StrangeRanger

Tummy up for Memorial Day

Maddie, Ivy, and all here at Chez-Ranger (including the raccoons) wish you all a happy Memorial Day, with grateful thanks to all those who have served, in peace or war, and gave of their time or blood to serve our country.  The cats know that they rest, tummy-up, peacefully, because of the sacrifices made by our vets.

Thanks!

Thanks!

And now, for Fiona, more of the wee feet:

And, finally, for Scooby, Shaggy and Scout's Mom, we have a close up picture of our lilacs.

They don't thrive down here in the Great American Southeast like they do up north, but they do their best and give us a little show in the spring.  Sorry I haven't found out how to get the fragrance to waft across the 'net, but I hope a pic will do. 

And, since I missed last week's Carnival, check out Ivy's delight at her new Dietary Supplements if you haven't already.  Thanks!

Dietary Supplements

It was time for a grocery trip last Friday.  The Rangers went off to the grocery store, loaded up on vital yummies for the week, and headed home.  Maddie has always enjoyed going spelunking in the bags while we unload.  She's a curious beast and loves getting some smells from the great outdoors.  We were very surprised when Ivy came toddling in and did a nose-dive into a bag.  She seemed absolutely captivated by the contents.  We figured it might be the bag with the treats or perhaps with the cheese, but we looked, and it turned out she was really after the....strawberries!

mmmmmm... strawberries

Have I mentioned that I love strawberries?

Really, really love strawberries?

Don't worry about her going into the bags...we kept her under close supervision.   Anyway, she was delighted with the strawberries.  Maybe her old people had them a lot and it reminded her of her old home.   

Of course, given all the bag rustling, and Maddie's usual desire to get in and inspect the human food, it was inevitable that Maddie come in at some point and see what was going on:

WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?!?!  MINE!!!

Actually, the camera caught Maddie in a yawn, and things were really more peaceful than I thought they'd be.  Ivy got to stay with the berries for another 10 minutes or so, purring delightedly, while Maddie had snacks and a drink.  They both wandered off a bit later looking pleased.  I guess I can't ask for more than that.

An Anniversary!

Oh Joyous Day!  Last Thursday marks Ivy's one year anniversary here ar Chez-Ranger!  To celebrate, we've got an Ivy Retrospective, with pics from this past year and capped by a few from the (low-key) festivities.

Here's the first picture of Ivy, taken the first time I met her. Lady Ranger had met her earlier, while Ivy was huddled under a rose-bush, shivering violently in the late-April wind.  Ivy'd moved over to the ivy patch by the time I saw her, to take advantage of a stale rain water puddle on the tarp.  She was obviously ill and starving, so we gave her food and clean water and took her to the vet.  Our vet was sure that Ivy wouldn't make it.  She was starving, sick, crawling with fleas and suffering from flea-anemia.  She mamaged to pull through, though, and on May 10th of last year, she came home.

 

These are pics from her first day.  You can see brown undercoat 'casue she'd chewed off the top-coat trying to get to the fleas.  You can also see the weeping sore on her side in the next pic.  She had another on the other side, too.

As she grew stronger, Ivy took up a post on our desk, looking out the study window.  Was she planning her search for her old people?  Was she waiting for them to come get her?  Or was she just looking at the birds?  She's never tried to get outside, so we assume it's the birds...

    Even after Ivy'd gotten her strength back and didn't fall over as she walked, it took her a while to put some weight on.  You can tell that she wasn't a tubby cat for a long time.

Ivy's been an active participant in holidays such as Halloween...

...and Christmas.

She's also been a soothing, peaceful presence in our lives, showing us how to relax and enjoy life, even when the AC has gone out in the middle of July:

As you can see, there's a bit more tummy on this kitty in July than there was in May.

We celebrated Ivy's anniversary with oone of her favorite treats:  Hagen Daz Vanilla.  She knows it's coming:

Here she is enjoying this rare and yummy occurance:

Finally, Ivy retires to the study to enjoy some tummy-up time with her new people.  You can tell she's not starving any more. 

We'll never know how she came to our yard or what happened to her old people.  Wish we could at least let them know Ivy is loved and cared for.  We hope she's happy enough here, and that she knows she has a home here as long as she lives.  Every once in a while we think we get an answer:

Thank You.

Verrrry Interrrresting Week

It's been a happenin' week here at Chez-Ranger.  Along with the usual work-issues we've had some new and interesting events occur.  After hearing some scrabbling over our heads as we sat in the computer room I took a trip up the ladder to the attic, thinking, as I climbed "@#$%#@$#% squirrel...".  Once up there I found out that we have a Raccoon.  At least one, probably more.  Seemed a friendly sort, though perhaps a bit annoyed that the downstairs neighbor had stopped by for a visit unexpectedly...  No pictures, I'm afraid.  I got out of the attic as quickly as I thought safe.  Amazing how intimidating a small, wild furry creature can be.  Of course, the cats have been absolutely up in arms about this new invader:

Wow!  Look at all those birds!  And look at the tomato plants!  And the traffic!  And dirt!  Forget the darn raccoon...

snorepurr zzzzz purrsnore *yawn* purrrrrrr

I'm actually fond of this pic of Ivy.  I took it right after dinner last night.  We'd been eating, and Maddie was sacked on the desk chair in the other room.  Ivy sat with us all through dinner, which she hasn't done before.  She finally decided that she didn't like ginger-garlic potatoes and had a nap in the doorway between the kitchen and the dining room.  I guess our conversation wasn't witty enough to keep her awake.  I'm just glad she's feeling free enough to hang with us at this point. 

As a side note:  I'vy first anniversary with us is coming up on the 10th.  Look for a happy-anniversary Ivy retrospective that day (or, knowing me, sometime thereafter).

Lady Ranger's roses are starting to bloom.  The climber is looking to be even more spectacular than last year and the randillas are fighting to come back from an infestation of red-butt bugs last summer and an annoying winter.  Wish them well.