The temperatures are supposed to increase again today; we’re looking at a high of 30C/86F in the forecast. As I write this, in the late morning, we’re already at 25C/77F, with the humidex putting us at 29C/84F
We’re supposed to stay in this range for the next while, too.
Just out of curiosity, I checked my app’s global temperature map and found our expected high of the day is almost the same as temperatures around the equator right now.
Fun stuff.
So I was out watering the garden again this morning. A job that was made easier today, too. Yesterday, I’d gone to the town north of us as the hardware store in that location carries the septic friendly bio stuff for drain and pipe maintenance.
I got three bottles.
Since I was there anyhow, I looked around other departments, including the section for hose repair and the like.
Which was right next to the display of various nozzles, some of which were at half price.
I ended up getting a spray wand, and a spare nozzle. We’re down to the two nozzles that are on the hoses now. I got these at Costco last year, as a two piece set. Once is the usual nozzle with several different spray options. The other lets you change the spray by turning the tip of the nozzle. I really dislike that one, because the finer spray just spreads out like an umbrella and wastes a lot of water.
I put the wand on the main garden hose and moved the good nozzle onto the front yard hose. We now have two spares.
I really like the new wand sprayer! I like being able to get in under the leaves and vines, and being able water more directly – and be less likely to step on vines in the process!
It was while I was watering in the south garden beds, at the chain link fence, that I met some strangers. I was collecting grass clippings to mulch around the self seeded tomato I transplanted last night, when I hear a cat meowing in the tall grass towards the pump shack. So I went to investigate.
I never found the cat I heard, but I did see a strangely orange … something… on the wooden box under one of the old fuel tanks.
Orange and… fluffy?
Of course, I had to go look.
Yup. It was an orange kitten!
We’ve had only two orange kittens in the yard. Brussel’s almost all orange one died, and Caramel’s orange and white one hangs out close to or in the sun room, most of the time.
I’m kinda happy to see another orange kitten. When we first moved here, the yard cats were almost all orange tabbies. Now, we’re down to one orange tabby adult, an orange and white adult, and an orange and white kitten. Having lost an all orange kitten already, it’s cheering to see another one.
Plus, orange cats are more likely to be males.
I managed to zoom in and get a picture, but as I tried to quietly move closer, a different kitten appeared in the same spot!
When I was able to get it to turn my way, I discovered it was a baby Hypotenose!
From what I could see, there are just the two kittens. Where they’ve been hiding out until now, or who the mother is, I have no clue. I don’t even know how many female cats we have anymore.
They are looking big enough and active enough that I expect them to start at least showing up at the food bowls under the shrine, soon.
At this point, we still don’t have a kitten count. They move around too fast and hide out in various places too much to get a firm number. Plus, as today has shown, there may still be more unknown litters that haven’t starting coming to the kibble, yet. On top of that, we may be having more losses, too – ones that I’m not finding and having to bury. It will probably be some weeks before we start to get an idea of how many survivors there are.
For now, whatever the number is, it just went up by two this morning!
The Re-Farmer
The Re-Farmer 