The Cat Therapist

This morning I drove to Haltwhistle to help Maureen with her physio exercises. She is doing well, but it's tough when you know you have to keep on doing these for a long time to see significant change.

It was lovely to have a chat and a coffee too.

Maureen and Brian are planning a cruise to Porto - the lunchtime news suggests they may not be able to go. What a shame. I think I have reconciled myself to going nowhere in the immediate future.

While I was out, Margret came over to keep Mum company. To their complete amazement, Oscar came in to the lounge while Margret was there. He then ate from his bowl and allowed her to stroke him for quite a long time.

He has never allowed anyone other than me to stroke him thus far.

Margret has high blood pressure, so I told her he was acting as a cat therapist. Stroking cats is known to lower the blood pressure!

Oscar is camera shy. I sneaked this photo through the double glazing of the conservatory. He did bring me a dead mouse as a gift.....

Tonight I attended a fascinating Zoom meeting with the Side Gallery in Newcastle. The speaker was from Unicorn Riot, "a decentralized, educational non-profit media organization of artists and journalists" based in Minneapolis. "Their work is dedicated to exposing root causes of dynamic social and environmental issues through amplifying stories and exploring sustainable alternatives in today’s globalized world." That's a bit of a mouthful. 

They do a lot of live streaming of events as they unfold. Our speaker has been involved with the community that  sprang up in George Floyd Square, where barricades have prevented through traffic since his murder (who knew?). Not long before our talk,  the authorities arrived and removed the barricades. 

There was a lot to take in and think about.