speaking the truth

[The top part of the eastern wall of my room, above the newish window, is now (mostly) covered by two pieces of plywood, cut to more-or-less follow the shape of the ceiling, and painted pale turquoise. There’s about an inch vertical gap between them, right above the middle of the window.]

The space issue in my room had finally gotten to the point where I really needed to do something about it, right when I had an iota or two of spare energy. so I did something about it.

It was kind of a process.

I am honestly pretty impressed by how close I got the shape of that plywood — yes, that’s pretty damn GOOD for me, I am NOT good at this stuff. It covers the insulation! & mostly stops the drafts! Kind of!

I knew I wasn’t going to have any luck filling that narrow space without making it worse, so instead of that I wound up cutting a wider piece & putting that over the gap. Successfully!

The next two pieces were much easier to cut, but much harder to install, since I had no plans to move either the bed or the black shelves out of the way. But I managed it, after several attempts.

[The same wall, now with painted plywood on either side of the window. A couple of boxes and a basket are visible on the left side.]

& then I took no pictures at all. because I have gotten out of the habit of chronicling projects the way I used to, but there was a lot of measuring, cutting plywood & 2x4s, painting the cut plywood & 2x4s, & then a long afternoon of installing the lot of them.

Then I got to put things on the shelves, which is absolutely, entirely the best part.

[There’s a long shelf, spanning the width of the room, just above the window; on the left side, above the head of the bed, is another shelf that runs from that side of the window to the edge of the wall. The other side, where the matching shelf would be, has a set of black shelves taking up that space. Every inch of both shelves is covered in semi-organized stuff, but the top of the headboard is empty save for a towel at the right edge, where the sun will hit it in the mornings.]

… what a RELIEF. It’s so much easier to keep the floor cleared off, now, & my shelves are all much less cluttered. There’s even more room under the bed, though I’m contemplating ways to make that space easier to use, too. & I can GET to stuff, which is kind of new. I’m really enjoying it.

& of course SOMEONE had to be the first to explore.

[Seen from immediately below, Major Tom, a big grey tabby, is sitting on the headboard, hunkered down a bit so his head doesn’t hit the shelf above him. His ears and whiskers are perked forward; he is curious and alert.]

… well. He explored the parts he could get to, anyway, which didn’t involve the new shelves at all, but at least there was space on the headboard for him.

[He’s hunkered down on the headboard, facing towards the lamp, eyes squinched about halfway closed.]

& then? He took a nap.

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

[Major Tom, a big grey tabby, is sitting in a yellow Tidy Cats container. Jasper, a white guy, is holding the container up with one hand, and the other is giving Tom a gentle head petting. Tom’s head is slightly blurry, since he’s shoving it up towards Jasper’s hand.]

Sometimes you just gotta put a cat in a thing, & once we explained to him what the thing was & why we wanted to put him in it, Tom was perfectly pleased to sit in a Tidy Cats container in exchange for love.

Yes, it was off the ground. Yes, Tom was good with that part, too.

[Tom’s turned his head so that he can shove his nose against Jasper’s finger. His ears are stuck out to the side a bit, but his whiskers are perked VERY far forward.]

Tom, it turns out, understands a LOT of what we’re saying when we talk to him. Which we’ve been taking advantage of, doing things such as asking if he’ll allow someone to wipe the eye goob off his face, or if he needs a face-squishin (it helps unclog his sinuses). He’ll give the asker a headbonk for yes, & if he doesn’t that’s a no, & it is SO VERY NICE to be able to take a tissue to his face without him trying to pull away. (He’s also fond of it, because if he really WANTS boogers on his face, I will leave the boogers on his face — though if I ask again a couple minutes later, he’ll often let me deal with them.)

[Jasper’s got his hand down in the bucket now, giving Tom a good cheek scritch, and Tom is making a goofy face about it: one eye is half squinched shut, the other wide open; one set of whiskers is pointed FAR forward, the other is in a neutral position.]

We worked all of this out several months ago, in an effort to convince Tom to let us brush the mats from his fur. In the process, we discovered a couple of things: one, that Tom’s preferred brush is one of those cheapass black plastic combs they give out on Picture Day in elementary school; & two, that if you ask first, he’s a lot more willing to cooperate. Imagine that!

AND THEN we found that once he understood what the whole comb things was about, he would come to me or Jasper and inform us that a particular spot was feeling funny, & could someone take a comb to it. Which means that these days, he has no mats, & his fur is DELIGHTFULLY smooth.

Also, now we can ask him if he’ll let us put him in a plastic bucket for the lulz.

[Jasper’s hand and Tom’s head are in basically the same spots, but the camera is looking down, making it quite clear that the yellow Tidy Cats bucket is held up off of the floor. Also Tom’s face is a bit less squinchy.]

This is making a whole lot of things a lot easier for everyone involved. He can come to us with a problem, & while it might take us a bit to figure out what he’s asking for (Jasper’s a lot better at that part than I am), once we figure it out, we can fix it for him. & we can ask if he’ll cooperate with a thing — say, checking if his ears need cleaning, or if he’s got something stuck in a paw — & chances are pretty good he’ll allow it. (& if he’s not willing, sometimes the offer of some treats will change his mind — bribery works!)

Also, I can get pictures like this one:

[Tom’s handsome face takes up nearly the entire shot. He’s gazing off to the left, whiskers and ears relaxed, head leaning into Jasper’s hand, which is curled under his chin. He’s an extremely happy cat.]

Think I’m exaggerating how well this all is actually working? A lot of vets are using these techniques, too — it’s called cooperative care & you can teach your cats, too. Remy’s pretty well versed in it already, & I’ve been working on it with Loiosh, as well. & it is making SUCH a difference for all of us.

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

[ Loiosh, an orange tabby, is curled up, fast asleep, on a grey blanket on the plywood floor of my room. ]

They nap a lot in winter. Many mammals do, especially carnivores like cats and omnivores like skunks & humans.

… except we don’t get to do that as much as our bodies are wired to, because we live in the future & instead of flying cars we have capitalism.

ANYWAY yeah, the boys have been pretty spectacularly asleep a lot of the time. & I think they get tired of the same old spots, like Loiosh up there on that grey blanket.

[ A much closer look. Loiosh has his head resting on one of his forepaws, which is, in turn, resting on his tail. Two tiny nose freckles are visible. ]

Tom decided to sleep on something more ambitious: my breakfast shakes.

[ Major Tom, a big grey tabby, is curled up on my bed, four boxes of Carnation Breakfast drink sticking out from underneath him in various directions. One forepaw is resting proprietarily on one of the boxes. ]

I guess that’s? Comfortable??

[ Tom again, seen from beside instead of above. His ears are just slightly tilted out to the side. ]

Cats. I do not even know.

[ More of Tom’s handsome face is visible from this angle. The box he’s leaning on is bright yellow. He is smiling, just slightly, in his sleep. ]

… as long as he’s happy.

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

[ Loiosh, an orange tabby wearing a green harness, is standing in a patch of green grass in front of an old gnarled tree trunk. His head is down, and he’s sniffing a tuft of the grass. ]

This grass is far superior to the other grass, not least in that it is across the walkway from the river, & thus Loiosh is much less likely to be able to yeet himself into the EXTREMELY, APPALLINGLY COLD water while chewing on it.

Note I said less likely, not impossible. Even at almost seventeen, the boy has his ways.

[ Loiosh is cronching some lovely green grass. One ear is now tilted back, because, apparently, of Reasons. ]

It was, also, still green & juicy, surely much tastier than the wilting brown stuff near the water.

[ He’s making the wrinkled muzzle face, as if he were removing the innards from an antelope. ]

RAWR NOM TASTY GRASS

[ And now his tongue is sticking out. Just a tiny bit, but it’s there.]

Eat grass, lick chops.

[ His mouth is open, displaying sharp carnivore teeth, and his entire head is blurry, as he strikes at the defenseless grass. ]

He’s just having a very good time with all of this, is what.

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

[ Loiosh, an orange tabby wearing a green harness, is seen from above, standing on a couple of boulders; he’s sniffing at a clump of mostly-brown grass to his left. Beyond him are the dark, turbid waters of the Arkansas River. ]

I was … pretty okay with this.

[ Loiosh’s hindpaws are still on the same rock, but he’s stretched his front half out, nearly over the water, forepaws on another rock, to try to reach a particular blade of grass. His head is tucked under a tuft of grass, and he’s straddling his leash, which runs directly upwards toward the camera. ]

I WAS MUCH LESS OKAY WITH THIS PLEASE DO NOT FALL INTO THE RIVER

IT DOES THIS

[ A view across the river. The riverbed has been built up between narrowed banks so that a standing wave rushes over an arch in the bed, then crashes down into breaking seafoam. ]

I’d spent half the ride up on the phone with my mom, & we were talking about the surfing wave in the Arkansas in Salida; I’d planned to take pictures of it on my last trip, but then there was accidentally the fiber festival, & I plain forgot.

[ A closer view of the upper part of the standing wave — the surface of the river is smoothly rippled as it runs down into the turbulent foam beneath. ]

There wasn’t anyone on it that day — there might’ve been, earlier, when there was some sun on it, but even in a wetsuit, there’s limits.

[ A closer view of the surf below the standing wave. The water flows under the the leading edge of the foam, which is whitest and wildest at that boundary, then slowly calms over the next twenty or thirty feet until it’s back to the usual smooth flow of the river. ]

I could watch people surfing there for hours — far longer than Loiosh has the patience for. Eventually he wants to go find some grass. Or, in this case, some more grass, ideally some that wouldn’t get him grumbled at for trying to fall in the river.

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

[ Loiosh, an orange tabby wearing a green halter and matching bow tie, is standing, sunlit, sniffing a single leaf on a bush. His head is pulled back just a bit, his ears are back, and he is visibly displeased. ]

I … do not know what was Incorrect about this bush, but something was, manifestly, Incorrect.

[ He’s tucked his head behind the leaf he was sniffing; most of his head is now obscured by leaves, but one ear is visible, tilted even further back, mostly because there’s a leaf sitting on it. ]

He just. Kept sniffing things. & getting angrier. I do not know why.

I mean, sure, someone had probably claimed it at some point, but that’s true of every bush in the park? There’s dogs everywhere? They pee on things?

Maybe this was an especially … doggy dog?

Man I do not know but he was MAD.

[ He’s turned his head so he’s facing entirely away from the camera. That ear is still flat back. The other is behind a leaf. ]

Then he sneezed eight times real fast & stomped off. I … I do not know.

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

[ Loiosh, an orange tabby, is wearing a blue-green knitted sweater, and looking very angry about it. He’s refusing to look at the camera, and his ears are tilted backwards. ]

These pictures are from, like, April, but I kept not getting round to posting them, & then it was summer, & now it’s fall, so I’m posting them now.

My dear friend Rebecca made Loiosh a sweater. He HATES it. It’s ridiculously adorable.

… okay, I say he hates it, but after a couple minutes he decided it wasn’t SO bad. But maybe could I take it off of him anyway?

[ Loiosh is standing, staring straight at the camera, eyes wide and pleading. The sweater really does fit him very well. ]

*siiiigh* Fine I guess if I have to wear it I will.

[ He’s looking up and to the left, still pleading. ]

Eventually he did stop with the dramatics, which was nice. What’s more, he wore it, & was pretty pleased about it!

[ Loiosh is curled up on his warmy spot, tail draped over the edge. His ears are slightly tilted back; he’s not quite asleep, yet. ]

Now that it’s getting chilly I need to put it on him again.

He’ll be THRILLED.

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

[ The paws of an orange cat sit upon my portable jewelry workbench, squarely atop a selection of nails and bits that are clearly intended to turn into something. There’s some belly going on, too. ]

Who is this cat who dares impede my art? Who could it be? Could it be a Loiosh?

[ Loiosh’s upper half. There’s grass behind him; we’re at the park. He’s looking off to the left, eyes halfway squinched shut. ]

How dare I impugn his honor! Would he do such a vile thing?

… yes, yes he would.

[ Loiosh’s entire front half, showing both his face (looking off to the right now; still not very awake) and his delicately little paws (still firmly atop what I was TRYING to work on). ]

He is a horrible, horrible beast.

When I finally evicted him — the only way to get anything done! — he opinionated. From a distance. All the way over THERE, in fact. JUST to make his point. (I took advantage of the temporary peace to get a WHOLE BUNCH done.)

[ Loiosh is at the end of his leash — plus the eight feet of rope attached to it. He’s standing in leaf-strewn grass, glaring back at the camera. ]

Then we went for a walk & he scared the CRAP out of a puppy three times his size by simply existing.

… he was pretty happy about that.

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

[ Loiosh, an orange tabby wearing a green harness, is standing in front of the booth, an open can of gooshyfud in front of him. He’s staring at the camera, ears alert, as if wary of any attempt to separate him from his breakfast. ]

He was SO. HAPPY.

He forced me into a chair, occupied my chest, & PURRED for a half hour straight in the middle of setup.

He trot-trotted up to potential customers, demanding his due of LOVE & also WOULD YOU LIKE A PAIR OF EARRINGS, then pointedly stood on their shoes when they (briefly) stopped paying him the proper amount of attention.

He prevented me from working on the project of the day, by placing his entire self on top of most of it & falling asleep.

[ Loiosh is flopped on my workbench, taking up a good amount of the available space. The jewelry anvil is, however, not covered in cat. ]

I took him for a walk, during which he charmed all present members of the Salida Circus & also everyone who was in Milagros at the time. & then we headed back to _our_ booth, where he quite decoratively fell asleep on my jewelry work bag.

[ Loiosh is laying down, one forepaw draped over the edge of my jewelry work bag, head leaning against his leg. He is absolutely, comprehensively asleep. ]

Eventually gravity did what gravity does.

[ His muzzle has sunk so that it’s tucked down next to the jewelry bag, which he is, also, hugging with both forelegs. ]

He even helped with teardown, by which I mean he mostly stayed out of the way! Which is honestly pretty unusual but we’re all out of practice. It happens.

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

[ Sigdis, a chonky black cat with a white splotch on her chest, is flopped at her ease on a piece of plywood on the floor. One forepaw is stretched out. ]

In other words, Sigdis was being a pain in the BUTT, & Morgyn wanted a break, so they brought her over here & I put a hunk of plywood over the stairs down. Which she promptly laid on.

This lasted us a while, but inevitably she got bored. Which requires her to stand up. Which can take a minute, she’s a mighty chonker.

[ Sigdis, slightly blurry, in the process of standing up. Her mouth is open in a quiet meow. ]

Fortunately she is easily distracted by the prospect of Love, & came over as soon as I offered her some.

[ Sigdis, seen from directly above. She’s hunkered down on the carpet. My hand is visible, giving her a good scritch right on the scruff. ]

BUT THEN there was a CATNIP TOY

[ Sigdis is hunched over a catnip toy. I’m not sure what it’s supposed to be; it’s a yellow cylinder with green felt leaves. Yellow carrot? Naked pineapple? ]

So then she had to BEAT IT UP.

[ Sigdis has laid one gentle paw on the toy, and is leaning over it for a good sniff. ]

But enough violence for now!

[ Sigdis is sitting next to the toy, staring into space. Her brain cell is lonely. ]

Okay done now!

[ Sigdis is sauntering back to her spot on top of the plywood. ]

How smart is Sigdis?

She’s very pretty.

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