A Fun Supper

Last Thursday, my good friend and neighbor, Diane, joined me after work for supper. Steve had a class to attend after work, so he wasn't going to be home until later. So I decided on something easy as Stosh and I had to take "Sweet Pea" to Greenville that afternoon for her monthly checkup from her cancer surgery and radiation treatments. Again, she received a good report! Next month she will have chest x-rays to check her lungs.

So early that morning I again made some turkey salad for sandwiches on homemade bread, and when I got home, I made apple crisp for dessert! We stuffed ourselves, but then we only do this every now and then. We had a nice leisurely dinner and enjoyed an evening of "girl time" and got caught up again on what's going on in the outside world. And, naturally, we had to read some blogs, too! LOL And I also sent a turkey salad sandwich and a big piece of apple crisp home for Steve! Couldn't forget him!!!

Below is a pic of our 4th of July desserts! Lemon Pie, Yummy Chocolate Pie, and Apple Crisp!



Then it was "cat time." I have a mama feral, now spayed, the last one I trapped, March 2007. She still isn't tame, barely lets me touch her, which I try to do every day. She had a rather large, tight mat on her back for some time. I asked my vet about it, and he sold me a couple of Ace tranquilizer pills so I could get her in a carrier and take her in for them to clip it off. I hated to give her a pill like that, as we had used that same medication on our 2 cats when we moved from PA to SC. It was awful! They were like rag dolls! Cats have 3 eyelids, and their inner lids came halfway across their eyes and stayed that way for about 4 or 5 days! They looked drugged the entire time, too! I just didn't like the idea of doing that to this dear little lady cat.

Anyhow, I had been trying to comb this mat a little each day, but this feral didn't appreciate that very much. I was afraid that she would bite me, and I didn't need that. I've had several cat bites, and believe me, they hurt! And once you go to a doctor, then Rabies Control gets involved! So Diane and I discussed the situation and thought maybe I could throw a heavy towel over her and get her by the scruff while Diane ran the clippers to remove the mat. Well, we had quite a time for a few minutes! The cat got out of her pen, right through our legs, as I always leave the bottom pen door open. I have one of those tall ferret pens that she sleeps in, as she feels safe in it. The shelf is at window height, so she can look outside whenever she so chooses.

We left the room for a few minutes, and when we returned, she was back inside the pen under her little pink litter box lid on the pen's shelf. I use that lid as her little hide-away, as ferals feel safe when they can hide. Anyhow, Diane held the box up while I stuck my left hand in under that lid and shaved away with the clippers! The cat kept moving around, and with each touch of the clippers, the mat became looser and looser! Believe me, the adrenalin kicked in! I could feel my heart pounding like mad!!! Then finally, the entire thing fell off! That little kitty's back just had to feel better! I had to take the chance of being bitten, but....NO bite! That had been bothering me for some time as those mats just grow tighter and tighter and can actually harm their skin from the pulling to the point where they can become painful and the skin infected under it! I am so glad it is off!!! She may have a bald spot, but her hair will grow back. These mats are miserable things for a cat! You wouldn't believe how tight the hair grows! I don't think a person could even weave it that tight if one tried! These mats are not a soft clump of hair but a hard mass of tangled, interwoven hair, and they only get worse. They do not grow out, as one would think.



That was our day! The recipes for the apple crisp and yummy chocolate pie will be posted tonight (hopefully) on my recipe blog, Cooking with Nancy. They are so easy to make and yet sooooo good! I served the apple crisp warmed in the microwave and added vanilla ice cream on top! Yummy! Now I just have to get some fresh peaches at Strawberry Hill one of these days and make peach cobbler and peach crisp!!!