Neville the Cat.

Here it is, the long awaited first installment of my Tiny House Travels blog. Good lord, there's got to be an easier way to say that. THT blog? Oh I don't know, everyone has so many catchy titles and slogans and logos for their blogs and I'm over here like WTF...is anyone even going to read this stuff? I suppose there are a FEW friends and folks that I know who like my blogs, and maybe someday my kids or grandkids will wonder what crazy Granny Shanny was up to on her road trips....so this is for them. And for myself, because writing has always been cathartic for me. Plus, I just finished off my Huckleberry Hard Cider and opening a second bottle seems a bit self destructive...so writing it is.

Let me start off by stating the (what should be) obvious: YES....I chose this new life on the road because I'm running. Running, because staying in one place for very long reminds me of things I'd rather not think about. It reminds me of a long career filled with heartache, children that are now grown and doing their own thing, countless ex's that turned out to be better off as just "friends" - and the fact that I have never really felt like I fully belonged anywhere. Being outside in nature....or alone listening to music....or doting on Kaila (or any other child I love dearly), is about as full a heart as I can muster these days. Beyond that, I find very little that fills my soul with joy. Though that's a pretty solid list of things I guess, so I should count my blessings - as I am fortunate to have many.

As for romance, well, there was a man....earlier this year....who gave me butterflies and made my heart feel full. Though when we started dating it was knowingly temporary - and he is now in a different country, not to be coming back. So cest la vie! It was a lovely 4 months....but I've yet to meet anyone since who has captured my attention so completely. Not to mention life on the road definitely does not lend itself to serious relationships. I've met some amazing people the past 2 months whilst traveling, but alas -  I'm still a free-spirited, rolling stone...

Now...ON TO THE TRAVEL PORTION OF THIS OVERDUE BLOG!

I started out in the Tiny House in early June, in what would be one of the hottest months on record. I was headed for Las Vegas (via death valley) to pick up Emily and Kaila who were flying in from Tennessee to join me for 2 weeks on the road. I had Neville the Cat in tow, for his first Tiny House adventure. He wasn't entirely sure about the whole thing, but actually travelled quite well in the truck with me. He'd just curl up on my lap and hide his little face in the crook of my arm, and sleep until we stopped - at which time he would pop his head up and look around....anxious to hop out of the truck. When we were actually stopping to set up the Tiny for a bit, he would go right from the truck to the Tiny House deck and go inside. He definitely knew his Tiny House - and felt very comfortable inside. Neville didn't much care for traffic, loud kids running around or other types of commotion. He was basically a cross between a house cat and a stalking panther. Whenever we were somewhere with open fields or forested areas, he loved sniffing around and "stalking" birds and other critters. He even liked hangin with the horses at the various horse properties we stayed at. He had gotten used to walking with his harness and leash and people would comment, "wow I've never seen a cat being walked before." Yeah, he was a pretty awesome 13 lb fur baby. My "cat boyfriend" for the past 3 years....and the best boyfriend he was.

His littermate and brother Christian Grey had been killed by coyotes in my front yard 3 days before I left on this first trip - it was horrible. I was thankful I still had Neville to keep me company, I'm such a nut about my cats that the idea of not having them with me was inconceivable. So it was unbearable during my travels the few times that Neville got out of the Tiny House and went missing for several hours. It first happened near Glacier National Park - and he was gone for 4 hours. Then again in Wenatchee and he was gone for 18 hours. Then again for another 12 hours in North Bend WA. Each time I was freaking out, calling him, looking for him, praying....doing everything you're supposed to do when a cat acts like a cat and runs off. I'd put his litter and toys outside - so he could smell them. Leave the door open so he could come back in....the whole routine. He came back those 4 times and each time he did I cried tears of relief and happiness. But the more Neville got to sneak out "exploring" the more restless he seemed at night. He would sleep all day, but once dusk set in...he would perk up, stare out the windows, scratch at the door to go outside....he just wanted to be OUT THERE.

When we drove from North Bend WA to Mt. Hood OR it was a long 5 hour drive. I stopped midway and took an hour nap in the Tiny House with Neville by my side. When we finally go to the Mt Hood RV Resort Tiny House Village it was past 7 pm. I was exhausted and there was a group of ladies in the village who wanted to see my Tiny House (I'm getting used to it, but when I'm tired...the tour is pretty short). So I chatted with these women and showed them the house, then took some Tylenol PM and literally crawled in bed by 8:30 praying for 12 hours of solid sleep. Neville was laying on the bed next to me, cleaning himself obsessively like he liked to do. I remember petting his head and telling him what a sweet boy he was....and then I fell asleep. HARD. So hard in fact that I hadn't thought much of the upstairs loft window that was open about 3" - to allow the cool breeze to flow through as we slept. The opening didn't look nearly big enough for Neville to fit through, and besides, I figured if he started scratching at the window trying to get out - surely it would wake me up. I woke up the next morning and Neville was not in the bed with me...in fact he was not in the house anywhere. The window was still only 3" open so I looked and looked and LOOKED again throughout the Tiny House....wondering where he could be hiding. But Neville was gone. Sometime in the middle of the night he had jumped the 13' down from the loft window (there was no screen on it) and went out adventuring......and that was the last I saw of him.

Of course I searched for him. Every day. I extended my stay in Mt Hood so that I was there for 5 days vs. the 2 I had originally planned. The managers helped me by sending out an email alert to all the residents with his photo. I posted flyers, I walked and drove the grounds everyday at dusk looking for my baby...but nothing. I received several calls from people who thought they'd "found" him, but it was always a different cat they had seen in the RV park.  Unfortunately it had only been 2 days since the last time he took off in Wenatchee - and during that instance he came back without his collar and tags on. I assume he caught them on some branch and they are still out in the hills of Wenatchee. So I hadn't had a chance to replace them yet. My poor boy, out in the Mt. Hood area with no collar....I can hardly stand to think about it without crying. I try to tell myself that he is out there still....stalking, hunting, evading harm...and maybe someone has taken him in because he's such a friendly and beautiful cat. I probably cried more in that first week he was gone than I have cried in the past 2 years. The Tiny House felt huge and empty without him in it. It still does. Hell, I feel empty without him. I loved that damn cat more than anything. The only thing that has kept me going is knowing this horrible grief will subside in time, like it has in the past when I've lost pets, or loved ones. Agonizing grief is painful....but not permanent. Still, I'm just now editing this blog - nearly 7 months after Neville went missing on August 21, 2018 - and the tears are still falling.

Oh Neville.....I miss you so.