Ray came over and we cleaned up the last of the pine needles, (well, not the last, as there are always more), and old boards from the fence. As we now had everything we wanted to burn on the burn pile, we lit it and started to work on a sprayer for the plants on the porch, while we watched the fire.
I used to have one of those $40 sprayers with the 30' curly hose, attached to the porch faucet with a quick connect, but it broke at the sprayer connection, and I couldn't find a way to fix it. That long curly hose was a nuisance on a 6' x 12' porch and kept on writhing itself around like a snake. The color theme on the porch is light blue, and I had a short length of blue drinking hose, so we put ends on it, and a regular pistol-grip sprayer. But we had fogotten to check the hose first, and it had been the home of a wasp or something and was stopped up. It wasn't just mud like a dirt-dobber's nest, this was more like tiny bird's nest material. That stopped up the sprayer, too, so once we cleaned the hose out with a long length of wire I had in the shed, I had to find another sprayer. Finally got it going, and it is on the quick connect to the faucet, so I can easily remove it if I don't need to use it. It was hurting my shoulder to water the plants on the top shelf, even with my little watering can.
While we were working, my insurance man called. I had told the insurance company to put me on the back burner, and tend to their more serious cases, as we had temporarily fixed the hole in my roof. He asked me about the damage, and I told him that even though we had patched the hole with plywood and weather membrane, all we had were the broken shinlges that I picked up out of the yard to put over it. There were places where it really needed to be reshingled, to make it look good. He seemed glad that I knew that they are 30 year architectural shingles in Horizon Blue, and that I knew where to buy them. I don't know whether I want that turbo back on my roof, but I expect they will put one back on there. Then he asked me if the insulation had got wet in the attic, I told him I didn't know how wet it had got, as I have a plywood floor up there. Oh, golly, I know it must have got wet, and so Ray and I went up there to investigate.
First we had to empty the great big bin that I had put under the hole when I first discovered the water dripping through my bedroom sheetrock. Ray managed to tip it up and pour water into buckets so we could carry them down the attic steps to empty in the little bathroom. Once the bin was out of the way we had to take up the carpet runners. As it is not standing height up there, it is easier to scamper along on your hands and knees, so it has carpet runners to protect the old knees. We had to move stuff off the sheets of plywood that were affected, and get the screws out. Then because of the pitch of the roof above us, we had to slide the plywood on it's side and lean it up against the dividing wall up there. I had used the encapsulated kind of insulation so not too much of it had got wet. I turned the power vent down to 80 deg. so that it would air the place out. I was scared to leave a regular box fan going up there, as I know someone that did that, and it caught their place on fire.
While we were working in the attic, Kenya, my SPCA boss called. I have a corded phone in the attic, but it wasn't working, so I was glad I had a cordless in a pouch on my fanny pack belt.
She said that they didn't have any damage from Ike, but had been without power for 10 days. She moved all her fosters to one building, and tended to them that way. Then I found out that Barbie, another SPCA fostermom, who only does cats, ferrets, guinea pigs, etc., no dogs, had her house destroyed. She works nights, so that is why she doesn't do dogs. Anyway, another fostermom, was housing Barbie's animals in her garage, all but 6 of Barbie's cats that got loose, and they were still looking for them.
In the meantime Kenya had to take in a starving sick little kitten. It only weighed just over a pound at 16 weeks old. The vet said it has Upper Respiratory Infection, and has to be kept in isolation from all other cats for two weeks. Now all the other fostermoms have cats, and even though you have to wear a fresh new disposable gown and gloves every time you touch it, it can still manage to break through and infect the other cats. Then you have two more weeks of isolation, and they can't go to Adoption Days. It is not an airborne virus, like distemper, just infects by contact. Kenya knew that I just have Bobcat, and she said that if, by chance Bobcat caught it, that it would be easier to treat one cat than several. So I have been elected. My nurses training made me a good candidate, as I know all about isolation practices. The little kitten was named Foxy, but as he will now be my foster for two weeks, his name will now start with "P" (for Penny) and his new name is Proxy. He arrives tomorrow at 2.00pm.
I still have the cat cage set up on a table in a corner of the "middle room", which is between my front hall and the grooming room, so that is the perfect place. I like that cage up there, as there is no bending my poor old back. Bobcat never goes near the grooming room or middle room, that is for "animals"!! When I have to groom or board any dogs, they can't catch it. I have put a big bag-lined kitchen trash can in there for the used gowns, which Kenya will bring. A smaller lined trash can for sealing up used litter. All Proxy's litter has to be changed daily, so he will arrive with two litter boxes. I have put Lysol, anti-bacterial wipes, and hand sanitizer in there, and my little bathroom is off that middle room and always has antibacterial hand soap dispenser.
I have left the carpeted kitty condo in the cage, and cushions covered with clean fluffy toilet seat covers. I use them a lot for cats, as they make nice cozy beds. I think that I am all set.
Another sunny, not hot, but busy day
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