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Thursday 28 April 2011

CAT - A - TONIC ?

Tiredly lugging heavy shopping from the taxi (how I wish I could drive), this morning, my attention was distracted by shrieking blackbirds.  Underneath the now nearly empty feeder in the front garden sat Fred my neighbour's large, one-eyed black cat.

Now Fred  is a threat to no living creature being lazy, placid, mono-visioned and so well-fed he resembles nothing so much as a large furry black cushion, so I ignored the yelling birds and went in to unpack my shopping.

When I next looked out the front there sat, sprawled, lay a near-comatose Fred in much the same place as before.  As I proceeded to refill the bird feeder, he made no movement but turned his one large beautifull emerald eye on me beseechingly "please feed me, no-one has given me food for days" said the eye.
Since I know that not only is he fed, virtually on demand, by his owners and that he has at least three other port-of-call on his daily stroll I simply muttered a "no chance" and went in and shut the door.  Only to re-emerge two minutes later with a handfull of biscuits.

It is possible I may have previously mentioned that I was born with the word "sucker" printed on my forehead. something I do my level best to live up to daily.  At least, where cats are concerned.

All they have to do is give me that 'cat' look - you know the one - half amused - half contemptuous, and I'm hooked.

Since, by and large cats live only by their own rules, sneer at and patently despise those who worship at their furry shrines, no-one could claim they are by nature immediately loveable, and yet.......if their beautifull sinuous slinky bodies, 'talking' tails and compellingly lovely eyes are turned on me, and millions like me, our reaction is instant obedience to their wishes.

There is for we afficionados one major benefit, an apparently well-documented lifting of depression and improvement in emotional well-being from our contact - I won't call it ownership - of these fascinating infuriating creatures.

As I write, I have no current cat companion but am quite likely to be adopted soon.

Penny, if you read this, please note, I count cats as one of life's blessings, or, as Pollyanna would have said, something to be glad about.

6 comments:

  1. Another cat-lover! I knew there was a reason I was guided to your blog, Ray :-) We don't have a cat nowadays, because we move around too much at the moment, before that we had cats (always plural) for well over 30 years and are still complete suckers for the plaintive mew and the purring rub around the ankles.....

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  2. We've owned several cats over the years but nowadays we just enjoy our neighbor's cats. It's cheaper that way :-)

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  3. It's strange not to have a cat any more, ours died last year. We decided not to offer a home to another because of difficulties with spontaneous camping trips. You had better watch out - it sounds as if you are on the verge of being adopted!

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  4. I am a cat lover, too, Ray and count my kitties as a great blessing in life. I've had them all my life. I'm the kind of sucker who will ease in and out of bed in such a way as to keep from disturbing a sleeping kitty. I had one that slept on my head every night for years.

    Our current kitty adopted us, having been rescued by neighbors after being attacked in a pet store (where she lived, range free). The neighbors had two large German shepherds, which Kitty was deathly afraid of, and so she just came over to our house, and then to a couple of other neighbors' several times a week. After a few months, she decided on ours, which we discovered on Christmas Eve three years ago when we woke up during the night and noticed she was sleeping with us!

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  5. Perpetua
    Yes cats are one of my many obsessions, and of course, once hooked always hooked.
    Ron
    How can you talk about 'owning'cats - not possible, they if they feel like it, own us!
    Freda
    As ever, nail neatly on the head, yes my
    adoption is, I fear, imminent.
    Penny
    Sleeping on your head? Oh no, never, well that's what I think now. We'll see!

    Thanks all.
    adoption is I fear, imminent.

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  6. Sorry about the repeater button. The cyber printer is at work again!

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