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.

Willow The Whirlwind

by admin - 16:06 on 28 October 2012

Pandora continues to set the pace when The Fearless Ones are out in the great wide world, but indoors it's Willow upon whom a careful eye must be kept. At all times.

Yesterday evening it was she – as both chaser and chasee – who instigated most of the high-speed action inside The Rural Retreat; she was the one most intent on tweaking Maia's tail; she was the one feigning deafness when told to get down from the kitchen counters or out of the sink.

This morning, curled up on The Tess Memorial Shelf, you could believe that Willow had never done a thing wrong in her life. Less than an hour later, when Pandora discovered the last fly of summer buzzing around The Kittenry, her true colours were revealed.

To be fair, it was Pandora who jumped up on my bass case, propped against the wall, to get a closer look at the insect buzzing around inside the ceiling-mounted lampshade. But it was Willow who, after joining her, waited for my back to turn before hurling herself on to the shade. Being a paper-and-wire construction, it now languishes beside the bin.

This shouldn't have been a surprise. After all, Willow so far remains the only kitten to have made the leap to the armchair from halfway up the stairs, and to make the return journey via Matchgirl's jacket on the hook near the chair. Little claws are very useful.

Outdoors today (where Maia unearthed but failed to capture a vole – her increased steroid dose must be taking effect) both kittens enjoyed a riotous playtime, regardless of Matchgirl's winces and squeaks of anguish every time they ran up spindly willow branches then scrambled down again.

It's for this reason that Matchgirl will not buy a Christmas tree this year – a heartbreaking decision for the festive fun-lover. To compensate, she's added to the herd of tacky, glittery reindeer which will be set free to graze closer to the big day.

If they survive. The new arrival, left behind the sofa until it joins its companions in their bag in the outhouse, has already been savaged by mini-moggies. Who led the charge, I don't know. But my money's on Willow.

Why there'll be no Christmas tree this year

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