Quote of the day:

"In the kingdom of the brine, the warm eyed fish is king." - Carl Safina, Song for the Blue Ocean

Journal of a Sabbatical

October 16, 1998

sun and sumac

the book pile

Copyright © 1998, Janet I. Egan

The sun is out for the first time in a week. It lights up the changing leaves along 495 so brightly the sumac looks like torches. There sure is a lot of sumac. I don't think I noticed it so much when it was green, but its fiery red pinnate leaves make the whole roadside look like it's on fire.

With a drive-thru coffee in my hand and autumn's colors in my head, I'm practically singing on the way to the cat shelter. You'd think I'd never seen the sun before. A week without sun is a long time.

Peresido got adopted since the last time I was there. Keenan is in the sink trying to lick the wet food out of the cans soaking awaiting recycling. I guess the smell and taste of wet food overpowers the smell and taste of dish soap.

Chantal, world's heaviest cat, crams herself into a fairly small box, curling in a tight ball and mashing down the sides. The box is completely full and Chantal is sound asleep purring. Every once in awhile she wakes up to sneeze (she sneezes a lot but doesn't seem to have a URI).

Two gorgeous kittens who were dropped off at one of the feral feeding stations have been brought in to the adoption center. Martha named them Walter and Cronkite. Walter is all black - not a speck of any other color. Cronkite is black and white and very very very affectionate. Cronkite keeps trying to climb all over me while I am doing dishes.

Coal has been liberated from the ringworm room. No sign of ringworm.

Roberta is not working today because she's having back problems and carpal tunnel problems. We have enough people though. Besides me (taking Antonia's shift today) and Martha, there's Robin in for Roberta and new volunteer named Sue. I manage to wash dishes and litter boxes and do a zillion loads of laundry without feeling stressed out and falling behind. It's all in the perception. The amount of work doesn't change.

It's too gorgeous a day to read, but I'm hooked on Song for the Blue Ocean. I had no idea that swordfish have a muscle that produces no motion, only heat to warm its eyes and brain so it can dive through the thermocline into the deep in pursuit of its prey. Swordfish now goes on my list of extraordinary creatures along with tuna and quahogs.