Oxbow's World

I forgot to mention one key event in yesterday’s installment. Both Mama C and I had to go through some sort of screening before we could advance! I was taken out of my carrier and held in place on a table by a nice lady in a uniform. She was carrying on about how handsome I was. I tend to have that effect on the ladies. Anyway, my carrier went through some sort of machine, and Mama C went through another. We were reunited shortly afterward and back in the carrier I went.

After our bathroom stops and a brief snack break, in which Mama C opened my carrier slightly and fed me a lickable treat out of a pouch like a baby, we were on our way to the gate. Soon we were lining up to board the airplane. We were among the first to board, because Mama G had sprung for a ticket in first class for us, figuring we’d both be more comfortable. One of Mama C’s former coworkers thought it was funny that I’d be at the front end of the plane and drew a picture of what it might be like:

So I started to think I’d be in for a real treat, maybe stretching my legs, drinking some sparkling wine and watching a movie. But unfortunately it turns out that the rules for two-legged and four-legged passengers are quite different, and I got stuffed under the seat in front of Mama C!

About midway through the flight, which lasted six hours, I was longing for that family bathroom again. I really had to go and was squirming around something fierce, to hear Mama C tell it. Well, when a guy’s gotta go, he’s gotta go. Fortunately Mama C had put a pee pad in my carrier, so no one was the wiser until she went to clean it out several days later.

I was grateful when the flight was finally over, although that roar when we landed was very disturbing! I was feeling pretty cramped up by then, as I’m sure, too, were most of the passengers in the “saver” seats at the back of the plane!

As Mama C took me off the plane, I had no idea what awaited us. More on that tomorrow …

So after what seemed like an interminably long car ride, I was transferred to another vehicle, occupied by a couple of other people. Mama C and the others chatted on the way to wherever we were going, while I continued to cry.

After another long ride we arrived at a strange and chaotic place, with people rushing around in all directions, suitcases in tow, and voices booming from the ceiling. I could smell the stress! Mama C had placed my carrier atop her suitcase and wheeled me up to a counter, where we checked in for our so-called flight. Up until then, my definition of flight had been leaping from the kitchen countertop, so I was in for quite the shock when I learned what was ahead!

But first Mama C was hoping to feed and hydrate me, so she slipped into a family bathroom. Hey, I’m family, right? My first impression of this bathroom was that humans are filthy creatures!

Mama C tried desperately to coax me out so I could drink some water from the cute little travel bowl she had bought just for this trip. It had been clipped to my carrier, making me look like a seasoned traveler, though I’m sure I was fooling no one. But I wasn’t about to get out, at least not in that room!

Shortly before we were to board our plane, Mama C took me to a different family bathroom, and this time I was ready to venture out and maybe get some water — on my own terms, of course.

Stay tuned for Part 3 …

Today is the two-week anniversary of a life-changing event for me. I would have written about it sooner, but it’s taken me that long to process what happened and to be honest, I’m still not really sure exactly what happened! Some of you have probably had such moments, when life seemed to be chugging along in its usual fashion, and then suddenly it was changed forever, whether through a chance meeting with the person who would become your spouse, or the purchase of a winning lottery ticket, or, as in my case, an abduction! Don’t worry, this isn’t going to be some far-fetched story about being beamed up into a spaceship and probed, although it does involve some sort of flying machine.

Anyway, so there I was that Sunday afternoon at my bowl containing my dry food, or as Those Two like to call it, my “crunchies.” I was happily eating, without a care in the world, when suddenly I was scooped up from behind and stuffed into some kind of container. I’ve been in containers before, but this one was different. It was a little plusher than the others, but also smaller. It also had more mesh windows, so after I turned around, I could see Mama C grinning at me maniacally. Well maybe she wasn’t really maniacal, but she appeared that way to me, and as they say, perception is reality.

Soon I was in the car, on the way to somewhere that was a much longer drive than any I’ve experienced before. I cried the whole way, of course, but little did I know the adventure was only just beginning!

In hindsight, I knew something was going on long before I was snatched from my food dish. Furniture had been disappearing from the house for weeks, photos and prints had been taken off the walls, and finally, my favorite duvet cover had been stripped from the bed. I felt lost!

You’ll have to tune in tomorrow for part 2, because this is going to be a very long story. As I said, I’m still trying to sort it all out.

Who says cats don’t like water and are afraid to get wet? Personally, I just love shower time, especially in Mama C’s preferred bathroom, the one with the tub/shower combo. First I wait patiently at the door as Mama C disrobes.

Then, once the water starts flowing, I sit like a stalker outside the shower curtain and continue to wait, a little less patiently now. The anticipation builds as I feel the steam wafting out into the room, Mama C oblivious to my presence.

Then, when the water finally stops running and begins circling the drain, I make my move!

This might very well be the second-creepiest shower scene in history! It’s probably why Mama G has a cloth shower curtain with a transparent panel at the top, so she can see what’s coming.

I just love a good snow day! Mama C was pretty happy today, too, because her workplace decided to close and she got a paid day off. And even though there were plenty of storm-related chores for Those Two to do, Mama C took a little break to engage me in a snowball fight. OK, it wasn’t much of a fight, since I couldn’t throw any snowballs back, and she was unable to hit me with that glass door shielding me. So I have to declare myself the winner!

That 49ers-Lions game was a heartbreaker last night. I was so giddy throughout the first half, sure that my favorite team was destined to be champions at last. But shortly into the second half, I pretty much couldn’t even bear to watch.

They say we all have a doppelganger. I’m not exactly sure who “they” is, or are, but if you ever want to start up a conversation about some topic and pretend to be something of an authority on it, “they” serves quite nicely as an authoritative source.

In any case, I seem to have met my doppelganger this Christmas season, hanging right from our tree!

At first I didn’t notice him, because I was too busy drinking the tree water or derailing the train, and engaging in other holiday mischief, much to the dismay of Those Two. And then suddenly, there he was, and I have been fascinated ever since! The train is back to running on time, but the tree is still thirsty.

Well I was planning to wish you all a happy Thanksgiving yesterday, but the day sort of got away from me. So here’s to better late than never!

Our Thanksgiving started off with some very appropriate visitors, a flock of wild turkeys! Or at least so I was told, because I slept through their visit, as did Mama C. But Mama G, ever the early bird, was very excited about it all! You do have to wonder, though, why they would make the neighborhood rounds on that day, of all days. If I had been one of them, I would have been keeping a pretty low profile. We hope they made it through the day safely!

I left you with a little tease at the end of my last post, promising to say more about my intelligence. And then I forgot about it, because in the meantime there were many naps to be had, toys to be played with, etc. So here it is.

Ever go through life thinking things are a certain way and then suddenly you find out that your perception doesn’t match reality? Or maybe it’s more a case of public perception not matching your reality. In any case, it can be jarring!

Here’s the scene: The previous post’s joke aside, I’ve always thought of myself as a reasonably intelligent guy. After all, how many cats have a blog? But then this summer, Those Two went to the 2023 Cat Video Fest in Brookline, Mass. It’s a popular annual screening held at locations throughout the country, consisting of videos submitted by cat parents and selected by some panel or another. It’s basically like watching an hour and 15 minutes of YouTube videos. Ha, as if I have the time!

Anyway, Those Two said they thoroughly enjoyed it, but I noticed something different about their demeanor when they returned. Suddenly I seemed to be the subject of some private joke, and then they spilled the beans. Apparently quite a few of the videos were of orange cats, like myself, and the voice-over usually said something about us using our “one brain cell.” I was shocked to learn that orange cats are widely considered to be stupid! It rocked me to my core! But then I had to consider the source.

Look at them, silly humans who drove three hours round trip and spent good money on lunch and tickets when they could have just stayed home and watched me.

I just love to watch that big yellow bus pick up the neighborhood children. It makes me want to go to school, although I’m not sure that’s the bus I’d be riding. It must be so exciting to be taken away for the day to a place where you learn all kinds of new things, get to choose from a smorgasbord of treats served up by a lady wearing some weird net on her head, and maybe even be adored by your peers rather than tortured. I would probably be a jock, because I’m more athletic than smart. More on that later …