Fleas!!!!

The kittens have fleas!
Not sure how they got them, the mother cat goes out but we check her often
and I haven't seen on her.  David noticed them on the white kitten.  So yesterday
David and Hannah spent time trying to get rid of the fleas!  David got a special
comb, by dipping it in water with dish soap and combing through the fur some
of the fleas were killed. Decided that wasn't enough so he gave the cats a bath.
First the mother cat, she didn't complain too much but came back in shaking her
paws, then sat and licked herself for about half an hour!  David then took the
kittens which freaked the mother cat out!  I told her we weren't hurting the kittens
but she wouldn't have it! She was mewing so loud! On and on for ages!  She kept it
up in the evening which upset the dog. Between the cat and the dog it got really noisy
here, until after midnight!  The mother cat is still upset with us and gives us bad eyes!
The kittens still have some fleas, but seem okay!  Just have to keep them away from
the sofa and carpets!

Cute Kittens

It has been so hot here the past couple of weeks!  Up to 37C some days!
Too hot to think, to move, to do anything!  I have been running the air
conditioner almost all the time, no choice!   Today we are under a typhoon
warning, it's a bit windy and there is some rain.  We got lucky, some places
were hit very bad!

So the kittens are growing! I have to get a litter box set up soon so they can
stat eating food.  That should be interesting.  I have no idea how to train the
kittens.  Hannah wants to keep them, but five cats is a lot of work! We will see!

mommy cat

cute kittens

I'll add more photos as they grow!

This Is Mad

I know it's summer. I know summer is hot.
But the past few days have been extreme!
Hannah and I went to get our hair cut yesterday.  The hairdressers was nice,
strong air conditioner, I felt nice and cool.  The car, on the other hand. would
not cool down.  Even with the air conditioner on full blast it was uncomfortable.
Turns out that yesterday was about 37C.  That is hotter than body temperature!
Mikey was outside most of the day, came back with an awful headache!  Mild
heatstroke, took him a few hours to recover, he is okay now but spending
time outside is not an option!
According to the forecast this will continue for at least another week.
HELP!!!!

And Now Eathquakes!

I know this is Japan and earthquakes are part of life but not where we live!
I always said that the biggest problem here was the weather, extreme heat and humidity,
typhoons and incredible thunderstorms!  But no earthquakes!  Until a few years ago when
we had the Kumamotto earthquakes! But even that wasn't very close, the epi center was
about 2 hours drive from here!  Last night I got woken up at 2:40, the house moved, made
an awful noise.  I came down and checked the TV, earthquake but just a 1 here!  But the
center was the next prefecture!  Then again at 4am, this time bigger jolt, about a 3 here!
That woke up Hannah.  I tried to sleep but couldn't!  Checked the morning news, the
center is right next to our city!  Not happy about that but I guess no choice!  I am really
hoping that it is a one off thing and not something that is going to happen a lot!  I feel very sorry
for the people who are coping with the floods, this is just another stress!
Talking about stress, I realized that I over react to these things.  In my mind I know that
there is nothing that I can really do!  I follow advice on safety but if earthquakes are
going to happen I can't stop them!  In my mind I know this is true, more people died
in the floods and landslides over the weekend than the last big earthquake in Osaka!  But
my body just responds, racing heart, short of breath, dizziness.  I try to breath deeply and
calm down but I have mini panic attacks.  Not nice and not helpful!

Rain, A Typhoon And Then More Rain

In a book I read a few years ago the author described Mother Nature as being bipolar!
With the weather we have been experiencing the past week or so I would have to agree!
In this part of Japan the middle of June is usually the rainy season, about two weeks of
constant drizzle.  Everything feels damp and the air is really humid.  This year we didn't get
that.  A couple of wet days but not the real rainy season.  Then on the last Friday of June the heavens
opened.  Heavy rain and thunder storms. The thunder was so close that the house vibrated
with the sound!  Hannah's school was closed for the day, which is unusual so it must of been bad!
Then last Tuesday a typhoon roared past here!  We were lucky as we only caught the edge of the
storm.  But places along the coast got hit rather bad!  Poor Christopher got stuck at the
station and we had to go and rescue him!  I was hoping for a bit of a break but
of course didn't get it.  Friday the rain started, very heavy.  I've experienced heavy rain
before but not like this.  Most heavy showers last 2 hours, this went on all day!
Again Christopher got stuck at work.  He works at Amazon warehouse, two towns over.
They provide a shuttle bus from the warehouse to the station.  But last week the trains
were stopped and so was the shuttle bus! David and I drove out to pick him up.  Took
us about 40 minutes to get there, a trip that should take 20 minutes!  Getting back was
worse, over an hour!
Again we were lucky.  Our house is in a safe area, no rivers or mountains nearby. Floods
and landslides are the biggest problems with all this rain.  Some towns just down the road
from us have been hit very bad!  Businesses, house and cars ruined!
It is raining again, I hope it stops soon!

Adopted

We have been adopted by a cat!
I am not a cat person.  We already have a dog, a Labrador mix.  She is now 10 years old.  Dogs are easy to understand.  When she cries she either needs toilet, food or water!  With cats I have no idea!
This cat started to come around about 2 months ago. I really tried to ignore her but her constant mewing drove me crazy, so I fed her, just once!  But she came again and again!  So I bought cat food.
I know that is crazy when I don't want a cat.  But it's not her fault.  If people get pets then they should take care of them not dump them if they get too much to care for.
The situation with the cat has become rather more than I hoped for.  She had kittens, four little things that look more like rats than cats!  She had them outside of our dining room window, but it is pouring down with rain so guess who bought the family inside!  What to do with five cats?

the cat

the kittens