In Which: I recover from a hellish experience.

I hope I didn't leave anyone on tenterhooks, but really...I had to take some time to recover before I could possibly post. Behold the instruments of my incarceration:


a harness, and a Cat carrier. I don't care how soft the blankie, it was extremely upsetting to be dropped feet first into an upended box, bars snapped shut, and carried into that noisome car. Besides which, I had to listen to Elmore Leonard's The Hot Kid for three days. And the nights! In smelly (not a good smelly, oh no) rooms with no air circulation. I protested loudly to no avail. Loudly and constantly, if I do say so myself. Yes, it was horrible. And for what? I still don't know.


So here we are, in a strange house. My librarian and I are sharing this (rather large) house with others. I hid in the dank lower level for hours the first day in protest of my enforced move until hunger and the need for pampering and caresses drove me upstairs. I do allow them to pet me.


There obviously have been other Cats here before and these people appear to understand my rudimentary needs. I've been able to maintain my rigorous napping schedule, and there are numerous nooks and crannies in which to snooze. So here I remain. The librarian acts as if nothing happened, even placing the dreaded Cat carrier in my new sitting room as if it were a special furnishing. Ugh! She can't fool this kitty.


Oh, by the way, I went to the vet, and he was impressed with my overall health and good looks. I feel vindicated in some odd way. Yes, I am Fatty Kitty, all 12.9 pounds of me. Yeoooowwwwllll!

In Which: I am kidnapped...

but it's going to be difficult to do anything about it because the offending party is my librarian. I will record the entire horrifying experience when I get out of this cage. Meoowwwllllllll!

In Which: the librarian snaps and drives

What happens when someone decides to take pictures while driving - literally?


I started taking pictures in Minnesota on my way to Montana. Who can resist a giant Grain Belt bottlecap sign? On the Hennepin Av bridge over the Mississippi:


Typical midwest scene, still in Minnesota:


Minnesota, land of 10,000 lakes. Here's one:


I took a lot of pictures of North Dakota. Most of them looked like this:

Ever wanted to be Home on the Range? It's one of the last towns in ND before you hit MT on I94:


In Montana now, Yellowstone River from a rest area (ok, I'm not actually driving in this picture, but it keeps the westward flow)

Being a librarian, I couldn't resist this:

They'll put a Ron Paul sign anywhere. I especially like this picture because of the Salted Nut Roll reflection in the windshield.

When I come over Ravalli hill and see the Mission Mountains, I am always impressed. I've taken pictures of this view countless times:


Getting closer to Fatty Kitty - driving into Polson from the south and the view of Flathead Lake:


Well. That was rather self-indulgent. But hey, I'm Fatty Kitty's librarian, and apparently now, his student in the school of attitude. Besides, now that I'm home, he's going to take the blog back anyway, and I'll become merely a backdrop for his self-aggrandizing remarks...unless, of course, he's hungry or itchy.

posted by the librarian

In Which: the monarch is missing

No pictures of emerging butterflies available. Sigh. When I went to look at the chrysalis the day after I last posted a picture of it, it was missing. I hadn't looked at it all day, so the butterfly could have emerged and flown away. Well, here is a picture of a monarch that I pulled off of Nancy Drew's webshots page:


Posted by the librarian

In Which: Katie is 9 years old

Katie is a special person. Here is a picture for each year of her life:

ONE:


TWO:

THREE:

FOUR:
FIVE:
SIX:
SEVEN:

EIGHT:
NINE:HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KATIE!
posted by the librarian

In Which: something is happening in the tomato patch

Here is a caterpillar, hanging upside down next to a little tomato:

It's a monarch caterpillar, hatched from an egg on a nearby milkweed plant. Why there are no monarch butterflies in Montana? There are no milkweed plants. Milkweed is the only place monarchs lay eggs, and milkweed is the only food the caterpillar eats. Jon Drew has made sure there are lots of milkweed plants in the parents' back yard:

So, the next day, look what is found hanging next to the little tomato:

It's well camouflaged, this little chrysalis. After a few days, there were tiny golden dots on it - too small for me to take a good picture of. When I checked it a few days later, I could hardly find it, because the tomato had grown so much:

I'll keep you posted - on the chrysalis and the tomato.
posted by the librarian

In Which: the librarian gets a card

Not just any old card; a library card. I love how the Minneapolis Public Library System acronym and the abbreviation for Minneapolis are the same: MPLS. Now I can put books on hold, and use the computers, and otherwise mess around in the library.

This room upstairs has new fiction, mysteries, and some other stuff I haven't looked at yet. The circular staircase is now gone - since 2001 said the librarian, but I swear I was just on it last year. He was about my age, so I suspect his memory as much as I suspect mine.

Dad and I have a plan to go downtown and get a look at the new Central library sometime.


Meanwhile, here is how I'm getting around these days:

Jon leaves this bike in Mom and Dad's garage for visitors to use. Today I rode around Lake Harriet.

This is actually the walking path, but you get the idea. It really wasn't too crowded considering it's the Fourth of July. Later, Jon and E came over and we played cards. I lost both games, as usual. Ah, well, there's always next time.
posted by the librarian