Hi this is Miss Elsie checking in. I am one traveling kitty. I have seen more than most kitties see in a whole lifetime.

we arrived in San Diego and for almost three months I thought we were stable. First we moved in with Janet’s friend, Pat. She has a great house. I love the wood floors where I can “rip and tear” to my heart’s content. One day this little girl came in the house and she really wanted to play with me. She scared one of my nine lives out of me. I have learned to become very good at hiding. After that day every time I heard little kid voices I ran and hid. Like I said I am good at that.

Then Janet disappeared for two weeks. I don’t know where she went. She did come back. For those two weeks I stayed at Nancy’s house. I really liked it there. I have always liked Nancy. I don’t run and hide from her. She talks so nice to me. She had a really cool back yard. There was a corner of the living room that smelled like catnip. It was fun to roll there.

Janet came back and we returned to Pat’s house again. Another reason I liked Pat’s house is that the windows are so low that I could look outside and never have to climb on anything. I liked looking out the windows. At first I could go out back and out front, on my leash. Then one day Janet saw a coyote in the back yard and I didn’t go there any more. It didn’t really matter. The front was really fun. There was a wall I really liked sitting on.

I don’t tell time well, I am a cat and time isn’t that important. I eat, I sleep, I play and I get scratched. I am quite evolved. One day, all of sudden we moved back in to the little house on wheels. We have been traveling since.

People keep showing up and disappearing. One place we stayed for almost a week. There were two people and two tiny houses. Then two more people showed up. Their house on wheels was not so tiny. I heard they had two cats inside that house. I am not fond of other cats. The lady, Linda said that I was a designer kitty. Pft, I have always known this. I am a cat. Then a few days later another person shows up. Then Janet and I left, along with Mary. Where does everyone keep going? I am really not sure.

My favorite place, to this point was a place where it was only Janet and I camping. Well, Mary was there and then she left. I am not sure where everyone keeps going. They come and then they leave. This place was very quiet. We were the only ones there. I loved rolling in the dirt.

Burros

One morning Janet took me for a walk-she carried me. All of a sudden I saw these large animals and they made a really strange sound. They scared me a lot. I ran all the way back to our house. Boy was I thirsty and tired. I don’t recommend them. Janet said they were burros. They were really huge to this 6 pound kitty. If you ever see them, be careful.

coyote

We have been exploring the desert. It is really weird place. Everything seems to have pokey things. I look out the window and talk to strange birds. I like all the windows in our little house. Some places I have been able to go out at night and some I can’t because of these animals called coyotes. They look like dogs, I am not fond of dogs. Janet says they would like me for dinner. That is kind of rude. I guess it is a good thing to stay away from them.

A few days ago I got another fun surprise. We visited with Raquel. It took me a few minutes but I remembered her. She stayed at our sticks and bricks house for a while. Janet disappeared and so did the little house on wheels. See what I mean, people keep disappearing and then reappearing. It would be quite confusing, if my needs weren’t met. My needs seem to be always met. I am a cat. Raquel took good care of me. I really like her. I was surprised to hear a familiar voice. People just keep showing up. Why was she out in the middle of the desert? I am not sure. These things are confusing to a little kitty.

Now we are in a place with trees. I can go out here. There are skunks-they smell bad. I have to be careful of them. There seem to be no coyotes here so I am able to venture outside after dark. I hope Janet is right about all this. I have to rely on her a bit.

Each day I get to roll. Then she wets a towel and wipes me off. I don’t know why I can’t keep the dirt on. It feels good. It is a direct challenge to get dirty again. Hee Hee.

Janet got me a really neat present. They are called sheepskin seat covers. I love sleeping on them. In fact I no longer sleep with Janet. Every night I head to the passenger seat for sleeping. Sometimes Janet kicks me off the seat because she wants to sit there. I should get priority. I am the cat. It’s OK though. I just move over to the driver’s seat. These are cushy, warm, wonderful things. I recommend them. I even sleep on them while she is driving, though I still go to the blankets for undisturbed naps.

Tomorrow we roll again. I am not sure where we roll to. Janet has told me that we are getting ready. More adventures to come. With all the current excitement (thunder and lightening) I am ready to retreat to the blankets. See you later.

I hesitated,briefly about scripting this post. It is two days post election and there are the jubilant winners and there are the grief stricken losers. Yesterday as I worked my way around the county doing errands there was a strange and different energy out there. It almost felt like a waiting. Waiting for the grief and anger and all other emotions to pause so that daily life can pick up again.

This was a bitter and hard campaign for both sides. There was a lot of anger and frustration around this election that I don’t believe I have seen before. Were either candidates one hundred percent qualified to lead? No. Were either candidates without a past? No. To me it reflected a bit like the United States Civil War. Families were divided and still are. Friends were divided and still are. Country vs city. White collar worker vs blue collar worker.

I have pondered so much and wonder how did our country ever come to this moment? I don’t know. We can blame politics as usual, wealthy vs poor, employed vs unemployed. People talk about feeling disenfranchised. The disenfranchised have won this election. The people who supported anyone else, are, I believe, feeling a bit disenfranchised at this moment.

Here is what I believe happened when the election results came in. All the anger, hatred and hostility from both sides, spiritually was in a big balloon, and the size of it kept getting bigger and bigger. When the election results came in, it burst and the pall that lay over San Diego, our country and the world yesterday were all those hard emotions that have now spread through all people. Grief, sadness, anger frustration, hostility and the unknown spread throughout the world.

Now we have to pick up the pieces. We as humans are very good at picking up the pieces. For those of you who think others should just get over it, I ask you to be kind. Recognize that your friends and family members need a few days to grieve. Give them that space. Let them grieve and gently put your arms around them and understand that all those people need some time and love. Then, as always, the human spirit will prevail and life will become a bit more whole again.

For those of us who feel grief, I say grieve and be kind. Be kind to those who believe differently than you. Love them for who they are. Once the strength of grief is past, pull yourself together and take a correct type of action. Get involved. Join groups, peacefully protest become a part of the process. I know that these two candidates have a lot of money. They both started somewhere though. I know Trump came from a wealthy family but Hillary did not. Many of our politicians did not come from money. They did get involved and brought themselves up through years in the political process. Where do you want to start? Where do I want to start?

Grief is a hard place to be in. I know this as Jim, my husband and best friend, died four years ago. Those of you who are grieving, do it. Don’t stay there, though. Grief is a hard place to remain in. The world goes by and you are not a part of it. You cannot work for change you can’t really do anything but grieve. Acknowledge your grief and then slowly when you are ready pick up the pieces and take positive action. Be involved with your life and the planet.

I know there are protests going on around the United States. It is all that frustration, anger and more that was once in that balloon. It is so strange to think that everyone is feeling disenfranchised. It is a hard moment in time. I truly believe we are all here to assist in transitions, personal, country and world wide. The question I am not quite ready to ask myself is, what is my purpose at this time? I need a few more days and then I will also pick myself up and figure out how I might want to take action.

For all those who are angry I would like to encourage you to direct your anger toward positive change. Let anger become your ally. If you can, don’t let anger create a negative environment to thrive in.

Mostly I ask all of you who might read this to support all those around you, People of Color, Muslims, the LGBT community and all those who are fearful of what January may bring. I always believed we are a country that supports everyone. I know many of you, at this time, do not feel this. Then we just need to work harder to remember this and support those around you. America is one of the most diverse countries in the world and it is about time we supported everyone’s diversity. So I implore you to do just that support diversity and be kind and compassionate to those who are struggling.

I understand that there is way more involved here than what I have written. Today these are my thoughts.

BE KIND