A Special Visitor in the Garden

D called me over to the garden as I
climbed the front steps to go into the
house this evening.

He was carrying something and set it
down. To my surprise it was Kita Cat!


It was several years ago in the late autumn
when we first set eyes upon Kita in our garden.
At the time, we thought she was a stray.

While experiencing bitter cold weather, we
called everyone we could think of in the neighborhood
without success and nearly found a home for her when
her family contacted us and we discovered her story.

Kita lives behind the houses across the
street in a horse barn and when she was taken back to
her abode we had hoped that she would
not wander, especially at night.
We've heard coyotes calling in the middle of the night
and there's other dangerous wildlife in the woods.

Since that time she hasn't visited much so when we do
occasionally see her we're delighted but at the same time
worried and hope that she will stay safe.
She is one of the friendliest kitties I've ever met.
When she first visited us in the fall of 2007,
she loved to sit on D's back as he was working on our house
and gardening on his hands and knees! She would look
over his shoulder!

Here' some photos from 2007:

Kita and D

Tiddles Too aka Ginger the Cat

quiltcat had a post about cats and books which reminded

me of Ginger aka Tiddles Too, a calico cat with a double
identity in the seacoast town of Kennebunkport in the late 1980's.

The Kennebunk Book Port was a
popular bookshop above a Candle Shop
in Kennebunkport run by Jack and Shirley.
Their welcome sign on the door read as
'ice cream, children, bare feet, long hair, no hair,
cats, dogs and small dragons are welcomed here
anytime.'

They loved cats and over the years there was a
succession of cats adopted from the shelter or strays
that called the Book Port home.
Georgie was a beautiful long haired cat who was adopted
and Jack thought she would love a companion so off he
went to the shelter returning with Ginger who had a bad
reputation for not getting along with others.
Georgie and Ginger became best buddies.


"Georgie" on the steps of the
Book Port's loft.

Ginger on the flowered deck of the
Kennebunk Book Port.

When Georgie suddenly passed away,
Ginger was terribly sad so Jack introduced
another Shelter cat to the Book Port.
Ginger was out at the time of the arrival of the
kitten and was horrified when she returned to find
a strange cat in her domain. She exited
not to return for a long time. There were sitings
of her at the Post Office, and Hotels and other
spots in Dock Square. Occasionally she would
appear at the Book Port for something to eat and
then disappear.

The South Congregational Church
was near the Post Office in Kennebunkport.
It seems that Ginger found the comfort she needed
at the church. The Reverend named her Tiddles Too
(after a famous Church cat in England)
and she became a part of the congregation,
regularly attending services and weddings.
Jack's curiosity was peaked when he got a
newsletter from the Church with an article and
photo of their Church Cat named Tiddles Too.
My how she resembled Ginger!

There are many amazing stories out there.
Cats have a way of adding so much to one's life, a neighborhood
or community. I have more stories about such things, do you?