Tiffany Painter

It’s Labor Day and that means the unofficial end of summer. While I will agree with my family and friends that this one was a tad bit warm, I still love summer. I prefer warmth to cold, but really it’s that I prefer sunlight. Long days are the best. In the winter, I shrivel up like a raisin when there is more darkness than lightness. I like to tell people I must have been a sunflower in a previous life. So this long three-day weekend is just the beginning of the end for me.

• No more waking with the sun at 6 am – especially if the powers that be get their way and take over the clocks.
• No more after dinner walks with the dog to get the mail – it will be cold and dark soon.
• No more enjoying an afternoon reading break on the front porch with a cold drink – again, it will be cold and dark by early afternoon.
• No more summer salads for lunch – the cans of chicken noodle soup will be taking over.
• No more working with just the natural light from the windows – thanks to the axis we rotate on, the light comes in at an angle and cast long shadows in the winter.

Well, that’s enough pouting from me. I will try to enjoy the here and now. Fall does bring perfect temperature days, tasty warm drinks, cozy sweaters, and cuddles with my kitties. I am going into this fall with three cats. There is Max my old man cat who is almost 17. His fur may not be as soft as it once was and he may not get around as well as he did in his prime, but he still loves to do yoga with me and enjoys when I add a few treats to his food bowl. Over the summer I got a new TV stand for the basement where Max sticks to himself. This one has an electric fireplace in it so he can enjoy some extra warmth when we watch TV together.

Then there is Mille. She is my soulmate. The universe sent her to me two years ago by way of a friend who fostered her. That was a year when everything was challenging and I just needed something to go my way. Mille was just the thing. She is so sweet and loves to hang out with me when I am writing or reading. If she wasn’t afraid of everything, she would make a great library cat.

Finally, there is my newest feline friend, Binx. He came to us on July 2nd when he needed a new home. He had been adopted two months before by my husband’s co-worker, but unfortunately, her resident cat wanted to stay an only child. I wasn’t looking for a third cat and was happy with the pet balance in my household, but the universe had other plans for me. This kitten is now six months old and I am counting down till he is two and not terrorizing the rest of us. He can go from sweet and charming to a panther living in the jungle in the blink of an eye. He has strong opinions on everything and isn’t afraid of letting me know them. And my husband loves him more than I think any other cat. Binx definitely makes things more interesting.

If summer must end, I am happy to be stuck inside with these three.

I read so much these last two months and will make a separate posting on all the books. Binx says it’s time to get off the computer and play. He’s in charge now.