Jennyarn

This is Charlie.

I don’t know what happened to Charlie. There were two large patches with no fur, all along his chest. The wounds were well on their way to being healed by the time I noticed. It’s an area on cats where I hadn’t seen injuries before. Did he fight with a raccoon?

We went to the vet, Charlie meowing all the way. I felt badly that Charlie was injured. Yet he had healed so well that I wasn’t worried over it. Charlie was due for vaccinations; that’s what concerned me. I didn’t know how he got those injuries. What about the possibility of rabies?

The vet said it was indeed an atypical place for injuries, and that it’s likely Charlie was scrapping whilst rolling around with another cat. This rolling around type of fighting, said the vet, is more common for cats familiar with one another. Aha. The likely culprit: Oliver!

Oliver is a tough guy on the surface. Just underneath that, he’s mad about cuddles. He’s not much for gentle caresses either. He won’t trust you if you’re hesitatant. He wants to know you mean it. Rigorous and vigorous petting, even a slight tug on his tail, makes Oliver secure and happy. Then you might take him for a big kitten, and not a small panther!

Oliver may look fierce at times. He’s docile really. Except when it comes to Charlie. I’ve seen Oliver attack poor Charlie when Charlie’s fast asleep. Charlie weighed in today at 12 lbs. So he’s fairly big. I see him as a jaunty, happy-go-lucky cat for the most part. Though he can be as aggressive as he chooses. He does fight occasionally but I’ve only seen that with ‘outsider’ cats from the neighborhood. When Oliver approaches, Charlie cringes and tries to hide. I don’t know why Oliver insists upon this rivalry. I don’t know why Charlie doesn’t stand up for himself. Plus, during some activities they simply ignore each other like when they’re eating side by side.

I can be thankful for this: Charlie’s vet visit reveals that he is a healthy cat! He even has good teeth.

It was well past 4:00pm. The mailman came. The mailman went. A plethora of holiday catalogs did not appease me one bit. Half an hour later I heard faint sounds at the door. The mailman was back. He carried no less than three packages! At last I have received my Camilla Valley Farm order! I have been longing to begin on my sister’s presents.

There was also a box from Woodland Woolworks. I had placed the order (yarn for the English Dale mittens) on October 17 so I did not expect this so soon. Wow!

Lastly, there was an Amazon box. I had ordered a book for my secret swap pal.

I was dazed and overwhelmed by all these boxes of goodies! It was the Camilla Valley Farm box I was most eager to open. Why is it so large?! There was Létt-Lopi and more Létt-Lopi, and still more. It takes quite a bit of it to make a sweater and a small bag. But this much? I wasn’t to the bottom of the box yet! For an instant it occurred to me that they’d made some mistake and given me way too much. For I reached the last layer and saw variegated Lopi that I hadn’t ordered! Then I spotted a note card, visible through the clear plastic. No way! The note card stated this yarn was from my friend Paul! What a sweetheart.

He had selected four skeins of Havana Brown, and four of Jeans Blue. How thoughtful is that? They had put his special gift to me together with my order. I was ecstatic. I know you would be too, if you’re a knitter :) Thank you, my dear friend. You are the cat’s pajamas!

Included with all this Icelandic yarn was shade cards for Lopi. That was a very nice touch and will certainly be helpful. I feel spoiled. Okay, let’s be honest: I am spoiled.
Now for some serious knitting..!

Oh my! It’s a good thing I kept checking inside the Camilla Valley Farm box.
It’s Tommy, my roving little scamp! He certainly gets around. I’m so glad
they’ve returned him to me!