Happily Ever After

Life in The Rural Retreat with a beautiful wife, three cats, garden wildlife, a camera, a computer – and increasing amounts about running

Earlier posts can be found on Adventures of a Lone Bass Player, where this blog began life. Recent entries can be found here.

A Bid For Freedom

by admin - 20:39 on 02 October 2012

Yesterday was a stressful day for moggies. Three returned from Dr Death's clinic with nothing on their mind except sleep after being manhandled and inoculated by Dr Irish-Vet. Maia and Pandora showed signs of recovery by the end of the day; Willow crawled beneath the sofa-bed in The Kittenry and stayed there. Nobody likes needles.

This morning, cat and kittens were happy again and the role of Rural Retreat stress-head was assumed by Matchgirl, who unwillingly faced another birthday. My gift of Cat Lady, a painting by Aliisa Hyslop, cheered her up only a little before she left for work.

As it turned out, her day was a good one (she even treated herself to Cat Man, Cat Lady's partner) – until she returned at the precise moment that I left the cottage in a hurry after seeing a bewildered kitten on the wrong side of the living room window. Matchgirl's stress returned with a vengeance.

Pandora (for the escapee was she) had disappeared by the time I reached the window; fortunately, after a short search, she was discovered and chivvied back indoors. Our explorer kitten was even more relieved to be home than Matchgirl was to see her there.

The break for freedom, we discovered, was made through our bedroom window which had been left open a crack. This would also explain the rattle in the gutter I'd heard and blamed on sparrows. How our parkour puss got from the gutter to the ground is something Matchgirl doesn't care to think about.

Fortunately, it wasn't me who left the window open.

I blame Willow for Pandora's adventurous athleticism: yesterday she discovered (to Matchgirl's horror) that she could jump on to the armchair near the door from halfway up the stairs; Pandora had to prove she could go one better. Kittens are so competitive.

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