I looked back through my posts in early December and I see I made no mention of the chaos this kitty caused to me and half the town of Lunenburg! There wasn't much to mention as I had no photo to go with it... Now here's the backstory...
There hasn't been a summer we haven't been adopted by one or more cats, and here, named "Buttercup" was our summer cat for 2016. She was clearly a stray, so as our Lunenburg stay came to a close, I petitioned friends to consider adopting her or caring for her over the winter, (In 2015 Dinah went to a very loving home, and we're in close touch with her family who adore her!) When no one volunteered to take on the task, we took her to the vet (no chip) and got her a clean bill of health, planning to take her with us on the plane to California. A friend loaned us a carrier, and as we packed the car on Dec 2nd, I warned everyone to keep the door shut. However, if you've ever raised a cat, you know they have a keen sense when their humans have plans for them, and in an unguarded moment, out the door she dashed! Goodbye $300 vet bill! Goodbye $75 plane fare. I called a friend who called friends and in 15 remaining minutes in town, everyone was trying to catch her!
And then she disappeared!
One good friend set up a vigil at our house and started a telephone tree to have friends take turns watching for her in the hope she'd return. We returned to California empty handed, and when Ken learned that people were staying at our house with the door open (in December!), he asked that the search be called off! (ca-ching ca-ching...more $ as we were heating the outdoors!)
Over the winter friends reported they'd not see a trace of her, and I realized I can't save every stray. We returned in June, and people asked if we'd heard anything of her... "No". "Not-Fred" returned immediately and we took up his care and feeding again. I wasn't even thinking of Buttercup anymore as we took a trip to Newfoundland and carried on with the summer activities.
On July 4, (a day of no consequence in Canada...) I was in the kitchen with my back to the window when I heard insistent meowing! I was so surprised at what I saw, I had to have a photo of the moment and then there'd be the reunion! I opened the door, and in she sauntered as though it was now December 3rd and nothing had transpired since she last crossed the threshold (on her dash to freedom!)! She knew where to look in the kitchen for her food dish, and by afternoon she was curled up on the couch again. Once more, she's our summer cat, but clearly she never wished to be a California Girl!
Friends are currently staying at our house while we're away, and they're lavishing affection on little Miss Buttercup. Come December when we leave for the winter again, "who knows"... I'm wondering if she'd like to live with my grandkids in Massachusetts...
Joy posted a lovely photo of her here:
https://365project.org/joysfocus/extra-stuff/2017-08-29#post-comment
She looks incensed that you would leave her outside.
and @maggiemae , you are 100% correct! We don't know where she went, but she looked pretty good for having been away 7 months (and 1 day!)
@joysfocus ALL cats need kitty xanax on airplanes! I'm laughing at your comment about her being "incensed". She just has a face with that pencil-line moustache that makes her look angry! Ken thinks it's cute. I think it's "unfortunate"... She is a lover and likes to cuddle as you recall when she sat between us!
@littleconnie Your comment made me laugh, Connie! After all the time and worry spent on her in her absence, to think that SHE should come back to say, "Where have YOU been?!"
@pamknowler "Buttercup Goes on a Winter Holiday" is the stuff of Children's books... I wonder how many imaginative different stories people might come up with! (Can you tell I haven't gotten to bed yet? Now its 1 AM, so off with me! -Seriously!-)
I did copy the lines of our agrical bussiness and trade from internet. We`re doing not worse I think. Second on the world market. ( After U.S.A.)
Oh my goodness, thank you all! I was trying to keep up with the thank you notes and comments on your photos, but I lost ground again! I'll be out of the loop again for a few days as I'm having a minor surgery in the early morning... I'm happy to have some time to call my own to be in touch with so many of you again! Thank you! ♥
We had a beautiful Himalayan cat, a stray that showed up one day & stayed, in the law office where I worked for 17 years. I was her favorite person so I started taking her home on weekends, then it got so she hid every Monday morning so she didn't have to go back to the office!!