The cat story. (For I shall have only one in my life.)

In the wake of being denied the nanny-ing job I needed some good old little kid tlc time to cheer me up. So, I offered to sit for some friends of ours kids and we had a great time. I was very responsible (note: responsible is a key word here). Drove them to gymnastics and everything. Got them to bed in a fairly timely manner. The whole nine. Yep. Ms. Responsible.

I got home a little bit after midnight, and feeling very weary I went to go dump my coffee cup from that morning and my lunch bag from that day on the kitchen counter. And then I noticed that our backdoor was open. Yikes.

I wasn't really alarmed about someone having broke in because I had walked through the living room and all of our stuff was still there ... but my second thought was, "Oh CRAP. THE CATS." The cats, Salem and Oscar, have a very good life. They get wet food often enough and treats all the time and I even brush them (!) but they still tend to try to escape, as cats do, when the door is left open.

I knew Salem was there because he was being very vocal. As per usual. But I couldn't find Oscar. So I take the treats out of the cabinet and shake them. Usually, this is enough to make him come leaping across the room in a fashion that is almost frightening. But he didn't come. So I went out on the back porch and shook the treats. Nothing. So I put on my coat and grabbed a flashlight and, treats in hand, head out to look for him. In the very cold, slightly wet, middle of the night.

I was on the phone with Cris by this point and she is very upset. After all, they are VERY MUCH her cats. But after a 45 minute excursion, checking under all the decks and all the cars in the neighborhood, still no Oscar.

My next plan of attack was to put wet food in the front and back of the house hoping the smell would lure him in. And then I waited. I couldn't go to bed because that would defeat the purpose of luring him in. So, I made my lunch and got the coffee ready, etc etc and at some point (2:30 a.m. actually) something catches my eye outside and Oscar is on the porch. Just hanging out.

So I open the door and of course, he darts away. I shake the treats, which intrigues him. But is also the point that Salem decides to run through the open door. I am officially cursing and kind of want to cry because, did I mention I had been up since 5 a.m. the day before?

Finally I got the cats inside. Both of them. And locked the door. And in case you are wondering, the door was open because I didn't lock it and it opens easily when not locked. The wind broke into our house.