Joy

There was drama on the feline home front. Our cat Lefty died a week-and-a-half ago. Our other cat Dusty has been acting differently ever since. They were littermates but never close. It still changed the dynamic in the house. She started exploring new areas of the apartment, most noticeably on top of the refrigerator. I have been told by a CCL (Crazy Cat Lady) friend that it’s not unusual for a remaining cat to change its behavior. We flea-bombed on Monday and that meant going for her first overnight trip. She didn’t mind the ride but was not happy with my roommate’s place in the country. She went missing on Wednesday and we found her locked in a closet. That had never happened before. She went missing again on Thursday and we figured she was hiding or locked in someplace else. We looked in every nook and cranny for her to no avail. I was afraid she jumped out the window in the living room that has no screen. I opened it because the flea-bomb didn’t work, and I tried some flea spray and needed to air the room out. I checked every floor of our apartment building in case she had somehow slipped out the door. We walked around the neighborhood but couldn’t find her. She didn’t come when we called, eat her food, or used the litter box so I was convinced she was out of the house. My CCL friend said that sometimes cat friends can disappear in the house for days. We looked in every nook and cranny we can find but cats are small and can find places we can’t. I did not give up hope.

I went out last night, I’ll write about that after this adventure. I told all my friends what happened when they asked how I was, I decided to be honest not stoic. Everyone was worried. I had therapy, my therapist was worried. She told me to leave her a voicemail if we find the cat. When I’ve had crises, she never asked me to call to let her know how it worked out, but the cat is important! I made sure to tease my therapist about her oddly placed concern. When I walked back from the subway, I looked for Dusty again. I know my block has many strays and they are always lurking under and around the cars on a portion of my block. I checked under all the cars and looked at all the cats. Dusty is a Tortie, which is unusual around here and I spotted one, but it ran under a car where I couldn’t see and of course the light wasn’t good. I went home, had to rush to the bathroom, got the cat carrier, and went out in search of her. I found two grays, a tabby, a black and white, and the Torte! This time I got a better look and didn’t think it was her but wasn’t sure. Maybe she was just showing the signs of living on the street. I stalked her and we played a game of cat and mouse, the cat in the mouse role. Unlike the other cats she didn’t run away, she seemed interested in me but kept a moderate distance and looked at me. I finally saw her in good enough light to convince me it wasn’t her, but I gained confidence that if she was out the window she’d be there. I texted my roommate, who I thought was out and told her to look when she came home as the Dusty would more likely to come to her. Lefty adopted me as her human, but Dusty was indifferent.

I went to bed and was cautiously optimistic. When I woke up this morning, I asked my roommate if she saw my text. She asked me if I had seen hers? I hadn’t. I had never gotten it. It came with a picture and all I got was the picture. She found Dusty last evening before 8 PM. Where? In the apartment, the CCL was right, a cat can find places to hide that are difficult for a human to discover. I have no idea why she went a day without eating or using her litter box. She looked fine and happy. I have not seen her yet today.

Now that that drama is over, I can tell you about my adventures which were great but would have been even better without the fate of a cat hanging over my head. Last night was the second night of the Brooklyn Americana Fest. The lineup had three acts in my circle, Emerald Rae, Bobtown, and Crys Matthews & Heather Mae. The Emcee was another friend John Platt. He couldn’t get there in time for Emerald’s set. When I heard that I wrote Jan Bell who runs the festival if I could introduce Emerald and she said yes. I was excited about that and made sure to wear my Folk Music Notebook t-shirt. I had my hoodie in case it got cooler.

The night reminded me of the Lounge Stage at Falcon Ridge. There’s all this great music but also all these people I know and love that I don’t see often, thanks to COVID-19 some I haven’t seen for two years. I found myself playing social butterfly, flitting over to other tables while other people flitted over to mine. David thinks I’m a Playa; every time he walked by, I was sitting with a different woman. During Bobtown I sat with Carolann, During Crys Matthews Emerald. During Crys I sat with Sandy. After other people left, I took a seat between David and Katherine, bringing the total up to four. He could have also found my sitting at Ellen’s table, talking to Jan, or Crys & Heather. Yesterday was their anniversary. Others I didn’t sit with but talked to were Dot and Glenn and the other members of Bobtown, Karen, Alan, Jen and Dan. I was in my element with my people listening to my music.

I was excited to hear that Emerald has been productive during COVID-19 and recorded enough material for two albums. When they come out, you’ll be hearing them on Gord’s Gold. I also discovered that didn’t have any of Heather’s music, she corrected that when I told her. I have a set planned around one of her songs. That’s the best way to program a show, hear live music and follow my mind where it leads me.

Katherine, David, and I stayed until the end. David and I helped get Katherine’s gear to the Lyft. She has a lot of gear, drumkit, accordion, uke, merch, and paraphernalia. Then David and I walked to the subway. We took the F train in opposite, so our parting was the end of my socializing. When I got home the catch search began and you know the rest of the story.

I should go to the Fest today, but I slept late and couldn’t get myself moving fast enough to catch all the acts I wanted to see. I will go back tomorrow. You should go both days. Click on where it says schedule.

I thought today’s Wise Madness would be yin yang, the joy of the music and the sadness about Dusty. Instead, it’s all joy!

If that didn’t move you, you are made of stone.