Bob's Corner
Still on the topic of house cats and their ilk, I continue to be fascinated and irritated at their inquisitive nature. For example, son Mike was fixing a toilet at our house, and Charlie immediately leaped up to watch. Perhaps he’s going to apply for a job as a plumber? I doubt it. More likely he simply has the innate and intrusive curiosity of the breed.
Also, Charlie likes water. In fact, more than once he’s taken an inadvertent dip by slipping on the edge of the tub when a bath has been drawn. Doesn’t seem to bother him much; he just shakes it off and does that cat thing that says, “I meant to do that, and I’m not in the least bothered.”
Charlie also is somewhat famous for his amazing capacity to get into places and items you wouldn’t think he could reach. For example, when we make ice cream, we have to place a basket over the machine and a weight on top of that. Otherwise, Charlie sticks one of his octopus-like front paws into a revolving portion, and the machine stops. Something like that.
And he has a tremendous talent for “helping” us fix meals. Actually, (see “octopus-like” above) trying to prepare a meal with Charlie on the kitchen counter is nigh impossible. Yes, we do try to discourage him from leaping onto the counter, but you try it. It’s like he’s attached to a bungee cord that keeps yanking him back.
Yep, Charlie and his house buddies get into most everything. On a few occasions, while we were watching a video, one of the furry-footed felines has come onto the couch and stepped on a control, causing all sorts of problems. It usually takes me 20 minutes to figure out how to restore the proper settings. Either that or ask our 10-year-old granddaughter.
Charlie is the most destructive of our house guests, having broken several items, including an old railroad lantern. With red glass. However, Jan and daughter Vicki found replacement glass for me, so all is well, and I didn’t have to send Charlie to cat prison or put him on probation.
It’s said that “curiosity killed the cat,” and I’m here to tell you that we haven’t lost any cats through the years to curiosity, but their curiosity occasionally has aged at least one of us.
