The ground it still too wet to work in the garden, but that’s okay. I really needed to sort through the stuff we took out of the sun room and either get it back in there, or stored elsewhere.
I did not get much progress on it.
I got pulled away by other things. One, I remembered to finally bring the house plants in the portable greenhouse indoors. We’re now expected to drop to -2C/28F tonight, and the portable greenhouse isn’t enough to keep things from getting killed off by the cold.
I started going through the bins from the sun room and promptly had to empty several and hose them down. Everything was under the canopy tent, but it has no walls, so the winds blew quite a bit of rain onto everything, with some bins having quite a bit of water in them. So far, nothing seems to be water damaged, though. Still, it means having to let the bins dry out before they can be used again for sorting. Hopefully, I’ll be able to get things organized into bins that still have their lids, to keep the cats out.
Speaking of cats…
Another sidetrack was trying to figure out how to set up one of the heat lamps. I wanted to set the one with the 250 watt ceramic bulb over an area that is now open and has food trays in it. It took some doing, and a fair bit of twine for extra securing, but it’s now set up and turned on. I’m hoping it’s not too high, though. I still haven’t decided on where I want to hang the 150 watt heat lamp.
While I was working on various things, I started messaging with the new rescue. They were asking if the smokey kitten is still around, which it is. As we were messaging and I was figuring out the heat lamp set up, I spotted something poking out from under the cube shelf that is up on bricks.
A pair of hind feet.
It was a passed away kitten. The white with tabby grey markings that Frank adopted with her own littles. He had one eye that would get stuck shut, and I’d washed it for him, just this morning. As with the others I found, he showed signs of diarrhea.
I took the time to bury him right away, then decided to give the cats an early feeding, as they were doing a lot of begging. After all the kibble was set out, I brought a bowl of kitten soup for Frank’s littles and set that up in a shelf for just them.
I was on the look out for one of her three, because I hadn’t seen him this morning. This is another one that would have one eye getting stuck shut. There was still no sign of him. The one that would get both eyes stuck shut was there (and he got another eye wash with dinner), and the third one that has no issues at all was there, but no sign of the third tiny. I even used my phone’s camera to try and look under shelves, just in case. Nothing.
I updated the rescue while I was doing all this. They were asking about which cats/kittens were the priority for when the found an available foster. Frank and her littles, for sure. They are so young and tiny, their chances of surviving the winter are very low. There are a few others that are quite young and small, too, but Frank’s are the youngest and tiniest. Aside from them, any of the confirmed females that aren’t fixed yet are priority. There are kittens that are too feral to spot their genders, and would have to be trapped.
Today was a pretty chilly day – we actually exceeded our expected high and reached 11C/51F – and windy. Just windy enough that working outside started leaving me with ear aches, so I had to cut things short.
I did, however, spot these cozy cats.
Using that salvaged roof panel as a wall is working out fantastic! They get to be sheltered from the wind and can still enjoy the sun.
Before I headed inside through the sun room, I spotted this big cuddle puddle, also enjoying the sun.
There are nine kittens in this photo!
I’m rather disappointed with how little progress I got done today. Tomorrow is supposed to be colder than today, but the overnight low is supposed to be warmer, and then we’re supposed to warm up again for a few more days. Hopefully, the wind will have died down. I’m hoping to get lots done over the next couple of days, because on Thursday, my daughter and I are headed into the city. She is seeing an endocrinologist, finally. Thanksgiving weekend is supposed to get downright nice, except for Thanksgiving Day on Monday.
Hmmm. I will need to head outside to switch out the trail cam memory cards before it gets dark. I might just be able to get the garlic in, too, since that bed is ready, already. I haven’t prepped the garlic, though. Might not have time before it gets dark.
I’d better get my butt out there!
The Re-Farmer

Here, the expected low temperature tomorrow morning is 1C. Today’s high temperature was 28C and tomorrow’s high temperature is expected to be around 29C. I’m guessing the garden will soon be “closed for the season”.
I’ve considered getting some outdoor yard cats to control the mice, but the coyotes and owls…..
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Talk about temperature whiplash!!
I hear you about the predators. We do what we can to encourage the cats to stay close, but there’s no real way to keep them from wandering.
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These are normal temperature “whiplashes” here.
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