Stray cats.... wild possums.

I don't know what the gods of the universe were thinking when the possum was designed.... they are not exactly the nicest-looking animal on this planet.  And last night, I got an up-close and personal look at one as it was sitting on the back porch eating the Meow Mix that I had put out there for the stray cats.

The face of that possum was so long and pointed that all it needed was a tall black hat and it could have been a stand-in for the Wicked Witch in "The Wizard of Oz."   The possum froze in place when I turned on the porch light and opened the back door, and it just sat there looking at me... not at all happy that I had interrupted his late-night dinner.  About three feet away from the possum sat the orange/white stray cat, watching the possum eat the food that was meant for cats, not horrible-looking wildlife.

You would think the stray cat would have chased the possum away, but maybe the cats know that possums aren't as well-mannered as cats.  Our dog Gracie came nose-to-nose with a possum years ago, and they stood there staring at each other till we called Gracie to come back to the house. I've no idea why that possum didn't run away from our dog, but it just froze in its tracks and stood there, probably praying that Gracie had already eaten dinner. (Thankfully, Gracie was never interested in doing a taste-test on anything other than 'people food' and dog food.)

So last night, I got the broom and chased the possum away..... that ugly animal bared its teeth at me before it left the porch...... then the orange/white stray started to meow and he turned over on his back. Such a strange cat, this one... he'll turn over to expose his underside, but then if you try and pet him, he will turn right-side-up again.  My guess is that he's going to slowly build himself up to trusting us.... and then, I'm sorry to say, I will be taking him to the shelter because we don't need another cat hanging out on the porch.  I will feed him while he's here, but then I will hope that the shelter can find him another home that doesn't already have three male cats.  (We never get female cats hanging around here.... always males.  But maybe that's a good thing..... last thing I need is a litter of kittens.)

Yesterday's glorious weather of 73 degrees is now a memory..... we woke up to a drippy, cloudy and rainy day..... and the temperature is around 45 degrees. And not a drop of sun, which makes it feel colder.  Oh well..... this too shall pass... and it will be warm and sunny again.