Lately I have been living a bit of a lie.

The sign on my shed says *Strays Welcome Here.* However, somewhere along the path of good intentions, the neighborhood has been inundated with strays and strays having kittens. Three stray mamas gifted us with a total of 14 kittens in my shed, in a kitty house on Elly's carport, and under her house. Deuce was one of those strays; Trey was a fifteenth kitten that just showed up from who-knows-where like so many of the other strays that mysteriously appeared here. Elly and I have pondered and pondered how this happened because several years ago, we were feeding only *two* strays, and they were males.

We have managed until this year when so many kitties have created both budgetary and emotional problems for us. Elly couldn't even get out her back door because kitties swarmed there at feeding times. You can imagine how devastated I was when I failed to see a kitten, Deuce's sibling, underneath my car and ran over him. Though I rushed him to Dr. Britt, he was gone before she could do anything. Everyone consoled me with the usual *These things happen when you have so many kittens,* but I still feel terrible about it. Where Elly and I previously drove oh-so-slowly in the alley, we now inch along until we're sure there are no kitties anywhere close to our cars.

We had to do something. Then we heard about a lady named Cheryl and her Southern Illinois Pet Rescue that has a no-kill policy. Cheryl managed to round up one mama and four of the kittens, and she left with promises to come back for another round-up. But then Cheryl suddenly passed away from a heart attack the very next day.

We were both saddened and stunned. Cheryl's friend called soon after, however, to assure us that the mama and her kittens had already been placed with a lady on a big farm in Nashville, IL, and this same lady will take as many other kittens and stray adults as we can round up.

That particular project is on temporary hold, though, until Elly recuperates from a tummy virus. Since neither she nor I can get around so agilely these days, we are hoping for some help from the local animal control in the gathering process since we do have a new home for the kitties.

In the meantime, Elly and I continue to feel bad because we can't welcome so many strays anymore. Being so poor you can't care for what you want to care for is a frustrating feeling. But we know our first responsibilities are to the kitties we have inside.

Please keep us in your good thoughts!