Jun. 7th, 2020

kellan_the_tabby: Major Tom, a large grey tabby, just barely peeking over the edge of a basket. His eyes are VERY wide. (kilroy)
A skinny gray tabby, hunkered under a deck chair, ears stuck out at various angles, eyes wide & wary.

When I first met Major Tom, that wasn't even his name yet -- he was called Tom, or Tom Tom, as befits the feral tom that's been hanging around the back yard.

The above picture didn't happen until I'd known him for a month or three; at first, he wouldn't get within twenty feet of me, even when there was food on offer. & he did appreciate the food.

I offered him food, & I gave him space to eat it, staying far enough away that he felt safe. I was polite in my best cat language, meeting his eyes only long enough to give him a slow blink, & then looking away. & little by little, he moved closer.

The day I got to touch him for the first time was an honour.

He's flopped out on the deck, head held out so that I can scritch under his chin.

He was a skinny thing -- when I first met him it was spring, & he was too busy getting laid to remember to eat enough. He was a barbell -- all big tomcat cheeks & nuts. As summer came on & he got used to me, he ate more, & filled out nicely. By fall he was almost plump.

He's made a grass nest in tall green grass. His eyes are half-closed; he's relaxed, & happy.

By fall he was also coming around often enough that he needed his own name. After dismissing many offered possibilities, he decided that Major Tom was acceptable.

He also accepted a certain amount of horsing around, & was occasionally moved to set aside his dignity for a moment.

A blurry extreme closeup of Tom's face. His nose is just visible at the bottom, one eye, & above that an ear sticking out at a ridiculous angle.

By November, he not only accepted my presence, he expected it -- when I returned after having been away for the weekend, he was hunkered up on the front steps waiting for me.

A sturdy cardboard box is tucked between two stacks of firewood on a porch. Major Tom is tucked into the box, just his head peeking over the side.

That winter I built him a little nest -- a big doghouse lined with scrap cardboard & blankets, with a Tom-sized box lined with more blankets tucked inside. He deemed it an appropriate lair, & spent a LOT of time curled up inside it.

He's sitting in a box, with a blanket tucked into it, with more cardboard arched over his head. He's looking off to the left, & the scars at the bridge of his nose are clearly visible.

By then he was included in the daily dishing-out of gooshyfud. He often got an egg added to his, to keep up his strength, since he was outside all of the time. I slowly started luring him inside -- putting his bowl on the threshold, & moving it a bit further inside every day. By the end of winter he was willing to not only eat inside -- with the door closed! -- but to explore the house afterwards.

The day he hopped up on a bed, sniffed around, burped, & laid down for a brief nap, was the day I decided he might -- might! -- make a housecat someday.

He's sitting on a bed with a white comforter laid over it -- his ears are sticking out just a bit, as if he's considering something. What he was considering was taking a nap.

... yeah, I'm gonna call this a success.

He's flopped down, at his ease, in a fluffy cat cave tucked under the Christmas tree. His mighty tomcat cheeks are smaller, & the scars at the bridge of his nose are almost invisible.
kellan_the_tabby: (wedding)
2016-08-16 18.29.25

When I first met Major Tom, that wasn’t even his name yet — he was called Tom, or Tom Tom, as befits the feral tom that’s been hanging around the back yard.

The above picture didn’t happen until I’d known him for a month or three; at first, he wouldn’t get within twenty feet of me, even when there was food on offer. & he did appreciate the food.

ExpandRead the rest of this entry » )

originally posted on Patreon; support me over there to see posts a week early!

kellan_the_tabby: (wedding)
20200531_153538

The latches finally showed up, & they worked even better than I’d hoped. LOOK at that. & it holds the shutter closed without the slightest wiggle. I am VERY pleased.

ExpandRead the rest of this entry » )

originally posted on Patreon; support me over there to see posts a week early!

kellan_the_tabby: My face, reflected in a round mirror I'm holding up; the rest of the image is the side of my head, hair shorn short. (Default)
It's a simple hook & eye, except it's like six inches long & kinda fancy.

The latches finally showed up, & they worked even better than I'd hoped. LOOK at that. & it holds the shutter closed without the slightest wiggle. I am VERY pleased.

So this window is done! It's not, really, I still need to add the decorative painting bits & make the frame for the lucite & clearcoat basically everything BUT. It opens, & more importantly, it closes. & it looks AWESOME! I'll take it.

The latch is fastened to the lower right corner of the shutter. It matches the hinges, & looks pretty good.

I also got a LOT of work done on the soap shelves! Check it out: two uprights holding two shelves. (I've got the rest of the shelves done too, but I only needed to put two of em in place for proof of concept.)

The two sides are built like ladders, with two vertical boards held together by small horizontal ones. They stand, facing each other, one propped up against Tyrava's side, with a shelf resting on the top two rungs, & another on the bottom two.

I hauled them all inside to paint them -- it's monsoon season, so having indoor projects is an EXCELLENT idea -- & used the last fence post on the floor. I like how it's gonna look!

Four rows of boards have been fastened to the floor inside Tyrava's front door, each stretching across the width of the floor. They're different widths & different shades of brown.

It's also gonna take forEVer! Yay! *really dramatic flop*

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