I was on a wooden sailing ship. The sailors didn’t look like these people. They had yellow hair and spoke a different language. I got tired of it, and decided to look around a little,” said the rat. “Nobody on a ship, or anywhere else loves a rat,” said the rat. “I’m for me because nobody else is!”

            His virtual whiskers twitched, and his eyes like little black beads regarded them coldly.

            “Suzy, I want to go home! We’re in this outlandish place talking to a common ship’s rat on the street. Time traveler or not, it’s too much,” said Toots.

            “Maybe we should check out the old west or something next time,” agreed Suzy. “That might be more fun. We could see how cats in the old west lived, and stuff like that!”

            “There’s no place like home!” said Toots.

            “There’s no place like home!” said Suzy at the same time. They said it a couple more times, until that time was their own time.

            Suzy looked around. Ah, she felt so cozy and safe. Everything she needed was near to paw, and she was glad.

            Toots, looked around, and there was Sammie, snoozing beside her, and it felt so normal and sweet to be home.

            But they were both still thinking about the old American west!

 

To be continued!

MEOW!

 

❤️⏱️❤️

The Very Heart of Winter❄️

 

*

 
            The wind came to Ralph one day, blowing long and cold and low. The sky closed down, tight, white, and dense.
            “Winter is coming, Forest Lord,” said the wind.
            “It feels early,” said Ralph.
            “Aye, you’ll see!” said the wind, hurrying away to the west.
            Standing there, among the firs, Ralph raised his hands to the sky, and sang a wordless song, a song low and slow. It was a song of his fathers. A song to welcome winter.
            Then he listened. As if in answer the remaining leaves sighed and relinquished their hold with a dry papery sound. Then the Forest was silent.
            “So, fall is over,” said Ralph, and headed on down to the fire to talk to Ramona.
            It was getting colder quickly. By the time he got to the fire, tiny flakes of snow were falling, and his breath went before him in clouds.
            “Mona, the wind tells me that winter is coming,” he smiled.
            “Winter changes things, Baby,” she said. The tiny flakes fell in her hair giving her a festive look. “I love winter,” she said.
            “I think I’ll go check in on Rick. I’ll tell him what the wind tells me,” said Ralph.
            Well, as you know, winter is different outside the Home Clearing. The snow really piles up outside. By the time Ralph got to the parking lot it was up to his ankles, covering up the dirty refrozen stuff with stunning white.
            The campground was empty. But Rick’s rig was parked in its normal place. Snow was gathering on the hood, so he’d been there for a while. Dexter’s Honda wasn’t there. Leaving giant footprints, Ralph crossed over to the office door. He knew the snow would cover his tracks soon enough.
            He knocked, and slipped into the office.
            “Hey,” said Rick, yawning and closing his laptop.
            “Yep,” said Ralph, taking a seat. “I bet you wonder why I’m here.”
            “Figure you’ll tell me.”
            “The wind came through a while ago, Rick, and told me that fall is over and winter is here. It’s going to snow a lot,” said Ralph.
            Rick looked at him and didn’t speak. He got up and went out to the kitchen, coming back with two mugs of coffee. He set them down, and went back for a box of Safeway doughnuts to go with the Safeway coffee. It was a Safeway kind of day.
            “I believe you. Why wouldn’t I. The wind might hint to me, but it doesn’t give me the weather report,” said Rick after he had sat back down. “The campground is closed. Dexter and Hannah and Honey Bear have moved into Arlington for a while.”
            “Looks deserted,” said Ralph.
            “I have to stick around,” said Rick.
            “A funny thing happened a couple of days ago. It was getting dark. I was heading out to my truck to go home. And I saw something. This is hard to explain.
            “I glanced up into the campground because I caught something in the corner of my eye. It was a light. There’s no reason for a light to be there. Well, I had to go up there and see what it was, if I could. It was hard to say exactly where it was, so it was hard to say how big it was. It didn’t look like a flashlight, or a lantern. It was still.
            “When I got up there, I could see that it was right up over my head. I could see that it was about the size of a basketball. It was a very bright deep blue color.
            “’Who are you?’ popped out of my mouth before I could think what I was saying,” said Rick.
            “What then?” said Ralph.
            “I can’t tell anybody but you. This blue light thing, seeming to be hollow almost, like a bubble, sank down to my eye level and just a few feet ahead of me. And I began to hear music, and it became brighter, and then brighter!
            “I panicked. I started hauling off backwards, tripped and fell and when I looked up, sitting there on the asphalt, it was gone.
            “What was that, Ralph? Do you know what that was?” said Rick.
            “It’s more a case of who that was. A person,” said Ralph.
            “A person?” repeated Rick.
            “They’ve been around so long that they don’t have the kind of bodies that you and I do. They’re alive. You started the conversation when you asked who it was!” said Ralph. “He won’t hurt you. Probably thought you were ready to talk!”
            “That was kind of sudden!” burst out of Rick.
            “You’re a lucky man. You’ve had a taste of the music of the spheres! If you see him again, try asking him something. See what happens. But if you see an orange one, don’t touch!” said Ralph. “There must be a reason he came to you.”
            Outside, the snow was falling heavily. Ralph’s tracks were barely visible.
            “I sure don’t know why that would be,” said Rick. “What’s wrong with the orange ones?”
            “They aren’t evil, but they don’t mix well with flesh and blood. It might be OK to talk to one of those, just don’t touch.” Ralph said as he chose a chocolate doughnut with white icing.
            “Things are sure different from how I thought they were. What’s next?” said Rick.
            “I can’t tell you what’s next. I don’t know. But I know who to trust, and so do you,” Ralph smiled.
            “That’s true. Can’t go wrong that way,” said Rick, smiling at last.
            “No fear!” said Ralph. He had a pumpkin spice doughnut next.
            “I think I’ll skedaddle back to the fire!” said Ralph.
            “Say hi to Ramona, Ralph!” Rick called as Ralph slipped out into the snowstorm.

❄️💙❄️

* Probably shot by my Navigator.

🐈‍⬛In Which The Girls Stage a Protest & Gossip a Bit

 

            “Suzy, I’ve been wondering how it’s going down there under the desk these days?” said Toots, who was communing with Suzy from her favorite retreat amongst the lumber. It’s nice there, and a girl can really think.

            “Well, as they say, it’s going,” said Suzy, when she picked up the transmission. “Those two still look at me. They’re bigger all the time. Maybe there’s been a terrible mistake, and they are actually jaguars?”

            “I wouldn’t like to live with two jaguars either! How do you manage, Dear?” said Toots, imagining it all too well.

            “I protest! What else can I do?” replied Suzy. “I hiss, growl, and go for their noses!”

            “If it were me, Honey, I would scream like a banshee!” agreed Toots.

            “As far as my accommodations, it’s quite nice! I have everything I need, except the run of the house!”

            “You know what I protest?” said Toots. “The ignominious lack of respect given Felicette, the French cat who was sent into space! The Tom, who was supposed to take the trip, ran away when danger threatened, which was actually pretty sharp of him, so they battened onto dear Felicette, who was said to be a stray of the streets so that no one would care about her fate!”

            “Oh! What happened?” said Suzy.

            “She was a Tuxi, too! It isn’t right!” said Toots. “She was sent into space. But not like we do it, which is completely harmless! Then the space capsule came back down, with a parachute, and she survived the trip.

            “There should have been a parade in her honor, but no, Suzy. They 'put her to sleep' and examined her brain!” whispered Toots.

            “Oh, for shame! What did they expect to find? Little tiny ET’s?” said Suzy.

            “The mind boggles!” said Toots. “I’m sure it would be different now! That was a long time ago.”

            “I must admit that these big spotty, stripy dummies don’t endanger my life. They just make me feel all edgy and nervous,” said Suzy, while keeping a sharp eye out for the same.

            “By the way, how’s your boyfriend?” said Suzy.

            “I haven’t seen him in a while, and he better keep it that way! Ahem! Thank you!”

            “Oh, I thought you liked him! Ah, see anything else interesting out of your window?” Suzy was giggling now.

            “Not lately. But I think they know I’m watching, so they stay away,” said Toots, looking fierce.                

            “Brrrrt! Ewwww!” growled Suzy. “What would you do if you saw something OFF?”

            “Scream! You betcha! Until he came out to see!” said Toots.

            “Well, just pray that the Red Dot doesn’t come to your house! We are haunted by it! I never know when it will appear, and it is fickle and elusive above all things! It cannot be captured or eaten. It has no substance, Toots! It’s horrible beyond belief and definitely OFF!”

Suzy said in an awed voice. “I protest the Red Dot, but I don’t know if that will do me any good.”

            “Suzy, let us Purr™ together that the Red Dot never comes to our houses!” said Toots.

            “Ameow!” said Suzy.

            “Ameow, indeed!” said Toots.

            So, having said their bit for today, the girls bid you a very pleasant Suzday, and say Goodbye for now!

 

MEOW!

❤️

🍁Ralph Country, October 26, 2012 🍁

 Just a quiet drive into the forest one day.

It was a misty, perfect October afternoon.

You'd have to be pretty tough and very adapted,

to live out there.

They make the local Indigenous, before contact, look high tech!

I hope you also have a perfect October day.

Ralph agrees, and his invitation still stands.

💚

I'm Not A Plaidie!

 

            Berry saw it first. He gave Bob a significant look, and nodded toward it.
            “I wonder if it’s edible,” said Berry, standing up and trying to get a better look.
            What they saw was a red pointed object moving around through the melting snow and fallen brush in the smaller meadow, out beyond Uncle Bob’s Stump House. It moved in an wandering pattern, like some creature trying to get through rough terrain.
            “I don’t know yet,” said Bob. “I think we had better go find out!”
            “Oh, I hope it’s good to eat!” said Berry.
            So, together they slunk carefully, and subtly as they could manage, golden eyes shining, in the direction of this anomaly. It took a few direction changes as the quarry moved in an erratic pattern, following no known path.
            At last, their paths met with a small person wearing a tall red cap, little leather boots, and the whole deal. He also had long silver whiskers down to his belt in front. There were silver buttons on his jacket of blue.
            “It’s a Plaidie,” whispered Bob to Berry.
            “Ho there, Plaidie,” said Berry. He licked his lips. Bob laughed beside him.
            The wee fellow looked at them in alarm. “I’m no Plaidie!”
            “It’s true that no Plaidie would dare run loose in here,” said Berry, rather disappointed, because he was a bit hungry.
            “We’ve never eaten a Plaidie,” said Bob. "And now we can't eat this guy!"
            “There’s always a first time,” said Berry. "But not this time!"
            They watched as the manikin took off down the meadow without wasting a moment.
            Soon, Aunt Suzy, who was outside sitting on her little chunk of a trunk, saw the pointed red thing approaching. She stopped what she was doing with the fire, and stared.
            “Bob!” she called. “What is that?”
            He came out of the Stump to take a look, standing there with a confused look on his face, not an uncommon occurrence
            It was zipping along pretty well now because there was an actual path through the crunchy snow and beaten down grass.
            “It’s a Plaidie!” said Uncle Bob, when it got close.
            “It can’t be, Bob. They can’t get in here,” said Aunt Suzy. “But what can it be?”
            If they had been trying to grab him it would have been an easy catch. He ran right up on them standing by the fire, and slid to a stop, looking up at Bob and then Suzy.
            “Whoa!” said Uncle Bob. “Are you a new kind of Plaidie?”
            “Why does everybody keep asking me that?” said the short man in the red hat. He looked disgusted by the question.
            “We’ve never seen you around here before,” said Uncle Bob.
            “That’s obvious!” called the little guy as he took off again, heading toward the Home Clearing, whether he knew that or not.
            “Not something you see every day,” said Aunt Suzy, with her hands on her hips watching him split southward.
            The next party to notice the red pointed thing moving rapidly through the brush was Cherry, who was perched up on Ralph’s cedar log with Maeve, having a nice conversation about stuff. You know.? It was dry up there, because the sun had been shining for a couple of days.
            “Do you see that?” Cherry asked Maeve.
            “Now I do. Whatever can it be?” said that lady bird. “It just can’t be a Plaidie. Anyhow, I’ve never seen one in a pointy red hat!”
            He ran right up to the log and looked at Cherry and then looked at Maeve.
            “I’m not a Plaidie, in case you are wondering,” said he.
            “You’re new around here, aren’t you?” said Cherry.
            “Yes, I am. I must say that it has been a strange introduction to this forest!” he said, in exasperation. “I don’t even know what a Plaidie is. They must be real stinkers, from the sound of it.”
            “I think we better go see my father and mother. My father is the Forest Lord here,” said Cherry. She jumped down off of the log, to be on the same level with the little man.
            “Is he friendly?” said himself.
            “Oh, yes. No problem. If you’re going to be around here you should probably meet him anyhow, and mom too,” said Cherry. “I’ll show you the way.”
            Cherry walked beside him, and Maeve flew-hopped, as they followed the well-worn path to the fire circle.
            “What’s your name, by the way?”
            “Sven Olafssen.”
            “I am Cherry, and the Raven is Maeve,” said Cherry.
            “Evermore,” remarked Maeve, mid-hop.
            In pretty much a twinkling, this group presented itself at the fire circle. Ralph looked at them and smiled.
            “Welcome,” said Ramona. “Sit by our fire, Sir!”
            “His name is Sven Olafssen,” said Cherry, rather proud because she remembered the very unfamiliar name.
            “You are welcome, Sven Olafssen,” said Ralph, who was very curious. “I’m glad the Forest gave you passage among us.”
            “My thanks, Forest Lord and Lady,” said Sven very nicely.
            “No need to be so formal, I am Ralph and my Firekeeper is Ramona. I see that you have already met Cherry and Maeve.”
            “You honor me,” said Sven.
            “Please be seated,” said Ralph. “So tell me, Sven, how do you come to be here?”
            With some difficulty, Sven climbed aboard one of the convenient log sections placed around the fire.
            “Sir, Ralph,” he said, “And Ramona, I am a professional. I go about the forests and fields. I have certain duties. I plant mushrooms. I encourage bees. I count and succor the field mice. In addition, I tidy the nut trees, and keep the blackberries from smothering themselves with overgrowth.
            “If you will allow it, I will stay and nurture this forest,” said Sven. “I see some need.”
            “You are certainly welcome,” said Ralph. “But where will you make a home?”
            “Oh, I will make a small underground house, and in time I will bring Rosa. You will barely notice us.”
            “That sounds wonderful. You must bring Rosa to meet us too,” said Ramona. “Now, would you like to have some fish soup with us? It’s just now ready.”
            “Yes, thank you, but tell me, what in the world is a Plaidie?”
            “In two words, a wicked Fae,” said Ralph.
            “Oh,” said Sven. “Them! Never heard the name.”
            “Local variant,” said Ralph.
            So it was that Sven and Rosa Olafssen, Forest Gnomes, professionals, came to live in the Great Forest.
            Sometimes someone saw Sven, but usually they didn’t!

🍁💚🍁