Saturday, July 12, 2008

yawn



If you passed my house yesterday, you may have seen a strange sight. I was out in the front yard planting my dwarf crepe myrtles. The place where I set them out was in the sun and it was close to noon so I was getting a bit warm. After I finished I wasn't ready to come inside. There's just something calming and wonderful about being outdoors. I decided to sit under the tree in the shade and work on my flower bed. There was a nice breeze and it felt good after working in the sun. I moved my ice water and got all the things I thought I'd need for my little project.

Of course once I sat down Arnold came and got in my lap. He's one of Hannah's cats. Actually he's my cat. He and I have a bond; he loves and trusts me and I love him. He came to us when he was young and we ended up keeping him. We already had Jupiter so we decided two wouldn't be any more trouble than one. He has had quite a life already. He got his leg broken when he was hit by a car, tore a gaping hole in his neck somehow (we never figured that one out but Donald took care of him and we didn't have to go to the vet), disappeared for two weeks and came home thin and filthy, and just recently hurt his back paw. We had a three legged cat for a while. There was nothing obvious that could be seen so we waited it out and he's fine now. So that is the history of his short life.

Back to my story. If I am working in the yard you can usually find the cats there with me. Especially Arnold. He follows me around, rubs against my legs, and gets in my lap the moment I sit down. Yesterday was no exception. So here I am, hot and sweaty, sitting on the ground with the cat in my lap. Now he's shedding terribly and no amount of brushing has seemed to help. If you saw a very hairy object covered in white fur sitting in our yard around noon, then yes, it was me!
Quote from George Eliot, English novelist (1819-1880)
Animals are such agreeable friends - they ask no questions, they pass no criticisms.

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