It’s here. It’s finally here. My beloved September has arrived, and I can finally begin to unwind. Spring is uncomfortable, but summer is downright hellish for me, and seeing the back side of it fills me with a peace I wait desperately for each year.
While the actual transition to autumn has yet to occur, Labor Day weekend has come and gone, and with it the tourists and snowbirds have returned to their respective living arrangements. (For the most part; there are still four cruise ships scheduled to dock here.)
Every September I have a little ritual. I go out each day and take a deep breath, waiting for the crisp, refreshing scent of fall’s arrival. It varies from year to year, especially when summer clings to the jamb on the way out the door, but usually by the third week or so it’s there, and the last of my summer stress dissipates. (Seriously, summer stresses me out like you wouldn’t believe. I hate it so much.)
A lot of people do a spring cleaning. I do a fall nesting. I get my house in order, get things purged and sorted, and generally prepare my space for a cozy little hibernation. This year I have an insane amount to do as my summer was co-opted by kittens and TNR and everything I intended to get to while taking the summer off from my return to school was pushed back until…oh…about now. (I did manage to break down roughly a year’s worth of cardboard boxes and take them to the recycling depot last week. I’d say “baby steps” but I really don’t have time for that. It’s September already!) I’m still working on the farm TNR, but we’re on the (hopefully) tail end of the colony provided no more surprise litters appear.
Speaking of surprises…
Remember the little disabled kitten I rescued and rehabilitated? Well, her pending forever home (with an occupational therapist!) had a change in circumstances and was unable to adopt her, so…
Shut up, okay? Just shut up. You all knew what was going to happen and NO ONE TOLD ME. Someone could have said something. Given me a heads up. I was sleep-deprived and strung out and NO ONE SAID ANYTHING ABOUT HER BEING MY KITTEN EVEN THOUGH YOU ALL SAW WHAT WAS COMING.
Her name is Pequeña Buena Suerte de Gato. Pico for short. She just got her Big Girl vaccines and a full workup including new x-rays and she is in great shape. Her labs are all normal for her age, her films show vast improvement in her spinal defect (kyphosis), and her incontinence issues are slowing to a trickle (maybe one accident a week now). The vet thinks that, given her results, she should have a near normal life span for an indoor cat. She’s cat number six in the James Household, and we have officially caught our limit. (I keep saying that. I do not think it means what I think it means.)
Her feline siblings all love her (especially Old Man Cat, Lord of Chaos) and she is teaching Her Majesty Queen Penelope (two years old this month!) how to play. Her Majesty was a solo kitten and never really learned the nuances of feline behavior, and the others were Too Grown Up to really play with a kitten. Now Penelope has a friend nearer her age and energy level (I was seriously worried Her Majesty would not take kindly to a new addition as she is a major league spoiled brat in every respect) and they can be found playing together more often than not. The only one who gets a little short with her is the eldest girl, Wyrd Cat, and that’s just because she is In Charge Around Here and doesn’t like being pestered when she’s trying to nap. Pico is very respectful and when she gets a little too rowdy, she immediately corrects herself when told by a senior member of the horde to knock it off. She’s always making us laugh with her antics and is a fabulous addition to our family. She has her own Instagram if that’s something you’re into.
Her stat block:
In other news, I finally set a date for the release of Book 1 (you heard me) of The Midnight Tea Shop – June 2025. I know, it seems far away right now, but it’s ALREADY SEPTEMBER and I haven’t even finished the first draft. Folks who support me on Patreon at the CHECK FOR TRAPS level get the occasional excerpt of this and other WIPs, so if that’s your kind of thing, head on over there and see what’s what.
Given that my summer was taken up with kittens and other projects, I decided to take Fall Term off from school. I absolutely will not be able to play catch-up (my craft room is STILL filled with kitten toys; I plan on getting it back in fighting form this week so I can finally return to my long-overdue quilt projects), get through the holiday season, AND attend classes at the same time, so I plan to resume my education in January. There’s a small consolation that one of the classes I wanted was already full by the time I registered at the end of Spring Term, so maybe I’ll get in for Winter term. It’s a popular class that’s a core degree requirement so it fills up fast, and despite my priority registration (hello, SENIOR!) it was still filled by time I registered. So, maybe Winter Term.
I haven’t signed up for any new book promos over on Bookfunnel yet, but when I do I’ll let you know.
This is a really short newsletter and for that I apologize. I’ve just got so much to do. Stuff and things are in the works, and when I’m able to share news with you, I will.
Until next time,
Dina
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