Heh. My cat Bagheera now weighs 20 pounds. In his youth, he was quite elegant looking. (Sometimes even now, as he blends into a dark background.) I think I'll try out the biscatti for him and his brother, Charlie.
Big cat! Our PK2 was 18 in his last years. I found it harder to keep the weight down because we had multiple cats and there was always food around. But we love them, whatever. ❤
Molly (our 20-yr-old heeler) has been on a green bean supplement to her diet since she was 4 (when we got her). It provides bulk, fiber, and some nutrition--and has controlled her weight. She weighs only 2 more pounds than she did when we got her. Not sure green beans would work in your situation, but I've read that other cat folks do feed them.
I loved the Cat who mysteries. And Khat has been one of my favorite characters. I miss our cats who died at the ripe old ages of 18 and 19. Yes, Siamese were a part of our household.
I am such a cat lover that I have read all the Cat Who books, many cozy mysteries with cats, and, of course, I have loved Khat in pecan Springs. Some of the many cats I have had and still have remind me of the literary cats. Enjoy the eclipse. Are you in the path?vwe are about forty minutes away.
These extras are utterly delightful. I love reading about PK1 and PK2, just wonderful! Interestingly, when I wrote the rough draft of my first herbal history mystery (as yet unpublished) in 2020 during lockdown, I felt certain that there was a cat in the story. So, I wrote him in and throughout the story he remains unnamed. He's a stray, taken in by my protagonist's sidekick who is later abducted. What with a murder, an abduction, and a mystery to solve, the poor little guy is just referred to as "the kitten" throughout until the epilogue when he finally receives his forever name and home. Ironically, I wrote about that sweet little smokey gray kitten in winter 2020 and in June a kitten who looked just like the one I described in my story showed up and has made his home here ever since. A little spooky and a lot magical! Looking forward to following Khat's adventures.
I appreciate the sketch of Thyme & Seasons and The Crystal Cave, etc. I have pictured it in exactly the opposite layout for years, CC on the right and T&S on the left. The rest in the back I saw the way it is shown.
Leenie, that IS a spooky story about your gray kitten! I really have to believe that there is (somewhere in the Universe) a Great Distribution Center with a compassionate staff that monitors the placement of cats--they go where they are needed. Thanks for sharing the story--makes me smile.😘
The Guild irises came today in great shape. I put them in a pot because it looks as if I might be moving later in the year! Thank you so much for the memories.
This is so inspiring! I'm enjoying the new-to-me Khat story and I am inspired about your work-in-progress insights. I will probably comment again once I read through all the extras and recipes. Time for chair yoga and tea with a couple of friends. Have a beautiful day and thanks!
Leenie, as a writer, you might be interested in taking a look at the original story--view it as a draft of this, and see the turn it takes when another viewpoint is inserted. It's a good example of VP shift, and how you can use it to take the story in different directions. The original is in An Unthymely Death and Other Garden Mysteries, available via Overdrive/Libby or in print, used.
I found it on Thrift Books and it should be on it's way to me within a few days. I look forward to reading it as one cohesive story as well as in the serial form here. Thanks!
Great! I'll be interested in hearing what you learn from comparing the published "draft" (which was of course the product of several original drafts) with the Substack rewrite! And your thoughts about the reading differences of serial and full-text formats.
It's always like going home when I step through the door of Time and Seasons. It is a magical place where you immediately become part of family. I have read all of Lillian Jackson Braun's Cat Who books and loved them as well. I am like China where I can take it or leave a cat but Khat and Braun's khan's are a whole different story. Eagerly awaiting the next installment.
China and I love it that you think of the herb shop that way, Peggy. It's magical for me, too! And yes, Braun really started something with the Cat-Whos.
China Bales book is on my audible wish list. I have been looking forward to it for a long time. China is a friend of mine, just like Anne George's southern sisters and Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum. Rita Mae Brown's series with Mrs Murphy and her series with her fox hunting friends are all places that I visit and revisit. I am having a little trouble finding new friends as all of the mentioned have either come to a closing point or have already gone. And I forgot the cat who books, which have always been on the list as well. It is part of getting old....er but, boy am I thankful. For every single one. They have made me laugh, helped to distract me when life has been hard. ( I lost my children 5 months apart) . They have taken a bad mood and turned it around. But they have taken a good day and made it better. My pets have achieved the same. I cannot imagine a world without books and pets.
Fictional friends are wonderful--and never the least bit of trouble or worry. 😉 I'm so glad to hear from another re-reader. I love going back to the people and places in a familiar book. And so agree with you: without book friends and animal companions, our world would be bare. And cold!
I like how Khat works into the storyline. I actually have two of the essential oil books you mentioned from a two year course in Essential Oils. We use them in many ways and I cook with a few, like Lemon and Peppermint. Have helped family and friends with several issues, including healing after skin radiation and emotional issues, such as SAD (seasonal affective disorder). Will post photos in FB group of a couple of great essential oil guides, one for Gut issues and one for Emotional Healing.
Thx for posting over on FB--I need to get back over there, but with eclipse company, it's a little busy here. I'm interested in essential oil as a flavoring. Do you have a title that might help there?
Thanks, Marty! Good to know that your library has ordered the book! It's libraries that are keeping the print publishers in business, now that bookstores (both chain and indie) are having such a difficult time.
My youngest daughter had spina bifida. She had several surgeries. When she would get home Nikki would lay on her chest and help her recover. It was very sweet. She was the best cat.
Thanks for the story begining about Khat! Cats are fine companions, each unique in likes and humor. I've been blessed to share quarters with Rascal, Castor and Camber, Aja (a Siamese), Singer, Dante, Milo and Omar. It's been a glorious run of companionship. Wouldn't have missed it.
Eight is a goodly number of cats, and since Aja lived with you (and probably managed you, too) you have a pretty good idea of what China is up against. A Khat with his own agenda. And an attitude. 😍
I was in the local pet supply shop on a Saturday, the day many of the rescue groups are in. At the head of the cat food aisle was a ferret cage corralling many kittens. When asked if I was interested in a new kitten, I replied," No, I've got three!" She assured me there was room for more! I asked how many is the right number to which she replied, EIGHT!" I'm laughing just thinking about that day! EIGHT!
I'm laughing too! And also hoping those many kittens found many good homes. Animals are so vulnerable . . . 😔 And too many people see breeding them as a side gig. 😢
All of my pets have been strays or giveaways! You are so right about "home breeders". The dachshund community has seen a huge jump in home breeding resulting in puppies with problems.
Rescues are the best--although we once rescued a difficult dog and were too inexperienced to deal with his issues as we should. And a small white feral cat that we named Lightning because we couldn't lay a hand on him without leather gloves. Sad about the dachshund puppies!
Saved this to read after I got back from lunch for which I had deep-fried calamari and (drum roll, please!) Caprese salad 😁. Am thrilled to learn more about Khat, having also been owned by a Siamese at one time.
Caprese! with boccanccini? 😍 (Always have to recheck my spelling of that word!) Since you've lived with a Siamese, you probably have a pretty good idea of the relationship between China and her owner, Khat.
I think bocconcini might have been more of a novelty when I first wrote this story, back around 2000. 😊 For a dozen years, we had a peahen named Tansy--a lovely, patient bird who was a wonderful mother to several flocks of peachicks (all fathered by Picasso). And it's true: Cats Rule!
Several people have let me know that the browser link in the Khat 1 post is broken. Sorry about that, folks! Here it is: https://susanwittigalbert.substack.com/p/the-khat-who-became-a-hero-1
It's also at the very top of the email.
Heh. My cat Bagheera now weighs 20 pounds. In his youth, he was quite elegant looking. (Sometimes even now, as he blends into a dark background.) I think I'll try out the biscatti for him and his brother, Charlie.
Big cat! Our PK2 was 18 in his last years. I found it harder to keep the weight down because we had multiple cats and there was always food around. But we love them, whatever. ❤
I'm looking for lower cal food.
Molly (our 20-yr-old heeler) has been on a green bean supplement to her diet since she was 4 (when we got her). It provides bulk, fiber, and some nutrition--and has controlled her weight. She weighs only 2 more pounds than she did when we got her. Not sure green beans would work in your situation, but I've read that other cat folks do feed them.
Interesting. I dunno what my cats would think of green beans. Worth a try.
Weʼve just added a new kitten, Simba, to our household. Forgotten all the cat behaviors. MOST of them adorable!
Oh, yes--and some not so much! Wonder what Simba's previous lives have been. 🙄
I am enjoying being a cat lady in my old age. Cat stories are a sweet way to enjoy them from afar. Khat is a wonderful character!
I loved the Cat who mysteries. And Khat has been one of my favorite characters. I miss our cats who died at the ripe old ages of 18 and 19. Yes, Siamese were a part of our household.
I am such a cat lover that I have read all the Cat Who books, many cozy mysteries with cats, and, of course, I have loved Khat in pecan Springs. Some of the many cats I have had and still have remind me of the literary cats. Enjoy the eclipse. Are you in the path?vwe are about forty minutes away.
These extras are utterly delightful. I love reading about PK1 and PK2, just wonderful! Interestingly, when I wrote the rough draft of my first herbal history mystery (as yet unpublished) in 2020 during lockdown, I felt certain that there was a cat in the story. So, I wrote him in and throughout the story he remains unnamed. He's a stray, taken in by my protagonist's sidekick who is later abducted. What with a murder, an abduction, and a mystery to solve, the poor little guy is just referred to as "the kitten" throughout until the epilogue when he finally receives his forever name and home. Ironically, I wrote about that sweet little smokey gray kitten in winter 2020 and in June a kitten who looked just like the one I described in my story showed up and has made his home here ever since. A little spooky and a lot magical! Looking forward to following Khat's adventures.
I appreciate the sketch of Thyme & Seasons and The Crystal Cave, etc. I have pictured it in exactly the opposite layout for years, CC on the right and T&S on the left. The rest in the back I saw the way it is shown.
Leenie, that IS a spooky story about your gray kitten! I really have to believe that there is (somewhere in the Universe) a Great Distribution Center with a compassionate staff that monitors the placement of cats--they go where they are needed. Thanks for sharing the story--makes me smile.😘
The Guild irises came today in great shape. I put them in a pot because it looks as if I might be moving later in the year! Thank you so much for the memories.
Thanks for letting us know, Fran. When ours and the Craigs' bloom next spring, we'll think of you, wherever you are.
This is so inspiring! I'm enjoying the new-to-me Khat story and I am inspired about your work-in-progress insights. I will probably comment again once I read through all the extras and recipes. Time for chair yoga and tea with a couple of friends. Have a beautiful day and thanks!
Leenie, as a writer, you might be interested in taking a look at the original story--view it as a draft of this, and see the turn it takes when another viewpoint is inserted. It's a good example of VP shift, and how you can use it to take the story in different directions. The original is in An Unthymely Death and Other Garden Mysteries, available via Overdrive/Libby or in print, used.
I found it on Thrift Books and it should be on it's way to me within a few days. I look forward to reading it as one cohesive story as well as in the serial form here. Thanks!
P. S. I'm also thinking of reading these episodes as a podcast. Not sure yet--let's see how that goes.
Great! I'll be interested in hearing what you learn from comparing the published "draft" (which was of course the product of several original drafts) with the Substack rewrite! And your thoughts about the reading differences of serial and full-text formats.
It's always like going home when I step through the door of Time and Seasons. It is a magical place where you immediately become part of family. I have read all of Lillian Jackson Braun's Cat Who books and loved them as well. I am like China where I can take it or leave a cat but Khat and Braun's khan's are a whole different story. Eagerly awaiting the next installment.
China and I love it that you think of the herb shop that way, Peggy. It's magical for me, too! And yes, Braun really started something with the Cat-Whos.
China Bales book is on my audible wish list. I have been looking forward to it for a long time. China is a friend of mine, just like Anne George's southern sisters and Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum. Rita Mae Brown's series with Mrs Murphy and her series with her fox hunting friends are all places that I visit and revisit. I am having a little trouble finding new friends as all of the mentioned have either come to a closing point or have already gone. And I forgot the cat who books, which have always been on the list as well. It is part of getting old....er but, boy am I thankful. For every single one. They have made me laugh, helped to distract me when life has been hard. ( I lost my children 5 months apart) . They have taken a bad mood and turned it around. But they have taken a good day and made it better. My pets have achieved the same. I cannot imagine a world without books and pets.
Fictional friends are wonderful--and never the least bit of trouble or worry. 😉 I'm so glad to hear from another re-reader. I love going back to the people and places in a familiar book. And so agree with you: without book friends and animal companions, our world would be bare. And cold!
I like how Khat works into the storyline. I actually have two of the essential oil books you mentioned from a two year course in Essential Oils. We use them in many ways and I cook with a few, like Lemon and Peppermint. Have helped family and friends with several issues, including healing after skin radiation and emotional issues, such as SAD (seasonal affective disorder). Will post photos in FB group of a couple of great essential oil guides, one for Gut issues and one for Emotional Healing.
Thx for posting over on FB--I need to get back over there, but with eclipse company, it's a little busy here. I'm interested in essential oil as a flavoring. Do you have a title that might help there?
I went to the library this afternoon and had my name put on the list for your new book. Can’t wait.
Thanks, Marty! Good to know that your library has ordered the book! It's libraries that are keeping the print publishers in business, now that bookstores (both chain and indie) are having such a difficult time.
My youngest daughter had spina bifida. She had several surgeries. When she would get home Nikki would lay on her chest and help her recover. It was very sweet. She was the best cat.
Some cats are almost magical, aren't they? We had an orange tabby, OJ--same kind of sweetness. Still miss that wonderful boy.
Thanks for the story begining about Khat! Cats are fine companions, each unique in likes and humor. I've been blessed to share quarters with Rascal, Castor and Camber, Aja (a Siamese), Singer, Dante, Milo and Omar. It's been a glorious run of companionship. Wouldn't have missed it.
Eight is a goodly number of cats, and since Aja lived with you (and probably managed you, too) you have a pretty good idea of what China is up against. A Khat with his own agenda. And an attitude. 😍
I was in the local pet supply shop on a Saturday, the day many of the rescue groups are in. At the head of the cat food aisle was a ferret cage corralling many kittens. When asked if I was interested in a new kitten, I replied," No, I've got three!" She assured me there was room for more! I asked how many is the right number to which she replied, EIGHT!" I'm laughing just thinking about that day! EIGHT!
I'm laughing too! And also hoping those many kittens found many good homes. Animals are so vulnerable . . . 😔 And too many people see breeding them as a side gig. 😢
All of my pets have been strays or giveaways! You are so right about "home breeders". The dachshund community has seen a huge jump in home breeding resulting in puppies with problems.
Rescues are the best--although we once rescued a difficult dog and were too inexperienced to deal with his issues as we should. And a small white feral cat that we named Lightning because we couldn't lay a hand on him without leather gloves. Sad about the dachshund puppies!
Saved this to read after I got back from lunch for which I had deep-fried calamari and (drum roll, please!) Caprese salad 😁. Am thrilled to learn more about Khat, having also been owned by a Siamese at one time.
Caprese! with boccanccini? 😍 (Always have to recheck my spelling of that word!) Since you've lived with a Siamese, you probably have a pretty good idea of the relationship between China and her owner, Khat.
With bocconcini! Yes, my life was firmly ruled for the years Tansy allowed me to live with her 🤣🤣
I think bocconcini might have been more of a novelty when I first wrote this story, back around 2000. 😊 For a dozen years, we had a peahen named Tansy--a lovely, patient bird who was a wonderful mother to several flocks of peachicks (all fathered by Picasso). And it's true: Cats Rule!