The Blood of a Tick

I am not one of the most "aware" people in the world. In general, I am pretty oblivious to the everyday  matters of life. I guest that might qualify me as one of the most trusting people around. So, perhaps my reaction to a recent tick-cat interaction could have been expected.

One of the feral cats we feed seemed to have some kind of bump on her back. I explored, thought it was a burr, and pulled it out. It was a huge tick and splattered some blood on me and on the cat. So, since I have not progressed far beyond childhood (or maybe because I am apparently part cat), I licked it off without thinking about it -- it was just a little bit.

Then, out of curiosity, I got on line to see if there might be an after-problem for the cat from the tick. I found out that yes, there might be, but also there might be one for me. It is not recommended to drink (or lick) tick blood. (Now I find out!)

So, Donnie knows to watch for odd behavior in me (not sure he would recognize it, though) -- and to complicate matters, I get a typhoid shot on Friday (to prepare for Morocco).

Oh, well, it makes life interesting. I am a risk embracer, so it will be interesting to see what follows.

Sula, Parish Cat

Somewhat over two years ago, I related a story of how Sula, our parish cat at Old Mission, shown here in the Nativity scene this year, comes to confession. She also rarely misses a Mass,

Well, Sula has become somewhat famous these days. An article I wrote about her was published in the December 2015 Guideposts Magazine as "A Cat with a Mission." Guideposts synopsized the story on its website.

Then, this week, the Hollister Freelance (California paper) carried Sula's story in a touching piece, "Cat on a Mission."

Both articles had excellent pictures, including some that were not in the publications. If you find the Christmas picture endearing, check out these other two sites.

And, please, stand by. Sula is writing her own book, Surviving Cancer, Healing People: One Cat's Story (MSI Press), due out in February (or maybe a tad later). The purpose is to raise money to retrofit her mission home against earthquakes.

So, here is the proverbial ending: "more later."

Have a relaxing weekend -- and find some time to be with Sula's Divine Inspirator, the good Lord (and St. Francis).