mornin', Sunshine

Mornin', Sunshine.  It's been a few days.

MOUSES!

I know, I know...  I know what you're thinkin'.   You're thinkin' I'm now callin' Peepers, Sunshine.

Or...

Or maybe you're thinkin' I've met a beautiful ladycat who's new to the neighbourhood and I'm callin' HER Sunshine, these days.

Or...

Or maybe you're thinkin' that...

What?  What's that, Peepers?  What's that you're babblin' on about now?

You wanna know when I started callin' you Sunshine?

I didn't.  Not once have I ever in all my nine lives called you Sunshine, ol' peep of mine.  Not even once.

Oh sure, I've called you lots of other things over the years.  Some good, some not so good, and even a few, I have to admit, kinda pretty bad.

Oh, like remember when I started callin' you Tyrannasaurus rex on account of your bein' so ancient that you lived way back then, when the dinosaurs roamed the Earth?  Not to mention the fact that you really do kinda look like ol' Rexy Baby when someone accidentally wakes you up at four in the mornin' by steppin' on your face 'cause your face happens to be in someone's way.  And then, because your face has the audacity of not bein' level, like level ground would be, someone might feel like they're slippin' down when accidentally steppin' on it, necessitatin' said someone to dig his claws in, which is probably the sensation that woke you up in the first place.  REMEMBER?

You don't?

Hmmm...

Oh yeah, I think I might have decided to keep that name for you, to myself.

Well, me and my fur-sibs at the time.

And a few other neighbourhood cats.

Oh, and those two dogs who lived at the other end of the street.

You know, in case you didn't find Tyrannasaurus rex all that complementary.

On account of ol' Rexy Baby REALLY needin' a better quality skincare routine.

MOUSES!

But anyway...

But anyway, Peepers, even though you didn't know 'bout my callin' you Tyrannasaurus rex behind your back, perhaps you remember when I used to call you...

Never mind.  I think I kept that name for you to myself, too.  To be honest, that one kinda made Tyrannasaurus rex sound pretty good.

Hehehehehehehehehe.....

Oh!  But remember when I used to call you...

Scratch that.  That one I also put on the not-to-her-face list of names, I do believe.

And remember...

Nope, I never did get around to usin' that one.

When I come to think of it, ol' Peep of mine, there aren't a lot of names for you, I've actually used.  And that, dear peep, includes the name, Sunshine.

What?  What's that, Peepers?  What's that you're babblin' on about now?

You wouldn't mind bein' called Sunshine, you say?

Hmmm...

But then what would I call the actual sun?  How would the sun know I was talkin' to it and not talkin' to you?  How would the sun know I was happy to see it finally - FINALLY! - make an appearance after a dreary and gloomy long weekend like the one we just had?  HOW WOULD IT KNOW?

Good grief, a kitty wakes up all happy to find sunpuddles all over the place, makes a point of recogizin' the sun's contribution to said sunpuddles, and peeps think said kitty is talkin' to them.

JUST WHEN DID YOU MAKE ME A GARDEN FULL OF SUNPUDDLES, PEEPERS?  WHEN?

There are some things only a sun is able to do.

MOUSES!

And just for the record, the sunpuddles today have been most excellent, for sure.

MOUSES!

not again

Not again.

NOT again.

Again?

Again.

MOUSES!

For mousin' out loud, the sayin' really is true.  It never rains but it pours, my friends.

Continuously.

MOUSES!

I know, I know...  I know what you're thinkin'.  You're thinkin' that it wasn't all that long ago when I, Seville the Cat, was beggin' - BEGGIN! - for rain.  And you know what?  You're right.  That's exactly what I did.

But...

But I had good reason to be beggin' for rain, back then.  My fair province of Nova Scotia was on fire.  On fire, I say.  On fire!  There were out-of-control wildfires all over the place.  And although the firefighters were workin' like mad and doin' as best as anyone could, what we really and truly needed was rain.  Lots of it, too.  Yup, what we needed back then was lots and lots of rain.

MOUSES!

But...

But that was then and this is now and let me tell you somethin', my friends: I swear it hasn't stopped rainin' since it started a few weeks ago, and...

Okay, so it has stopped rainin' a bit.

Now and then.

For maybe a second or two.

But no sooner does it stop, then it starts rainin' again!

MOUSES!

And this is causin' me great grief, to be sure.  For starters, Peepers hasn't been goin' for her mornin' walks like she used to do, which has made her more than a little grumpy as of late.  But more importantly, I COUNT ON HER GOIN' FOR THOSE WALKS to get her out of my fur for an hour or two.

I swear she's been underpaw for weeks.

I believe her not wantin' to walk in the rain is on account of the well-documented phenomenon that occurs when peeps melt after gettin' wet.

Saw it on The Wizard of Oz so I know it absolutely must be true.

MOUSES!

Or...

Or maybe she's afraid of accidentally participatin' in a wet t-shirt contest!

Could be either one, I suppose.

MOUSES!

But meltin' peeps and wet t-shirts aside, facts are facts.  AND THE FACT IS, like I said, Peepers has been underpaw for weeks AND IT'S DRIVIN' ME CRAZY, for sure.

MOUSES!

And then there's the shortage of sunpuddles which is makin' me a tad grumpy, I'm afraid.  That's right, there isn't a sunpuddle in sight around here.  Nope, not a one.  Oh sure, there are puddles, all right.  There are puddles all over the place.  But they're puddles of the water kind and the sun kind are nowhere to be found.  And although I enjoy a good drink of puddle water as much as the next cat, now and then, what I really like doin' is to lie out in the sun.

And believe-you-me, you DON'T wanna accidentally mistake a water-filled puddle for a sunpuddle, my friends.

It's not a pretty sight.

Right, Saffy?

MOUSES!

So Mother Nature, if you're listenin', PLEASE STOP WITH RAIN!  Try to exercise a little moderation now and then, would ya?  There are plenty of places in Canada that are in dire need of the rain and I know I speak for all Nova Scotian kitties when I say, WE KITTIES WOULD BE HAPPY TO SHARE.

So please send a few of those rain clouds to Ontario and Quebec.  At least for a week, or two, okay?

Good gosh, at this point, I'd be happy for one day.

MOUSES!

*******************************

And remember:

IF IN DOUBT,

DON'T. GO. OUT.

Continue to practice SOCIAL DISTANCIN' measures

AND KEEP WASHIN' YOUR PAWS.

MOUSES!

occupied

Picture it:  My house; yesterday afternoon.

So I walk into the family room, and what do I find?  Two sunpuddles on the family room floor.

Oh my mouses, my friends.  They were SPECTACULAR.  They were the most spectacular sunpuddles, ever.  They were HUGE!  They were absolute perfection, for sure.

I'm tellin' ya, had they been edible, those sunpuddles would have been as delicious as a cheese pizza with extra nip.

MOUSES!

Only problem was...

They were both occupied.

MOUSES!

Now what exactly does a kitty like me do, when findin' that the best of the best when it comes to sunpuddles, are both occupied?

Well...

Well I could have just run to the peep and told her all about it.

But instead...

Instead, I stood there with my paws on my hips, and I cried.

Now don't get me wrong.  I didn't cry like a baby, or anythin' like that.  Cryin' like babies is best left to peeps.

No, I cried as in a GREAT WARRIOR CRY.  I cried, "GET THE MOUSES OUT OF MY SUNPUDDLES YOU TWO!"

Unfortunately, that didn't go as planned.  Toby, knowin' she is small and lithe and super quick on her paws, just looked at me as if to say, Make me.  IF YOU CAN.  And Mason just yawned before sayin', "We're having a girls' only sunpuddle afternoon in here, Seville.  You'll have to find your sunpuddles elsewhere."

In response, I scrunched up my nose as only I can, and I cried.

Again, it was a cry of the fearless warrior sort, and not that of a baby.

"I SAID GET OUT, AND GET OUT NOW!  I'M IN NEED OF THOSE SUNPUDDLES 'CAUSE THERE ARE NO OTHER SUNPUDDLES TO BE HAD!"

Unfortunately, by this time, Mason had rolled over and fallen back asleep.  Tobias started washin' a paw.

Well!

Well...

Well I had had enough and that, my friends, was for sure.

And THAT'S when I really started to cry.

And yeah, yeah.  This time, the cry was less like a warrior, and more like a...

Um...

Eh...

Okay, fine.  I admit it!  I cried like a baby.   Like no baby had ever cried.  Then I ran right over to the peep.

MOUSES!

Now don't get me wrong.  Just 'cause I was cryin' like a baby doesn't mean I was BEIN' a cry-baby, at all.  No sirree.

'Cause there was method to my madness, you see.

Thing is, I have found that if I give the peep just the right look...  The right, pathetic kinda cryin' look...  The peep will do her best to make me happy, givin' in to whatever it is that I want.

Unfortunately...

Unfortunately, this sometimes backfires on me.

MOUSES!

I, Seville the Cat, was fully expectin' Peep #1 to kick those two sisters of mine out of what I had decided were MY sunpuddles, and let me have my choice of the two.  Or maybe both.  I could put a paw in one while simultaneously restin' the tip of my tail in the other.  You know, that sorta thing.

But the peep, bein' a peep, had other ideas in mind.

Next thing I knew, I was up in the peep's arms, bein' coddled like an egg in a fine china coddler.

Forget I just said that, 'cause quite frankly, that analogy sounds kinda weird.

So anyway, next thing I knew, I was bein' cuddled and kissed and cooed at.  Basically bein' embarrassed to no end.  "Let's see if we can find another sunpuddle for you," the peep said.

NEXT thing I knew, I was bein' carried around the house like a baby!  Like a baby, I tell you.  LIKE A BABY!

MOUSES!

Well I squirmed and I wormed, and I wormed and I squirmed.  I was doin' my very best to get out of her grasp, when...

When Peep #1 carried me into the sunroom.

And there, my friends, before my very eyes, was the most beautiful thing I had ever before seen.  THE ENTIRE SUNROOM FLOOR was one gigantic sunpuddle.  IT WAS HUGE!  And it was waitin' for little ol' me.

So I said to the peep in the nicest voice I could muster, considerin' how she had embarrassed me with the kisses and all, "Thank you very much, Ol' Peepers.  NOW SCRAM!  I have some sunpuddling to do!  AND CLOSE THE DOOR ON THE WAY OUT!" I remembered to add, for fear that those two sisters of mine might try to hone in on the sunpuddle of all sunpuddles I had now found.

Then I stretched out, and with the warm sun on my whiskers, I settled in for my mid-afternoon nap.

MOUSES!

blowout

Hmmm...  Indoor sunpuddle or outdoor sunpuddle today?  It's a big decision, for sure.

On the one paw, outdoor sunpuddles are bigger than indoor ones.  A kitty can get in a really good stretch, in an outdoor sunpuddle.  A way better stretch than in an indoor one, 'cause sometimes, if you stretch too much in the ones inside, you end up stretchin' right out of the puddle.  Believe me, I know.  MOUSES!

But on the other paw, on account of the rain earlier, there may be some water puddles mixed in with those sunpuddles outdoors.  None of that goin' on inside.

Again I must ask myself, indoors or out?

The peep did say today was to be unseasonably mild, and I do like to bask in a sunpuddle in mild weather.  Hmmm...

Eenie meenie miney mo, catch a puddle by its toe.

Nah, that doesn't work.  Everyone knows sunpuddles don't have toes.  MOUSES!

I think...  I think...  I think I'll try an outdoor sunpuddle to start.

Andy!  Why do you look like you just had a fur blowout done by someone who has no business blowin' out anyone's fur?  You been to the groomer or somethin'?

No, that was not a comment on your royal title, Sir Fartsalot, and your occasional need of a bum wash and trim.

But if the paw fits..

But do tell, Andy.  How come your fur is stickin' out all over the place?  You look like Albert Einstein havin' a bad hair day.  It's not the best of looks for a cat, for sure.

What's that?  You say you were just outside lookin' for some sunpuddles and there was a big gust of wind and...

How strong was that gust?

Really?  MOUSES!

I need to investigate this for myself.  Move over, Andy.  I'm headin' out.

OH MY MOUSES!  Andy, one moment it was as calm as calm can be and the next?  Well let me put it this way: had I had an umbrella with me, I'd be somewhere over the Atlantic by now.  You weren't kiddin' when you said it was windy.  No wonder your fur got all...  all...  all...  all whatever that look is, you're sportin'.

What's that, Andy?  Why is my fur not lookin' like yours after my bein' out there in that ol' gust of wind?  Well...  Well for starters, my fur is a lot shorter than yours, you see.  I never get a really frazzled look although at times, when dealin' with certain fur-sibs of mine, I can feel frazzled, for sure.  MOUSES!

Hey!  Who stuck these leaves on my back?

Ah yes, the wind.

You know, I enjoy a good leaf-chasin' game as much as the next kitty, but with wind like that...  Well let me put it this way: it's all fun and games 'til somebody gets a leaf stuck on their back.  MOUSES!

Hmmm...  I believe today will be an INDOOR sunpuddle day, for sure.

For mousin' out loud.  Look at that.  The sky has gone all cloudy and stuff, and there isn't a sunpuddle to be found.  Not indoors nor out.

MOUSES!

puddle water

I enjoy a good puddle as well as the best of 'em.  I LOVE a good puddle! Nothin' beats a good puddle, if you know what I mean.  A good puddle of an excellent vintage just can't be beaten.  But this past weekend, the puddle situation was gettin' a little ridiculous.

Let me start at the beginning...

A week ago today, we had the blizzard.  Yup, the Great Blizzard of 2014, it was.

Okay, maybe it wasn't all that great.  To be honest, it really wasn't great in any kind of way. Certainly not great as in good and not even great as in size but it did dump about a foot of snow on us and knock out the power for several hours.  That, and the fact that it arrived when we were all gettin' anxious for spring, earned it the name, The Great Blizzard of 2014.  At least, it did at my house.

Anywho...  No sooner was the blizzard over but the weatherpeeps were warnin' us of another storm. "Another one!" I cried but to no avail.  The weatherpeeps totally ignored my cries and sent it anyway.

Late Friday afternoon, it began with a little smatterin' of rain, here and there.  By sometime on Saturday, the raindrops were all fully present and accounted for.  It rained Saturday night and then all day Sunday.  It rained and it rained and it rained.  "Enough already!" cried I but again, to no avail. It just kept on rainin'.

Because of the rain, there were puddles EVERYWHERE.  Now like I said before, I love a good puddle.  I do.  I really, really do but the best time to enjoy a fine puddle of water is immediately after you've been enjoyin' a sunpuddle.  You get up from your nap in the sunpuddle and walk over for a sip or two of puddle water.  But the thing is, it's pretty hard to have a nap in a sunpuddle when the sun has been driven off by all the rain and all the sunpuddles are filled with water and really, are nothin' more than puddles.

Ahhh...  the sweet taste of puddle water.  Cool and refreshing with just a hint of outdoorsy flavour.  Like a fine, vintage wine.  EXCELLENT.

One day, I'm gonna find a way to bottle up puddle water and sell it on E-Bay or somethin'.  I've been tryin' to figure out how to do it but so far, I've been stuck at the bottling stage. You see, the best part of puddle water is the fact that it comes in a puddle.  You put it in a bottle and you've got bottled water.  Not the same thing.  Not the same thing at all.  Not nearly as good.  Back to the drawing board for the puddle water factory for me, I should think.  MOUSES!

But I digress....

It was still rainin'.  Yup, it rained all day and it rained all night and then on Monday, it rained some more.  I seriously expected the peeps to start buildin' an arc or somethin', it was rainin' that much.

But the peeps were too worried to be buildin' arcs and whatnot.  The peeps were worried about tables.

Remember that ol' water table that lurks underneath my house?  I blogged all about it in my post, "tables of water," when it was threatenin' to rear its ugly head a little while ago.

So the hole in the basement was lookin' a little damp early on in the weekend but by Sunday night, it was containin' some water.  The water table was makin' an appearance.  By Monday, it was gainin' strength.  Higher and higher it crept until by Monday night, it was only three inches from the basement floor.

I gave it a full inspection as only a cat like myself can do.  I waved a paw over the hole in the floor and allowed the aroma of the water to waft toward my nose.  "MOUSES!" I cried. "This water has no aroma at all.  It's nothin' but water.  No puddle aspect to it, whatsoever.  What good is that?" I asked the peep but she ignored me.  Rude, I know, but I'm givin' her the benefit of the doubt 'cause I think she was worried we might be in for an indoor swimmin' pool... AGAIN.

But by late Monday night, somethin' miraculous happened. The rain, durin' the day, had been goin' back and forth between rain and freezin' rain and ice pellets and whatnot but by Monday night, it was lookin' like snow.  SNOW!

Yesterday mornin' I awoke and the ground was covered in white stuff as far as the eye could see. Not a lot of it.  Not enough for any sort of shovellin' to be required but it was...  EVERYWHERE.

Personally, I was not overly impressed with the arrival of the white stuff.  I figured it was some sort of cruel April Fool's Day joke on the part of Mother Nature.  Don't mess with Mother Nature, they say. DON'T MESS WITH NERISSA THE CAT, is what they should say.  The white stuff was interferin' with the spring programming of my Bird TV, not to mention the complete and utter lack of sunpuddles for nappin'.

But believe it or not, the peeps were happy about the white stuff.  The fact that the weather had turned colder and the rain was now snow meant that the table of water was no longer bein' fed from above and would be able to sink back into the underbelly of the Earth and leave my house alone.  Of course, it also meant that there would be no indoor swimmin' pool for this year but really, I think that's sort of a good thing.

I am now currently awaitin' the return of the sun and some sunpuddles.  Perhaps if I have a nice little nap in a sunpuddle or two, inspiration will strike and I'll be able to figure out how to bottle up those puddles 'cause I just know that when all that snow melts, there will be puddles galore.

After I figure out the bottlin' aspect, I'll be lookin' for investors. Any takers?  My bottled puddle water is gonna be the best thing since sliced bread, for sure.  Maybe even better 'cause you know...  cats don't eat bread and I, Nerissa the Cat, am a cat and that, my friends, is a fact.