Too Fast

IT IS difficult to photograph a kitten, much less a black kitten. Orion only sits still when she's napping, so most of my existing photos of her are close-ups of her chest (sniffing the camera), snapshots of her tail (as she zooms away to play in some other corner o the house, or photos of the empty spaces she has left. Focusing the light meter of her also automatically causes my camera to use its flash. I don't like this. Available light photography often isn't enough.

But I try to enjoy Orion's kittenhood as much as I can. Maybe when she's older and a little less frisky, I'll have more portraits of her. She's such a beautiful kitten too. I once wrote a children's story about an intelligent black kitten, and now I have one :)

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Almost was in a car accident several days ago. I was driving along Superior Street downtown. In a snowstorm. On unplowed streets. Just doing 25 mph. Then this car suddendly cuts in on me from the left. Good thing the four-wheel drive was engaged. Good thing I wasn't driving too fast. You can't really stop as abruptly as you can on snowy, slushy streets. So I skidded a few feet, almost hitting the a______'s car, as well as a truck parked on the side of the street to my right. I wasn't worried it was going to be a really bad accident because I wasn't going too fast. But I was sure I would hit both cars and would have to call 911. But I didn't. I almost could not believe that I didn't. Relieved, I kept on driving, the a______'s car also moving slowly in front of me. I hit the horn to let him or her know "that was a close call you a______ and it better not happen again", but I slowed down to keep at least 15 feet between me and his car. The car behind me was doing the same thing.

I remember memorizing his plate number. I remember remembering he (it could have been a she) had come from the direction of the casino. Could be a drunk. Could be an senior citizen with poor eyesight, and who should not be driving. COuld be a person who has gambled away his life savings. Whatever he or she is, he's not the only drunk/irresponsible/reckless driver out there. Suddenly, all those "Don't Drink and Drive" ads are now more relevant to my life. Even if one tries to drive as safely as possible, one can get killed by a moron behind the wheels.

Orion's Arrival

LOTS of changes in the household. First, the passing away of Bruce, then we took the three cats to the vet to get their annual check up and shots (they didn't like that), and now we have a new kitten!

Before taking Orion home, the Duluth Animal Allies animal shelter checked with our landlord, had us apply for a multiple-pet permit from the city hall and called our vet to check if our current pets were up to date with their shots. Well, they weren't. So, it was a very noisy trip to the vet yesterday with Sparks and Rascals crying in the back and Meowsie meowling on my lap.

I like this vet clinic. It has separate entrances for large animals (dogs) and small animals (cats and anything else below them in the food chain). They also accept appointments and don't make you wait too long. This makes sense because the longer an animal is in stress, the less easier it will be to handle them. One of the vet assistants there is exceptional. She really knows how to gently handle cats. Meowsie was an angel with her.

Vet Assistants from Hell

In contrast, remember with much unpleasantness one of Meowsie's vets in Quezon City. She had assistants that didn't seem or act like they even liked animals. It was just a job for them. The vet also never accepted appointments and had people wait hours and hours in line before she would see the animals. It is not uncommon to wait four or five hours just to have your pet seen. I don't even know why I stayed on the occassions I brought Meowsie there. It was hell for cats as far as I'm concerned. Dogs cried all around. The garage (it was a home clinic) smelled of pee. If I had my own car, I would have left after 30 minutes of waiting. But I didn't and it was hard to get a taxi while carrying Meowsie in his carrier. Also, I had to take a half-day leave of absence just to bring my pet there. I guess I was the only working person waiting around the garage. The rest of the people there were houseboys or housemaids who were actually being paid to wait. I guess they didn't mind.

I can't wait for Shirley Magnuson to graduate from vet school. I'm sure she'll be an excellent if not the best veterinarian in Metro Manila.