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Something strange happened earlier this month.  First of all, Mum was like a thing possessed tidying and cleaning the house.  And then the dark oblong thing suddenly appeared at the top of the stairs.  I must admit it took me completely by surprise as I walked from the dining room to the front room.  The stairs are between these two rooms and I always look up just to ensure there are no marauding interlopers lurking – ever vigilant for Mum’s safety and well-being as you well know.

And that’s when I saw it.  The dark oblong thing.  I stood at the bottom stair with my front paws on the stair above it and sniffed the air to see if there were any clues as to what it was.  I couldn’t detect any interloping marauders who would hurt Mum so after a lengthy period of mutual staring (which we’ll call a draw) I made my way to my blanket on the sofa in the front room. After a bit of a spruce up and a hearty inspection of my nether regions, I fell asleep and thought no more about it.

When I woke up some while later the dark oblong thing was in the hallway.  I couldn’t see any legs so I don’t know how it got downstairs.  There was another bag next to it and Mum was running around making sure my sweetie bowls were topped up and that I had some dinner.

‘Dad’ arrived and the dark oblong thing disappeared along with the smaller bag.  Mum told me to be a good boy and that she’d see me in 15 sleeps’ time.

I don’t know if you know how long 15 sleeps is but it seems an awfully long time.  Mum’s friend from across the road came in a couple of times a day to give me breakfast and dinner, but he doesn’t know about George the Rotund who comes in and eats all my sweeties, and if I’m not careful, my dinner as well.  He left a poo on the door mat by the front door to welcome Mum home. I just hope she realises that I would never do such a thing.  

Then one evening when I was lying on my blanket snoozing and wondering if 15 sleeps had passed by yet and if I’d ever see Mum and ‘Dad’ again, Mum came back home again.  The dark oblong thing was back again too but it was so good to see her that I thought I’d deal with the thing later.  I had to show Mum that I was busy fast asleep and I’d welcome her home after my nap.

The weird thing is that once she had stroked me, given me a million kisses and said ‘hello, Casey, darling,’ it was really hard not to jump up and weave around her legs to let her know I’d missed her like crazy.

Casey snoozing on his blanket A cat has to keep his cool.  That’s what we’re taught by our elders and I remained on the sofa with my eyes tightly closed for at least two seconds before I found myself flying through the dining room and kitchen to the bathroom where she was putting things away.  I weaved around her legs so much that she had to sit on the toilet lid to stop from falling over.  I leapt on her lap, purring, head butting her and dribbling fit to burst.  So much for playing it cool.

Mum was back home again and I’m happy once more. The dark oblong thing will be dealt with tomorrow.  Tonight, it’s just Mum and me, on the sofa, watching television like always.

Happy days. 

A Cats Prayer

Lead me down all the right paths,
Keep me from fleas, bees, and baths.
Let me in should it storm,
Keep me safe, fed, and warm.

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