My Cat in the Back - A Midnight Tale

I couldn’t believe my ears. Then I heard it again; it was my cat.  There’s nothing too strange about hearing him; except that he NEVER comes in the back of the house. Well, almost never; at least not for about 3 years now. And, he has a good reason.

It was almost 3 years ago that Midnight took his celebrated solo flight attached to the talons of a local hawk. The backyard at that time was not as well developed as it is now, and many of the neighbors hadn’t even planted a tree or erected a fence yet. So, the back was basically on long open field, long enough to land a small plane on. This is exactly what the hawk must have thought when he swooped down and grabbed Midnight.

Midnight has always been well fed, in spite of his somewhat haggard appearance. He has always gotten his tuna twice daily and some dry food is always in the bowl on the porch for him, along with his water. So he has never really been a lightweight. This point was proved when the hawk was forced to abandon his dinner about 3 houses down and 20 feet up. This meant that Midnight was about to go down 20 feet. It’s all relative to where you are at the moment.

So, down he came with a torn ear; the last grasp of the hawk’s talons desperately trying to hold on to his dinner. And, until the other evening, Midnight has refused to go back there again. This is why I was so surprised to hear his distinctive meow coming from beneath an old picnic bench which Sue uses to pot her plants.

He came out when I went to him, but he wasn't keen on hanging around for long. He was there on a mission. He usually comes home for dinner at about 5 o’clock. It was pushing 7 when he finally showed up looking for his tuna. So, he came around the house and caught my ear. Then we both walked back up front for his dinner. But as we crossed the back yard I did notice that he stuck awfully close to both the house and me.

Here is a song by Steve Earle which is probably pretty close to how the hawk feels when he’s up there. It’s from the 2008 album “Washington Square Serenade” by Steve Earle. Midnight generally likes his stuff, just not this song.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAmdOPCPu3A

Death from Above - A "Midnight" Story

This is a story about the cat who adopted us. His name is Midnight and he gets into all kinds of stuff he shouldn’t. For instance, there are several “strays” on my street; and even some “housecats”; but Midnight is the only one among them who can actually claim to have flown. Not once; but twice.

Now, there may be a cat somewhere in the neighborhood that has been “transported” via plane while locked in a cat carrier; but that hardly qualifies as real flying. Midnight has actually flown; although his 2 flights were mostly freefall. Let me recap those adventures and explain the picture above, which is the result of his 2nd; and latest; “solo.”

Midnight’s first flight occurred in the middle of the afternoon. He was traversing the open area in back of our house; which is about the length of two football fields; when a large shadow loomed over him; and then; in an instant; lifted him off the ground; higher than he had ever been.

A hawk had been circling overhead, and with his infra-red, heat sensing capabilities, said hawk spotted Midnight and came roaring down to snatch him up for a meal. Luckily we feed him too much; he is very spoiled; and so the hawk was unable to hold him for more than about 200 feet horizontally, and about 40 feet vertically. Midnight was very spooked by the whole thing and I have to say that he put up as much of a fight as one can while being suspended by the scruff of your neck 40 feet in the air.

In the end his first flight lasted about as long as the Wright Brothers did at Kitty Hawk. The only real difference is that I had no camera at hand. Midnight suffered a torn ear which has never really healed properly; causing him to have a very strange “meow” as a result of some hearing loss. Doesn’t matter; he still lets us know when he’s hungry. He just doesn’t play in the back anymore.

Now; as for the picture above; we are actually only guessing that this latest injury was the result of another “air raid.” We’re basing that premise on the fact that if it wasn’t a bird which attacked him, then it would have to have been a very large coyote; about as big as a Great Dane; or a bear so weak that when he bit Midnight’s head he didn’t quite break the skin; just ripped off all his fur and left two white patches of skin, which have swelled a bit. I’m betting on the hawk.

Midnight’s reaction to this latest outrage has been pretty interesting. He came home and ate a tremendous amount of food; which is not all that unusual when he has been out all night. Then he went to sleep; waking up to be sick. He actually left the garage so as not to make a mess. “Bless his little heart”; as we say here in Dixie. Then he wouldn’t eat for a day or so, before disappearing again; with Sue and I thinking he had gone off somewhere to die.

Well, I guess we were wrong; or maybe it was the fact that we bought him a new bag of food and some tuna, betting against the odds that he wouldn’t return. At any rate, he came home the next day; along with his appetite. And we were really glad to see him.

He depends upon us for so much. He doesn’t know how to kill or hunt. He watches birds take the food from his bowl. He plays with grasshoppers; swatting them with his closed paws; gently prodding them so that they will hop. He’s basically helpless. So, he really needs us to survive. And when he’s gone; we realize how much we need him, too. I wish he could read this, just to know how important he has become…

The Cat House

Midnight, our resident stray, has a new home. After over a year of trying to make him comfortable; while at the same time taking care of my own allergic reactions to him; he finally has a better home than he did for the last winter. At that time he was living in our garage on an old bedspread with a heating pad to help him keep warm. This year the heating pad will be located at one end of his wicker home, and connected to a timer, which will offer him a few options in relation to how much heat he actually wants.

It’s been a year in which we have come to know one another a bit better, each respecting the others limitations and idiosyncrasies more than we first did. For instance; I now know that he strikes me with his paw as a sign of affection after I stop playing with him; while he has learned to not use his claws on me. Since he does live outdoors I cannot have his nails clipped, as that would leave him defenseless.

He has also learned not to wander too far from home, stranding himself in other people’s garages without food or water for several days. He has also learned not to cross the big open yard in back of our house which makes him a convenient target for the many hawks in the area. Last year he was actually swept up by one of these aerial predators. It was a short flight which left his ear damaged from the hawk’s talons. It actually changed the pitch of his “meow.”

The new home is of wicker construction, and was acquired by Sue at a yard sale for less than one dollar. I had already purchased a “cat bed” for him, complete with catnip, but he just kind of looked at it in a curious manner. He never even tried to lie down in it.

By contrast, from the moment Sue bought this wicker palace home, Midnight was very much interested in it. There is even a sun roof for him on top to use on nicer days. Currently, we are furnishing the inside, using Snoopy's doghouse as a guide for what Midnight might like. A small pool table is not out of reach; and a transistor radio or tummy TV is certainly affordable. But the Van Gogh is definitely out.

Daveste’ Vineyards - Troutman, North Carolina

Sue and I went to the Davesta' Vineyards, located about 25 miles north of us in Troutman yesterday. North Carolina has some very good local wines, a resource that dates back to colonial days in the area, and has recently enjoyed a revival. Daveste' Vineyards is the first one to open in Iredell County, just north of Mooresville. With 52 acres of grapes, this little vineyard puts out some fine wine.

The grounds are beautifully kept, the white building to the right in the photograph houses the actual winery, where tours are available twice a day. There is also a "Tastery" where you can sample the various wines, or, if you prefer, order a glass of your favorite locally grown wine. I chose a Merlot, which had been aged for 14 months in a wooden cask. Full bodied and smooth, it was a fine change from the more "thin" tasting Merlots that one usually encounters in more expensive wines.

The Daveste' Vineyards is also a wonderful place to simply stroll around, looking at the pond and the animals is both soothing and educational. Luckily, we arrived on an "educational" day.

The tree at the edge of the pond is home to a large birdhouse. Two black snakes, probably looking for food, were in the birdhouse, and having already eaten the eggs, were trying to make good their escape from the scene of the crime. But every time they got about 3, or 4 feet of themselves out of the birdhouse, someone was there to take a picture, forcing them to retreat back inside.

It went on in this manner for some time, as people came and went, taking pictures as they did. To complicate matters there was a tree across the pond, upon which sat a huge hawk, watching and waiting out the two snakes. I don't know what happened after we left, but my money was on the hawk.

A great local excursion for a cloudy Sunday afternoon. And the glass of Merlot made it just that much better.