Around 9 or 10 years ago I started having a little black cat following me around whenever I was outside in the yard. She came from the neighbors to the south. She liked to be close to me and would sit next to me but if I looked at her or tried to pet her, she’d take off.
That winter I noticed that she would huddle against the neighbor’s chimney to get warm. She’d be down where the roof meets the chimney. In this picture, another of their cats was trying to stay warm with the warm air coming up from the house. The fire wasn’t burning at the time. That would have been just a tad too hot.
I always made sure she got her yearly shots and stayed healthy. Over the years she started spending more and more of the winter months inside with me. Finally she just moved in full time. She was one of those special cats that just made you feel good to have around. I lost her a couple of years ago when she had a stroke.
Here are a few pictures of Nelly. That’s the name that the neighbor gave her.
