Cat Fights

this remodel and move has been hard on me...but far more stressful for our cat Ashley. first she had to endure the house being slowly dismantled. she did not like her favorite places suddenly disappearing. she did not like seeing us stressed out and yelling. she hid outside a lot. and then one day, the ultimate indignity. she was placed in a box and carried down the street, protesting vehemently, and placed inside a strange house that didn't smell real good.

surprisingly, she is adjusting well. we have our living room couch and our bed in this new place, and those are familiar and comforting to her. we are here now, and much calmer. the first two days she returned to the old house each morning when we left for work, but on day 3 she stayed.

the back yard is a cat's paradise. overgrown, with lots of trees and old rusting, rotten stuff. gopher holes abound, a rich new hunting ground. a fence surrounds the property so she is separated from the street and its dangers. apparently two other cats who live at this end of the street have long considered this deserted place *their* place. suddenly, this new house and yard became *her* territory. now Ashley is going on 10 years old, and cats fights should be behind her, but our girl has risen to the occasion. i've had to run outside several times when the yewling noises escalated into screams.

mostly, she sits proudly in an open window, surveying her new domain.