So I don’t get it. What gives? Momma and I got home from a walk and there was a car in the driveway, but no occupants. Well, you know that means I must sit on the back of the couch and stare because there is a threat, I am positive, but where is it, what is it, exactly? It is not easy being Head of Family Security when anyone, anytime is allowed to drop by without warning or clearance.
Keeping my eye on the unoccupied car, I scan the neighbourhood for clues. It was a hot Sunday afternoon and I was not sure what the neighbors were up to, but nothing was stirring, not even a droning bee, a scampering mouse or a fluttering butterfly. All of a sudden, I heard heavy footsteps. One sure thing, as clumsy as Momma is, she steps lightly and so does Wonder Boy. It is like they go through life doing a ballroom dance, gliding from room to room. Not me. Momma calls me (besides a host of other names) Miss Wiggle-It-Jiggle-It. I am sure there is a compliment in there somewhere and I am earnestly looking for it. I refuse to be offended.
No, heavy steps may mean an alien force to be sought out and if an ‘unfriendly’, barked off the premises. My woof is so deafening that I do not even have to nip to get the attention of the undesirables. Could it be one of those extraterrestrials Momma was talking about? Oh, no, it is just Lover Boy without his Baby Little-Me. I love his Little-Me but the feeling is not mutual. Apparently my friendly overtures frighten poor Little-Me. I have to be like Larry David and Curb My Enthusiasm.
Once Lover Boy leaves I look across the road and marvel. I could have sworn that house was white but now it is yellow. How does something like that happen without a vote of the entire neighbourhood? Momma says it is because there are new owners. I know. I miss the old owners, who only had a cat so I was their foster puppy. They loved me unreservedly.
These new folks have their own dog so I am not much interest to them. And they have cats with their own stories. The day they moved in, one of the cats, (let’s call him I-Get-Around) confused, frightened and disoriented, took off. Just like the Sophie Alert, they put up posters, looked at their old home, as well as scoured the new neighbourhood. They got in contact with the local Animal Shelter. It felt ominous to have a move start on such a bad note. Days turned into weeks, a month and the constant drip, drip, drip of the realization that their well-loved cat may never return.
Cats though, that is why I admire them – they have that nine lives thing going on, you know. About forty-five days after he had disappeared, the Animal Shelter called. The cat come back because he couldn’t stay away. Yes, everyone loves a happy ending….except, well, it is a nice I-Get-Around-Cat, but one day after his Great Expedition, he crossed the street to befriend Andy and Gen and I am sure I saw an Initiation Ceremony where he was accepted in to the Kitty Club Med.
You know my job in life. If I can not drive away the adversaries, I have to accept and protect them. It is a sweet, friendly, non confrontational, sleek grey and white cat, wearing a collar with a little bell. Andy doesn’t mind him because well, nothing much fazes Andy. Now that RIP Beau-Re-Guard found his blue cloud, Andy has dual roles of Defence and the Brainiac. Andy could have handled it all along but he understood it was a Badge of Honour for Big Beau to flex his muscles. Gen, as sweet as she is, has the feral streak in her as far as being paranoid about new acquaintances. However, she seems to instinctively trust this I-Get-Around-Cat and his Little Miss. So….I like them, too.
You know what? ‘Itsa not so bad’. Who cares what colour the house is? Their dog is half the size of me. I am happy to extend my protection to I-Get-Around-Cat and his Little Miss….okay, okay, that little dog too. He looks like he needs help. There is so much fur covering his eyes, he probably can not even see where he is going.
I know, I know the rules (that do not apply to me, of course)……If you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say anything at all. I will keep you posted how having new neighbors work out!
