Thanksgiving

Geetings my friends. Thanksgiving is this week in the United States, so in this light, I think I'll look back on my short life (I'm only 8 months old) and tell you all the things I'm grateful for.

First let me tell you a little about my history. I started my life somewhere in California. The details of the first few months are sketchy, but sometime around my 4th month of life, I was taken to a shelter in Portland, Oregon called Woofin Palooza & Meowers Too! These good people assessed my temperament and took care of my physical health. (I'm talking about vaccines, i.e. shots! NO ONE likes shots, but they really do prevent very bad diseases that can sometimes be fatal!)

Now before I even arrived at the shelter, my human came looking for a feline traveling companion. She checked out a few, but felt no connection with any of them. The lovely lady at Woofin Palooza told her they were getting more kittens in that week and to come back later on. Now it so happens that I was in that group of kittens. When she came back, the lovely lady told my human that she thought she had found the perfect kitten for her. It was ME!! When we met, we connected and my human adopted me on the spot. I still needed all my shots (again, OCH but necessary) so she came back on that Friday, July 24, 2020, and picked me up. She let me acclimate to my new home for a week or so, then off we went. At first it was just short trips, pet supply stores, ect. But our first long trip was August 8, 2020 to Astoria, Oregon. That's just 2 weeks after she took me home. We've been traveling ever since.

Now you know where I came from and how I became a wandering cat. Let me tell you all the things I am grateful for.

First is my human.

           Me and my human at Silver Lake

She takes such good care of me; providing for my needs; noticing my likes (tress, salmon) and making sure I continue to get them; noticing my dislikes (wind, loud cars, loud boats, WATER, etc.) and tries to minimize my exposure to them. You know, good human stuff.

Second is a nice warm bed.

My human let's me sleep with her and I get to snuggle up close to her and feel her body heat. You know kittens like that. We started life sleeping in a heap of kittens! Of course we like that.

Third is I GET TO TRAVEL!

I don't get cooped up in an apartment somewhere never to go outside except to the vet (who pokes and prods and jabs you with needles. I know it is good for me, but it isn't a fun outing. Just say'in.) Of course lots of cats enjoy that lifestyle. They FREAK if they are taken out. But not me. I get antsy staying inside all the time. I need the earth under my paws, the sun on my back, the wind in my hair. OK, OK. I could do without the wind, but you know what I mean. I love to smell all the smells (I particularly love the smell of grass. Not sure why, but it is sooo awesome.)

                 Smell that good grass!

I can tell you who has been there before me (canines, deer, raccoons, birds, etc.) and I know if I need to worry (not usually, sometimes a canine freaks me out, but mostly they aren't even a problem.)

I have been all over the country already. I've hiked in Oregon, Washington, California, Wyoming, Nebraska, and even Illinois. Some of these trips I've shared with you on previous posts and some I'll share with you in the future, but it has been a fun ride and I'll only get to do more and more as I get older.

Fourth is TREES!!!

I love them. I love the smell of them and the feel of the bark on my claws. On every hike my human takes me, if there are trees, I'll climb at least one. I'm usually too fast for my human to get pictures of me in all those trees, but she has caught a few. Here are some.

I LOVE TREES!

Fifth is SALMON, SALMON, SAALMOOON!!!!

I'll do anything for salmon. My human gives me salmon treats everyday (thank you, thank you). And when we take our trips (usually on the weekends) she gives me real salmon mixed with my food. I like the traveling, but that REALLY makes it nice. Yes, salmon is the number one thing I'm grateful for.

                        YEA SALMON!!

Those are my top five. What are you grateful for? I've heard it has been a tough year for a lot of you, but try to come up with things you are grateful for. See if you can get five good things. Share them with me if you want. You can send them in an email to devinabbysw@gmail.com. My human will read them to me.

And, as always, keep wandering and have a grateful spirit. (Did I mention I'm grateful for salmon? Always grateful for salmon!)