As we enjoy the final Monday in April, here is a sure sign of the coming of summer-like weather to North Texas: Cat warming on a hood..
Pardon the photography, but I have been a keyboard man throughout my career, not a shutterbug.
This is, if all has gone well in reproduction, one of our feral cats, Smidge, on my pickup -- she had hoped, I believe, that the weekend would prove to be warmer than it was, thus the pickup would generate a comfy heat for her..
My funspouse Martha named our feral cats -- the big one is Moriarty and this one is inexplicably Smidge. I don't know why and Martha can't remember.
I shot this reflective photo through our Wildlife Observation Window -- the Window On the World, or WOW. Oh, OK, it was through the window in our garage door.
When the cat starts sleeping on your car, van or truck, that may be a sign that summer-like weather is coming, though I never see any of those certified meteorologists giving a Catnap Forecast for the next day. Why isn't the pickup in the garage? Too much other stuff in there already. Perhaps you have a similar situation.
There's something comforting about Smidge's comfort. If you don't have feral cats, I hope you get a couple someday. They'll like you as much as they need to and they'll listen while you talk -- they might respond with an irritated "mew", but they probably will look at you from a distance as if what you are saying either means less than nothing or annoys them. Some say it's like a marriage.
Shortly after this was snapped, Smidge got up and left. I don't know how long she'd been there. If all goes as last year, Smidge and Moriarty will spend the warm evenings sleeping on every corner of that solar-heated pickup.
LOST IN CORSCIANA: Last week we mentioned Derrick Days in Corsicana and the festival's final day led to a challenge for the Wossum Family.
About 10 p.m. Saturday, the family's three Yorkies went out for their bedtime walk.
Gizmo, the family's adventurous Yorkie, didn't come back.
Rachel Wossum reports that the family immediately began a full flashlight and automobile search for him, fearing that he had "ventured too far" from his yard.
He was last seen on Park Row near Hidden Hills.
It is possible some nice family took him in and doesn't know what to do with him -- the 9 pound dog is microchipped but wasn't wearing a collar or tag.
"Gizmo is a 'very important' part of his family," Rachel writes. "He is so loved and we are having a very hard time with this."
If you've seen Gizmo or know his whereabouts, call 903-641-333 or 903-651-1863.
REMINDER AND CATCHING UP: Over the weekend we posted a note about the proposed Dallas animal ordinances. You can still scroll down and click on all the links or you can go to the Dallas City Hall site outlining the proposals by clicking HERE. ... Last week we mentioned a little terrier named Ladybug who was waiting for rescue at the Prairie Paws Adoption Center in Grand Prairie. Shelter walker Debbie Barclay reports that a rescue group took the dog. "A huge thank-you to the group who took her," Debbie writes. "As I don't know which group it is yet, please introduce yourself." We'd like to know, too, so we can give proper credit and perhaps, now that she's off the clock, help Ladybug find a home. ... The admirable spay and neuter group, Friends of the Animals at Cedar Creek Lake, is running a "cat surgery special" on May 6 at the Friends Low-Cost Spay/Neuter Clinic in Gun Barrel City. That day spaying, normally $35, will be $28. Neutering, usually $25, will drop to $20 on May 6. Your cat has to have an appointment. Call 903-887-7387. For those unfamiliar with cat anatomy, spaying is for females and neutering is for males. The vet will explain it to you.
THE DOGS IN SALLISAW: We first got this tip last week from noted rescuer Lou Olinger who got it from someone in Oklahoma who -- well, you know how these networking things go. So I got in touch with Tina Holman, the originator, best as I can tell.
The deal is these two dogs are in the city pound in Sallisaw. The story is they belonged to a doctor who "was in the reserves and he got called up due to a shortage of doctors."
He turned the two dogs -- Beau the Lab and Blueberry the heeler -- over to Sallisaw Animal Services. ACO Randy Freeman is a member of the board of Forever Friends Humane Society and has been trying to find someone to take these two victims of circumstance.
In this photo, they appear to be very unsure of what's happening in their lives. The heeler's ears usually stick straight up. To help these dogs, e-mail Tina at [email protected] or get in touch with the Sallisaw shelter HERE.
CONTEMPLATIONS: Miley Cyrus is writing her memoirs and so far, this week, the biggest crisis in her life is a photo shoot for Vanity Fair. She's 15. The book is due out next year. Between now and then, if you have literate teens around the house, maybe you could have your youngsters read another memoir by a 15-year-old: Anne Frank; The Diary of A Young Girl. Then they'd learn that an unfortunate photograph is nothing compared to the Nazis. Perspective, you know? ... What about Flawless? It's an entertaining, beautifully photographed diamond caper film starring Michael Caine and Demi Moore and, son of a gun if Demi doesn't actually act. It's set in an era when women were rare in boardrooms and "clever" was more appreciated than "caliber." It is an oddly sweet movie. Saw it Sunday at the Magnolia in Dallas. It was released in Europe a year ago. ... Worse household problem? Drain that won't drain or faucet that drips? If they're in the same sink, you've got a fun project ahead of you.