Monday, April 12, 2021

 

Another day, chilly but wonderful. I got around the garden by myself. 2484 steps – the telefonino is in generous mood today. Helen and her family (husband, Archie, Fergus, dog) have gone off to Kirkmichael. I’m all by myself for a couple of days.

 

I’ve made some progress with the Calcutta Cup on wee Hamish’s vest. There is a strange pleasure in knitting letters or numbers or images – lacking the pleasant rhythm of traditional Fair Isle patterns, one feels one can’t be getting much of anywhere – and suddenly it makes sense.

 

For reading, I pressed on with “The Viceroys”. But despite this being my third or fourth attempt, I’m still finding the proliferation of characters confusing. The setting is only a few years after that of “Il Gattopardo”, although in Catania, not Palermo. But that doesn’t help.

 

I’m sorry that no one so far has been as enchanted as I am by the cat story in the New Yorker. The cat has come home; it took him weeks. (This is the preface to an article about how animals navigate.) He is tired and dirty and hungry. But he wants to see his daddy. The writer of the article, who is living in the house where the cat used to live, emails a picture of him to Brooklyn – “Is this Billy?” --, and Daddy comes up the I-84 as fast as he can. “The cat, who had been pacing continuously, took one look and leaped into Phil’s arms – literally hurled himself the several feet necessary to be bundled into his erstwhile owner’s chest. Phil, a six-foot-tall bartender of the badass variety, promptly started to cry. After a few minutes of mutual adoration, the cat hopped down, devoured the food I had put out two hours earlier, lay down in a sunny patch of grass by the door, purring, and embarked on an elaborate bath.”

12 comments:

  1. New Yorker won't let me read, but thanks for your paragraph which made me a bit weepy too.
    You might like this blog islandanchorhold.blogspot.com by a 70s woman living as some sort of religious recluse on an island. She has a nice cat story today, too. Another appreciator of the cat personality. Thing is, you have to take the cats as they are; today intense love and tomorrow some food and a bath with their back to you.

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  2. Many years ago we lived in rural Colorado. Our cat was an outside cat, and stayed behind when we moved. We had found another home for him, he wasn't allowed in the new house (by the owners.) He moved himself back when the new family moved in. He was a loving cat to their daughter, but ignored the father. A few years later we stopped by on a vacation. The cat ran for my husband, then spent time with our son, daughter, and then me. He purred and purred. Then he must have had enough, because he indicated that he wanted back outside.

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  3. Many years ago, I had a Siamese who I always referred to as our first child. We was an adorable kitten who would fetch, bring the rolled up sock back, drop it at our feet and anxiously wait for it to be tossed again. He could do this for hours. He always slept with us, under the covers, at our feet. When our daughter arrived he was so put out that he sat on the edge of the rug with his back to us, and he stopped sleeping with us. He would curl up on my drafting board while I worked and eventually got used to our daughter. He was allowed into our garden (we have a brownstone on the Upper West
    side of Manhattan) and one day he did not return. At this point he was well over 12 years old, and when he didn't return the next night we became worried. We put up signs all over the neighborhood and I called the Humane Society where strays are taken. They had a Siamese and I rushed across town to retrieve him, but it wasn't our cat. I was bereft and had difficulty going into our garden, which I love. Then one morning as we are having breakfast in the garden, he appeared jumping over the wall. He was thin and dirty and very thirsty, but ok. He had been gone for two weeks! They did not microchip pets in those days, but tattooed an x in one ear and his identity was on a pet finder site. He lived to be 21 and had a good life.

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  4. Lovely cat story, Jean. Thanks.

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  5. I did go and read the article and loved the initial story! Having been a cat person my whole life, I really appreciated it. All my kitties have crossed the rainbow bridge now and hubby and I have decided we won't get any more as they would undoubtedly outlive us and it's just not fair to them. My "grandcat" comes and spends a week here and there though while her humans go out of town, so that is a bit of a consolation.

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    1. Mudmaven, our Siamese died on 1/6/21, and we, too feel we are too old to promise a kitten a happy home for 20 years. It's the first time we've been without a Siamese since our wedding in 1966!

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    2. We have adopted adult cats from a shelter several times. After a few days they settle in nicely and appreciate being in a home again. I think these older cats weren’t given up by owners, but by the children after the owners died. We especially love calico cats.

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  6. Jean I agree cats form a very strong emotional bond with their owners. Last week my daughter who lives in Australia went into labour 16 days early. She told us her young cat must have known the birth was imminent as he spent the entire day glued to her side, whereever she went he shadowed her every move. He usually spends most of his day outside but not on this occasion.

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  7. Anonymous10:41 AM

    Love cat stories. These are so fun. There was a published knitting designer on the east coast (America) who also was a religious recluse. Maybe one and the same? Will have to onvestigate.

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    1. Anonymous4:09 PM

      Perhaps you're thinking of Anna Zilboorg?
      -- Gretchen (aka stashdragon)

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  8. Anonymous4:07 PM

    We have always been cat-and-dog people in all the households I've lived in, and the cats have been as loving and friendly with humans as the dogs - and usually more obedient, too. The cats love the dogs, too, and cuddle up with them: it's the peaceable kingdom in our house.
    -- Gretchen (aka stashdragon)

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  9. =Tamar4:43 PM

    Perhaps it is from my college years as an English major, but I make draw family trees and relationship charts of characters while I read.

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