Category Archives: animals

i’m a cat person – lockdown 2 day 17

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I’ve always been a dog person. I love all animals, but dogs are the best. They’re the ones who live in my heart.

This summer alone I’ve helped 3 small kittens and a few older cats, and every time I’ve been able to let them go, find them homes, care for them outside my home, etc.

Kitten #3 is different somehow. I’m not sure what it is. The way he looks at me, the purring. He’s managed to wriggle into my heart.

I’m still trying to impose logic here: I don’t need another pet. I can barely afford the animals I care for already. Lainee deserves to have all my love and attention. I hate cat hair. Cats walk on tables and benches. Eww. Kitty litter – (gag) GROSS. I will try to find him a loving home… yet I still haven’t looked for a home for him. Maybe he’ll do something really annoying and I’ll be able to let him go….

Till then, I admit defeat and give in to kitten love.

Today a friend of mine told me she saw the photos and thinks this kitten has brought out something special in me, love, a glow… Lovely words. Yesterday another friend told me I was opinionated but not judgemental and was one of the very few people who didn’t annoy her. hahaha I have great friends. I often tell myself I must be a good person cause I have the best friends, people I love and respect.

This morning Lainee curled up in Eric’s basket, maybe in protest. Eric managed to push in and eat some of Lainee’s food. They both got on my lap and Eric searched for milk while Lainee gave me miserable looks. She’s only told him off once and now seems to have accepted him, though not enthusiastically. Sort of like rolling her eyes, grumbling under her breath and tolerating him rather than actually welcome him.

Its hard enough to work with a kitten climbing up my legs into my lap, wanting attention. Trying to work with two needy critters in your lap is impossible. They were both banished now and are both on the couch, at opposite ends. Fine. The last thing I need when I have clay fingers is to pry a kitten off my chest.

I sound whiney. I’m not really. I’m loving Netflix evenings cuddles with Eric and my morning cuddles with Lainee in bed. And I like the company of them both. Maybe I will keep him.

Maybe I don’t have a choice.

I gotta get to work. I have loads to do today, including giving Lainee some TCL. She needs a groom.

Later dudes!

z

shutters – lockdown 2 day 16

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Day 16 and counting. First they said it was going to be a 3-week lockdown but nobody really believed that. Now it will be extended but when and for how much longer I don’t know. As it is, we never get truthful info on just how many cases of COVID 19 there are on Paros… Last I heard the free testing day resulted in 12 cases being diagnosed. No idea how many more there might be which haven’t been tested.

Yet my days are busier than ever with mom and mom-related activities.

Meanwhile this is me right now:

Not easy to type with a kitten wanting to be hugged all the time. When he isn’t typing for me he’s climbing all over me and yowling if I put him on the ground. sigh. Worst still is he’s learned to climb up my legs (ouch) to get up onto my lap.

What’s really wierd is that this little guy is getting under my skin. Maybe its the way he just sits and stares at me, or the fact that he wants to be on me all the time, purring and rubbing against me. Maybe its that he even made my mother (who hates cats and who swore at me for taking in Spartacus who gave us all ringworm) laugh with his cute face and antics with an empty paper bag.

This morning he played with the paper bag and ran around a while then went quiet. I looked for him everywhere as I wanted to put him in the bathroom when I went out and couldn’t find him. Thought he’d gotten under the couch again. The paper bag was in the middle of the floor so as I passed it I scooted it out of the way with my foot. Odd… heavier than usual. Turns out the little ratbag was asleep IN the paper bag!

I’ve always loved all animals and can’t resist helping any animal in need. Yet so far I’ve managed to resist keeping a cat. I’ve thought about it but always managed to say NO. I’m not sure if I actually want to give this boy up. Maybe logic will prevail if I can find him a good home.

Ya think?

Still, at least I managed to do something different today. My cousin asked me to paint the shutters in his ‘attic’ room… This is what I did.

The paint dribbles started accidentally cause the surface wouldn’t hold the watered down paint, but I loved the broken up look of the paint where it didn’t hold on the surface properly so I kept going. A thicker layer of paint held but I liked the result. I love accidents. Sometimes the best bits are the unexpected bits.

I’m not sure my cousin feels the same way. It might be too ‘arty’ for him, but that’s ok, I’m happy to redo if so.After all, he’s the one paying (in coffee…). I’ve been wanting to do octopus tentacles on his living room wall or on the ‘aloni’ (a cemented threshing circle in the yard) for years, at least I got a chance to do them SOMEWHERE in his house!

I really am missing working steadily without interruption. Today was a great day, but I only got to be creative for a very short time, the rest of the day being spent with other people, albeit happily. Tomorrow looks like the entire morning is blown… but I intend to put my foot down about Tuesday. I’m going NOWHERE. In the words of Alan Jackson:

I parked my car ’round back
I’ve got the shades pulled down
I told everybody including my mama
I was leaving town…

I’m just a rockabilly country hillbilly r’n’r dancing greek australian arty creative dog cat and animal loving (especially poodle loving) Netflix addicted home renovator book reading dog grooming blogger living on Paros in a tiny house surrounded by things I love and a serious case of garden envy.

That’s all she wrote folks!

See ya tomorrow!

z

bone charm – lockdown 2 day 15

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Sharing a little charm I made for a bit of leftover air dry clay the other day. A lady I know has the most gorgeous silver bone charm on a chain around her neck and I really wanted one. So… not finding one, I made my own.

It might not be as fine or silver, but I still like it. It’ll be fun to wear in summer.

I made this a few days ago but finished it yesterday afternoon with a couple of coats of varnish and a large jump ring.

This post is a day late (again) cause I got busy with mom last night. Yeah, curfew is at 9pm so I had to be home by then, but I made the mistake of starting to watch Messiah on Netflix and I got hooked. I couldn’t get off till my eyes started to close around 12.30am.

Eric the kitten is starting to settle in a little. He doesn’t always run and hide when I walk close to him (like he did yesterday when I spent about 15min trying to get him out from under the couch). He’s using the litter tray reliably, cuddled while watching Netflix with me last night, and even started to approach Lainee for friendship. She continues to not be impressed and told him so, but she’s gentle. I think she’ll come around. I still don’t want a cat, but he has something special. Even mom was saying how cute he was and laughing at his antics. And she dislikes ‘filthy cats’!

And now I have to go. I got stuff to do! Can’t sit around on the computer all day!

z

dog with ball – lockdown 2 day 14

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Before I say anything else, let me apologise for the pitiful photos. As I mentioned, I still haven’t found a good spot/setup for inside photography, even when using the camera instead of my phone.

Its been really cold, wet and windy here lately so going outside isn’t happening, and inside is just not well lit enough to take decent pics.

Anyhow, here is a finished dog sculpture: dog with ball. He was made the same way as the others – starting with cardboard, wire and foil, then papier mache and papier mache clay for the details. This little man was finished using fabric decoupaged on, not stitched like the first dog – Stitch. (yep, that’s his name!)

As I said, the photos are pathetic. Sigh. I really hope I get this right soon.

Here is the step by step gallery:

I love working with paper mache clay and now I’ve used all the bought stuff I’m going to have a go at making my own. I’ll keep you informed on how that goes… (or doesn’t).

So… looking for opinions. Do you like the finish? Better or worse than Stitch? Fabric or no fabric? Natural clay colour or paint?

I kinda like the old frayed fabric on the face…

Meanwhile at home things are not quiet… this cat (below) has decided she lives in my house and has been coming to my bedroom door/window every night and scratching at the flyscreen to be let in. My back yard (courtyard) is a cat-free zone so I don’t appreciate her digging up and pooping in my pots. I’ve put skewers in them now, but hopefully she won’t get into the yard any more cause today my neighbour had had enough of her pooping in HIS pots and he put up some wire where she was getting in. Clever girl was jumping through a small gap in his side fence and then leaping up and squeezing past my very unsturdy bamboo divider fence.

I’ve been calling her Fluffy, yeah real imaginative, I know. But I had to be able to differentiate her from Bob who looks similar but has a short coat and I really can’t think of another name!

Up till now every night when I hear her scratching at the flyscreen I’d been getting up and letting her in, then scooting her out the front door. When it got really cold I let her sleep in the bathroom one night. But that’s it. No cats in my house (she says… hmph)

I’m not a monster. Its cold out there. I’ve been running around the neighbourhood providing boxes, old drawers and plastic crates lined with cardboard and mats for cats to sleep in. I put them in undercover areas where they’ll be protected from the wind and rain. And today, to top it off, I went and bought a small dog kennel for the silver kitten (who I’m calling Selina as she’s the colour of moonlight) and Fluffy to share on my front porch since they are friends. I have no undercover areas at all.

And then… this morning… I heard a pitiful cry outside and found him!

Eric. A small kitty, bigger and healthier than Spartacus who gave me ringworm or staph or something. This boy is about 2 months old and healthy except for the fact that he’s had diarhea from his new food and I don’t know how to deal with it… He uses the kitty litter but didn’t make it last time and did it on my new rug (NO!!!!! HORRORS!!!) so he’s locked in the bathroom close to the litter box till tomorrow. Fingers crossed his tummy settles…

He really is sweet and gorgeous but I’m not a cat person. I have a low grade allergy to cats and cuddling him all afternoon hasn’t agreed with my skin which is now itchy… I know I can/will develop some kind of resistance, but hopefully I’ll find him a great home or soon as he’s big enough to stand his ground he will move out and share the dog kennel with Fluffy and Selina.

Why do kittens keep finding me? If I see kittens near big cats I leave them be, after all, one of them is probably the mother, right? But when they’re alone and have been outside crying for over an hour or two? sigh. I can’t help myself.

z

marble paintings & more – lockdown 2 day 7

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Time to share some marble paintings I made the other day and forgot about. How do you forget about stuff you made? Well, you set it aside to photograph, then forget about it. Easy.

No need to adjust the screen. These ones are free-er and more watercolour-ey than my usual work which is a little more detailed. I like them though.

So, other than that what have I been doing? More errands with mom. And more errands for mom who forgot her walking stick in a store so I had to go back for it, and forgot to get some pills so I have to go back this evening to get them. Oh while I’m in town for the pills, I may as well swing by yet another supermarket to get something else she forgot she needed.

I had forgotten my shopping list when I went out this morning so didn’t get things I wanted, so figured thats ok, I’ll get them this evening. Then I’ll stay in all day tomorrow and not go anywhere AT ALL except to walk Lainee.

Then I remembered mom wants to go see her sister.

Sigh…………………………………………………

I miss being lonely…

Meanwhile, when I was making the bed yesterday I found an old sheet or something which was given to me as a gift a few years ago. It has the best embroidery on one end and I was going to make it into a curtain for my bedroom. No more visibility when I have the light on.

However I decided it would look just as good, if not better, as a temporary bed skirt to hide the suitcases I keep under the bed for storage. I plan to paint them all white when I get painting stuff out, but till then this works nicely.

Nice. Even a small change like that can make my day.

Note: I love my suitcases, but all white would look better.

The wild little kitten I took to the vet a few weeks ago with a severe respiratory infection is back. She was always very wild but she got so sick she let me pick her up! The couple in the end house cared for her till she got better and she hung around their place as they continued feeding her. She’d been living somewhere up the hill and disappeared when the couple returned to Athens. Thankfully she’s back and today ate some dry food I put out for her at the feeding station outside my place. Hopefully she’ll come down here to eat from now on and not disappear again. And hopefully she’ll learn to trust me so I can touch her and take her to the vet when she needs spaying.

Another cat without a name… though this one looks like a lemur with her striped tail so a good lemur name will be ideal. In the cartoon movie Madagascar one lemur is Julien but that’s wrong for a girl kitty… maybe Julia. Aye Aye is cute though… Any thoughts? I need two names that suit greeks too. One for the fluffy kitty and one for the kitten.

And I made another friend… How cute is this little guy?

z

gone to the cats – lockdown 2 day 6

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This is what I saw coming down the hill from my walk with Lainee this morning…

And here’s a closeup.

I don’t know these cats’ names, but I call them Fatcat on the left and Stubby on the right cause she’s a very small compact cat. Both very cute and sweet, they were waiting for me to give them a pat.

A bit further on I see Gringa waiting for me on the wall.

And the newest cat on the block. She doesn’t have a name. I took her in to be spayed about 2 weeks ago and she is gorgeous. She hangs around but never seems hungry enough to eat the dry food I put out so she’s obviously getting food from somewhere. She’s incredibly cuddly and purry.

Lastly Bob, who followed me the rest of the way home, cause she actually lives outside my place in a crate I have there (yes, Bob is a girl. If you can have a boy named Sue, you can have a female cat named Bob). She and Gringa and Cheeky cram themselves into that crate at night. They belong to my neighbour and greet me every time I open the door.

NMC (Not My Cat) is still around, though no longer sleeping on my patio. The girl cats made sure to let him know he’s no longer welcome there. But he’s here every morning for some breakfast of cat kibble.

Anyway, I have no finished projects to share yet but I have been busy. I’m working on a ton of things all at once – I’m making sculptures, experimenting with mixed media and have a couple of wood projects on the drawing board, What that means is that one day soon I’ll have a ton to share as each piece gets finished.

At least that will keep you interested!

z

i am not a cat person…

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I’m not a cat person.

That doesn’t mean I don’t like, or even love cats. It just means I don’t want to actually OWN a cat. I don’t want one in my house, leaving hair on my couch or pillow or walking on my table and benchtops.

It apparently means that I’ll have cats living all around me, feed cats, look after sick kittens, take cats to be neutered etc…

This is what I see when I come home from work every day:

My neighour’s cats enjoying some sun or shade on my porch wall. Yes, I put the little rugs out there for them. I mean, I want them to be comfortable… I put them on my director chairs, and on the wall… I even provide a box for them to sleep in…

That tricolour cat has managed to sneak into my house and hide a couple of times. I come home to be greeted by her coming out of my bedroom stretching, saying “Thanks. That was a great nap.”

One of them, Gringia (which means Whiney), also enjoys my lemongrass.

So, for a non-cat person, I sure have a lot of cats around…

Anyway, we’ve had the most wonderful weather for the last two weeks. Amazing. Its now October and we’re still swimming!! Glorious weather, no wind, swimming pool calm beaches…

Obviously, with weather like that projects and housework take a back seat. This weather won’t last long… I’m gonna enjoy the quiet beaches for a long as I can.

z

the kitten

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This is Spartacus. He’s the tiny kitten I found outside my place, covered in ringworm.

I got him treated. I got him vaccinated. I washed him in special shampoo. I fed and cared for him while keeping him in isolation in my tiny back enclosed yard.

He got better, but not before infecting Lainee with ringworm which she is only now getting over. As for my ‘spots’… a staph infection, I can’t totally blame Spartacus as I could have got that anywhere from scratching at a mosquito bite and infecting it.

Anyway, mom was dead set against a cat and more upset due to him spreading his ringworm to us. In her mind he’s a filthy animal and needs to go.

When I found him I thought for sure I’d keep him. He was so tiny and helpless and cute. Of course as he grew and got stronger and healthier he turned into hell on wheels… due mostly of course to having spent weeks in isolation without enough human interaction.

So, I thought it was a sign for me to get a cat… an indoor house cat at that. Then I realised that he’d have to be an outside cat cause I often go away for weeks or months at a time. I can’t leave him in the house or in the yard even if my neighbour is good enough to feed him for me. He needed to be a free cat. After neutering of course.

Then one day my mom told me a neighbour told her that his brother was looking for a cat. Theirs had died and they wanted another… I was wary at first… but it turned out to be the best home Spartacus could wish for!

He now lives on a farm with an older retired couple who adore their animals. They live on Paros all year round and Sparky will be an indoor/outdoor cat. He’s now got playmates in all shapes and sizes. There are sheep, goats, chickens, a dog, a donkey and 2 cows. And he’s already chasing mice. They are besotted with him.

I’m so pleased. And really incredibly lucky. There are so many abandoned cats and kittens on the island, they could have gotten one anywhere, but Sparky was the lucky one.

z

flowering plants and tiny feet

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It took a while, and most of the seeds I planted either didn’t grow or died, but I finally got some flowers! Below is the lavatera my friend Ginny gave me in Tasmania a few years ago. They are by far the easiest seeds to grow and I got quite a few plants going. I gave most of them to friends to put in their gardens to ensure at least some of them make it. One of the ones I kept is now flowering on my porch.

The sweet peas I ordered from England (unfortunately I didn’t bring any from mine in Tassie) are doing well and starting to bloom. First came pink and purple, now I have one white flower as well.

As for the rest of the million and one seeds I planted, I have ONE foxglove and 4 snap dragons. Colours to be seen. And not a single granny’s bonnet. sigh.

I mentioned tiny feet though, didn’t I?

A couple of days ago I heard a tiny kitten miaowing loudly outside. So I checked it out, as I would. There was a tiny little orange and white kitten on the wall outside my neighbour’s place.

So, here’s the story so far… I picked him up and was blown away by his bright blue eyes. But he looked like he’d been injured, he had a couple of spots which looked like he’d been rubbed in the dirt… and the end of his tail was completely bald with a black tip which looked necrotic. Plus his tiny little paws were swollen and looked sore in a way that reminded me of my darling Billybear who had auto-immune issues.

I did what I do: I rushed him to the vet to be checked over. The vet said he had a fungal infection and the sores MIGHT be an injury but they MIGHT be caused by him chewing on himself. He said the swollen paws were probably from the same thing: licking them too much. And that he was about 2 months old.

He prescribed shampoo – said to wash him every second day. Said that it wasn’t toooo contagious, that Lainee would probably not get it, that I would probably not get it, we’d have to have open sores or a compromised immune system to get it. Just to wash him and feed him and that he’s playful and feisty so there isn’t much wrong with him other than that. It will clear up with time…

I then proceeded to spend 80+ euros on the shampoo, kitten food, a litter tray, kitty litter and a scoop. Cause how on earth was I going to look after a kitten without that stuff?

I know, I know… Why spend so much money on a kitten I wasn’t going to keep? Well… two answers really.

One (the sensible Zefi one) is that I should have kept the stuff I bought last time I cared for a kitten cause I know who I am.

Second (the not so sensible Zefi one) is saying ‘But he’s SOOOO cute!’ and ‘I’ve been thinking about getting a kitten’ and ‘he was meant for me’ and other such guff.

I can’t tell you which one is winning.

Yet.

I can tell you I’ve given him 3 baths in 3 days to kick start the healing cause I’m currently on the way to Athens to do some stuff and take mom to the doctor etc. I clipped his nails.* I’ve made him a little home in the back ‘yard’ where he can play and sleep and eat safely while I’m away. I’ve organised for my neighbour (the poor guy who always has to water my plants when I go) to feed and wash him.

*Nails. Clipped. Yep. Why? Have you ever tried to wash a kitten? Scratches. No open sores, right? sigh. I lathered myself with soap and pure alcohol and am keeping my fingers crossed. I’m pretty paranoid about skin infections and other little organisms that live on the skin. eeek.

But he’s so darn cute! And he purrs so loud! And Lainee won’t lie in my lap and watch TV…

Meanwhile Lainee isn’t too impressed. He’s not scared of her but she’s choosing to ignore him. So far he can’t jump on the couch (plus I’m not really allowing him the run of the house till his infection clears up) so she’s safe up there. She does think his food is pretty good though. Thankfully she’s shown no interest in ‘kitty crunchies’ yet.

He has no name yet. Maybe its cause I’m still not sure I should keep him.

I don’t NEED a cat. I don’t NEED another pet. I sure as hell don’t need cat hair on the couch.

But he purrs so loud and Lainee won’t cuddle while I watch TV…

z

Time flies…

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Or drags. It really depends on where you are and what you’re doing.

Lately it just feels like there isnt enough time in the day to get anything done. Partly its cause I’ve been working the 1-7-but-more-like-7.30pm+-shift at work.

It sucks. I always have things to do in the mornings and even though Lainee makes sure I’m up by 8am every day, I never seem to have time to just relax… let alone do the stuff on my to do list.

I really have no idea where time goes, but it just goes.

There are pills to take (for both us girls), then errands to run, not to mention walks to take. If I can squeeze in a quick swim I do it. I’m on greek island for petes sake! I’ve taken to wearing my swim suit when I leave home cause you never know… there’s nothing worse than finding yourself near a great beach on a gorgeous day without swimmers. In fact being on Paros and not being able to swim is my worst nightmare…

After work its rush home to walk the girlie, grab something to eat before its too late according to my stomach’s schedule, then its socialize and chat and drinks till at least 11pm… cause I’m on a greek island for petes sake!

So what keeps me so busy you ask? Well, there are always things that need doing, you know, normal living things like washing, grocery shopping, chasing up lawyers regarding buying my own place, stopping to chat with every person I meet, pat every dog I see… and dog grooming.

The middle of the day work thing is kinda annoying. But its only for this month apparently… then I go to morning shift.

I’m eager to get to the 9am start so I can have an uninterrupted afternoon to myself.

And as if that wasn’t enough I found a sick little kitten on the road and picked him up. No one could take him on for 3 days. The animal welfare societies on the island are volunteer run and everyone is already up to their armpits in kittens. Its that time of year when kittens are born to stray cats or are dumped in dumpsters by uncaring cat owners.

So I had this tiny little man who needs antibiotics once a day and eye drops twice a day for a while. And he’s so cute… and he and Lainee were ok together… but I DO NOT WANT A CAT.

I love all animals but I don’t necessarily want to live with or care for them all. And cats are too sheddy. And they jump on surfaces I’d rather not have decorated with cat hair. And I don’t need another pet to feed or vet. Right now its still a toss up as to whether I can afford to support myself, let alone a pet or two.

When a dinner out costs as much or more than you earn in a day… well… it doesn’t look promising.

z