Family Up North

My mother and brother are visiting my grandparents up North. For the past couple of years, Lee-Anne and I have made the trip out there and it was beginning to feel like a new tradition. However, due to Lee-Anne's surgery getting postponed, the fact that she's recently become a Direct Support Worker, and because I'm trying to get my driver's license, it's been difficult to schedule. My grandma did remind us that they are available year-round, so maybe we'll make a winter trip.

My brother hasn't been up there for many, many years. It hasn't been so long for Mom, but it's still a big undertaking for her because of her leg injury. This is likely her most ambitious undertaking since she broke it.

At least this arrangement leaves us available to take care of their cats. Right now we have them over in our apartment. My mom said she'd prefer this to us visiting to take care of them. She worried that they would be lonely. 

Normally I would have argued with her on this point. They have each other for company and the stress of relocation to me seems about as bad as losing access to their humans for a week. Crucially, reintegrating them with our cats might be difficult.

But we'd learned from the second fire that they remembered each other. So I was content to give Mom the benefit of the doubt in understanding her pets' stressors and they are here with us now. This way does cut down on travel time between our place and theirs.

Indeed, the four cats remember each other as well as they did on their last reunion. We don't have as much access to sunlight, but we are closer to grass, crickets, squirrels etc. The kitchen window has been a treat for our feline guests.

 

Their cats are more aerodynamic and are better at getting to places. This isn't a big deal, except I'm propagating a bunch of succulents and one of the windows that isn't usually accessible can now be reached. I had to rearranged the office so there were no viable launching points, and I moved the bedroom plants to the living room. Kieran has been whining at me to let him into the now-occupied window. I don't know why he likes it there, the view is pretty obscured.

As a random aside, a wild turkey walked by my work recently 

It sauntered up past our building alongside the cemetery to the main office. I and another facilitator went out to look at it. We messaged the team and a few members came out. Someone from the other building alerted a few people to it as well. The turkey seemed unconcerned with our presence.

Apparently this isn't the first sighting. My manager told me that a highschool student who had a placement with us the year before the pandemic saw one but didn't mention it in the moment.

It's been a good year for birds. I've captured several pictures of hawks, some good ones of bluejays and cardinals, and even a woodpecker. Now this turkey.