I am the crazy cat lady

My husband has been calling me the crazy cat lady for years now. Honestly, I really like this title.
I had an idea a few weeks ago to try some new colors with my stained glass kitty cat faces. I thought they might be cool to build in pinks and greens and yellows-its not even winter here and I'm already thinking of spring colors. I told a friend about my idea and she suggested that I try patchwork kitties-mix the colors up a bit. So, I gave it a try. This is the second Pastel Patchwork kitty that I have built and I have added this one to my Etsy shop. I just love them and I'm thankful that she suggested the idea, they are so fun and bright.

This kitty has very pale green eyes. I have another patchwork kitty that I've cut up and will have finished in the next few days. The new kitty will have aqua blue eyes and aqua blue glass along with other springtime colors.

I've also added an Orange Tabby to my shop. This one is so bright with some sun behind it--its like its on fire! The eyes of this one are an emerald green.

And-I've finally completed my Snowy Owl suncatcher, now I just need to get it packaged to ship. The whites are actually very bright, it looks like I've got some shadows from my backyard trees cutting across parts of it here. I'm very excited about this piece and hopefully I'll be able to recreate this and add it to my Etsy shop.

Hoping everyone has a wonderful week. The weather has been absolutely wonderful here in Tennessee.

Crank up that woodstove, daddy-o!

Yup, that's what the kitties say when it starts getting chilly outside. The very first winter that we spent in this house, we used this fireplace--well, as a fireplace. Its beautiful to look at a roaring fire but it would just burn up the wood without ever really warming up the house. Granted, we do have a central unit, but after receiving the first bill for heat we had to find another way to stay warm. For the second winter, the husband rigged up this idea--connect a woodburning stove to the chimney via stovepipe. This set up is pretty ugly, really, but it does warm the house and the kitties think that its the best thing ever. The empty fireplace hole becomes prime sleeping territory.

Out of the 7 insiders, there are only 4 that are true fans of the heat. Biggum (above) just loves it and winters are the only time that he really lets it all hang out.

Another big time fan of the heat is my Bubba. He likes to stretch out and take up the entire space.
Little Weetie really enjoys spending time in here in the evening--after she's wore out from harrasing the other cats all day long.

20 year old Granma is pretty dignified in her heat gathering activities. She's much to proper to sprawl out like the other heathen cats.

Its Vulture Time Again!!

Every year in the fall, I get to witness a really cool natural phenomenon right from my front yard. These are all vultures--both Turkey and Black Vultures-in a gathering also known as a vulture kettle. Its not what you might be thinking-these birds aren't all out looking for dead things to eat. Instead, they have searched out special features of the natural landscape...
The neighborhood I live in sits on top of a hill overlooking the Tennessee River. The wind currents lift off of the hillside creating thermal currents-or rising columns of air. The vultures seek out these thermal currents which lifts their bodies and allows the birds to soar effortlessly for hours. In the times that I've watched them I've seen very few wing flaps.

As the birds start decending from the sky they take up roost for the overnight in trees across the street from me--very tall trees on a hillside not close to any homes.

These are all Turkey Vultures, easily distinguished from Black Vultures by their underside wing patterns. With a wingspan of 69 inches (175cm) its quite an impressive bird and also a very valuable member of the ecosystem since they are part of the clean up crew that feeds on animals that have died.

Its really a delight to see these birds flying about and doing their thing. The only one around here that gets freaked out about them is my dog--I guess she thinks they're out to get her.