On our way north

This is one of my new cactus plantings that was just starting to bloom before we left.

The last few days have been spent cleaning up the yard and packing everything up.  I trimmed the hibiscus bush and fertilized it before leaving.  Hopefully it will be fuller and have more blooms next year.

We finished summerizing the house this morning, a strange process that is completely different from winterizing for the cold.  In the last couple of days prior to departure we used up as much of our fresh food as possible and gave some casseroles and things to friends.  On the last day I called Sandy to come  over and get things left on the porch.  Now I'm trying to remember if I took out the last of the eggs.  Hmm, may have to call her to go over and take a look in the fridge.

This involves draining the hot water heater and then all the water outlets and pouring antifreeze into the sinks and toilets to keep moisture in the traps.  Yup...antifreeze.  Never thought I'd be using that in a hot climate.

I wasn't able to do the last minute dishes since there was no water anymore, so I stuffed them in a ziplock bag and put them in the freezer.  I wash them when I get back.  I also have my swim suits in the vegetable crisper as I was warned what the heat will do to anything elastic.

We opted to leave the electricity on and the fridge running.  The thermostat is set for 90 degrees and this is supposed to help protect stuff in the house.  This is all so new and strange...but exciting.

To prepare the cats for travel I sprayed the carry crate with a calming spray and put calming collars on both of them.  They wouldn't eat the calming treats, so we called it good and put them in the back of the car about 7:45 am and headed out.

There was a short chorus of them singing the songs of their ancestors but they quieted down shortly afterwards.  then I noticed the odor of kitty doo-doo.  Yup, fifteen minutes into the trip and someone pooped in the crate.  Sigh.

We pulled over and I removed the offending substance and we proceeded onward.  Wow!  These calming collars are amazing, there was barely a sound out of them during the entire nine hour trip.  I actually looked back a couple of times to make sure they really were in the crate.  Our first 580 miles has passed without a hitch.

This evening finds us ensconced in a lovely $49 motel with a two star rating in a town I can't pronounce or remember how to spell in New Mexico.

The cats freaked out a bit when arriving into their first motel.  I did a little too, but we needed to get off the road and this was actually one of the better looking ones. There was no evidence of blood spatter or remains of any deceased, so it was good with us.  Ok, it was one of the few that was still in business.  We are one of two cars in the parking lot.

After the cats settled down a bit they proceeded to investigate every square inch of the room, sniffing and snooping.  This was followed by George using the litter box and emptying  about one third of the litter onto the floor.  Sigh.  This was not so bad, but he left with part of his deposit clinging to the fur on his butt.  Not a problem, grabbed the cat and removed the cling-on and all was well.

Then we noticed Gracie had an odd odor and was dragging her butt on the floor.  Yuck, another mess.  This one required a partial bath in the sink to get all her private parts presentable again.  Thank goodness we clipped all those claws earlier in the day or I may have looked like something out of a slasher movie. She's now cleaning the wet fur on her hind legs and glaring at me with loathing. 

At least they are both recovering enough to eat something finally, since they have not eaten all day long during the trip.  Ooops, George just tossed up his supper on the carpet.  Another clean up job to take care of.  Looks like we're getting good use out of the additional $15 charged to have the cats in the room.  Way to go kitties!

I'm losing track of how many times I've washed my hands in the last hour.  After all the kitty drama was over we dined on the Subway sandwiches we picked up about an hour before arriving at the motel.  I am so glad we did this as there is nothing close by for dining and we're too tired to leave the room.

The night will be spent watching tv and snuggling cats, pretty much our normal night time activity.  Lots of love and hopefully feeding tonight since they probably won't eat much again tomorrow, although it shouldn't be quite as long a day.  We hope to land in Lawrence KS by tomorrow night.

So...day one traveling with George and Gracie has been a success.  Tomorrow shouldn't be as long a day and we know not to leave until we see the required deposits in the litter box before heading out.  

Wish us luck!

Long Live the Queen