The Fun of a Texas Spring Night

I love this time of year! There are so many BUGS outside at night. I can sit on the deck rail and listen for them. It's especially cool if the porch light is left on. Texas gets june bugs in March and they are so noisy and easy to catch. Fun to watch. A piece of cake for a fast pouncer like me!

One night I couldn't go outside so I laid by the door in the hopes that someone would get a hint I wanted out. Sometimes Dad opens the door and shows me that it's raining. I don't mind a sprinkle - I'm no baby - but a pouring down rain is a no-go for me.

ONE night, I got mad because no one would let me out and when Mom was looking at me, I peed on the floor right by the door to give her the message.

I got in trouble and still didn't get to go out. When Mom made Wishbone go out, I ran to the door and she stopped me but I did see that it was pouring down rain. HE had to go outside in the pouring down rain to do his business anyway. At least I have a litter box in a nice dry and warm room.

I felt bad.

Oh, and back to my original topic. I brought TWO treats in the house yesterday. I caught a lizard and brought it in. The last time Mom saw it, Poppy was playing with it....she doesn't want to think about where it is now. AND, I brought in a dead june bug. I am way to tough and fast for them!

mom's new camera

Mom got a digital camera for Christmas and taking pictures of cats is a favorite way to practice. These pictures were taken the week of Christmas and just after. The first one is of me. Being nonchalant is something I'm very good at. I would never stoop to posing for a picture like some people I know. For reference, see the next picture.



Wishbone, cough cough, likes to pose and has absolutely no shame about his longing to be on a lap, cuddled on the couch or, heaven forbid, under the covers of a blanket where he can't even see what's going on.

This is a good picture of Dad. Me and him are buds.

But somebody needs to talk to that dog, but I really doubt he would listen.




Poppy was rubbing her head and neck on the latch of a cabinet that Dad got for Christmas. I thought her tail was in need of a good sneak attack, so I hid behind the cabinet till I knew she was good and distracted--then I attacked.

She got mad and ran off. I also got a couple smacks for my trouble. She is such a sore sport. I was only having fun.

It's been a long time since I was here. Since we moved to our new house in February, there has been too much to do that's more fun than sitting at the computer typing.

The back yard has a deck with a rail. I love to sit and walk on that rail. Sometimes, I sit there for a long time and just look over the fence and into the trees. Sometimes, I go under the deck and look for bugs and lizards.

One time Wishbone went under the deck and he got lost and couldn't get out. He was crying loud. Mom wanted to tear the deck apart to get him out, but Dad was more patient. He helped the stupid dog find his way out.

I would like to point out that I never get lost when I go under the deck. It's also a good place to hide when I'm called to come in and am not ready.

When no one is looking, I will occasionally jump over the fence and leave the yard. Dad almost me one day in the front yard. I ran really fast, jumped over the fence and asked to come in at the sliding door. I came in all non-chalant like. I fooled him, for sure. Maybe he thought the gray cat he saw was another cat because his girl would never leave the backyard. I really hate being spanked by him. I really do. And I can't stand it when he's mad at me. It's ok, however, for me to be mad at him.

Mom just wants everybody to be happy and hardly ever spanks. She's such a pushover.

And, actually, the house is good too for cat-tivity. I can run up and down the stairs and up and down the hall. I make a lot of noise when I do it to show how tough and fast I am. Sometimes I bring Mom a lizard that is minus the tail. She doesn't like it a bit and throws my toy outside on a magazine! She won't even touch it!

Did I ever tell you that I caught a snake? It was a little snake. Me and Wishbone both played with it for a while, but he lost interest and decided to run up and down the fence all excited-like. Why does he do that anyway? But I carried the snake in my mouth and played with it. Mom was horrified but Dad said I was just being a cat.....whatever that means.

Last note of the day; our Christmas tree is up. I like to bite to lowest branches. It makes me wince like humans do when they bite foil, but I bite it anyway. I like to run under it when the dog chases me. Poppy takes naps under the tree.

I'm never afraid of Wishbone anymore. We play and chase each other sometimes. If he gets on my nerves, I slap him and he leaves. He's a wuss, but he's my brother.

Humans Can Be So Mean!

The Life of a Cheetah

You would not believe what happened in my house a couple nights ago.

I was outside with Poppy for a long time. It was getting dark so when Mom called, we both came to the door and came inside the house. She likes it when we do that.

I wasn't inside but a few minutes and Dad picked me up and squirted something wet on my neck! I didn't like it one bit and though he thought he was loving me up, I wanted to get down. I was mad and needed to get away from him before I tore him up like the cheetah I am.

Just a few minutes later, he was in the upstairs bathroom. I got a brilliant idea.

I moseyed in there and jumped into the litter box just to confuse him that everything was ok. I go in the litter box when someone is in the bathroom often because it seems like a good time to use it and be near my people too.

I did part of my business and after jumping out of the box, I finished the last little bit on the floor. Then I wiped my butt on the floor three times. The last time I wiped it right on the very edge of the carpet and linoleum so it was the worst mess of all. I did it right in front of Dad to show him who's boss and that to mess around with me will get him in trouble!! I was sure I'd taught him a lesson or two about cheetahs!

Would you believe he had Mom help him catch me and then he whacked me on the head! I hate it when he does that! I feel so insulted! He showed me that stinky stuff and said I was bad and whacked me again.

Hm. Maybe I should have thought that through a little better. Or, maybe not only was he mean to put that stuff on my neck but also mean to whack me when I let him know that I didn't like it....

Anyway, I tried to say I was sorry later. Mom petted me. She's such a pushover. But Dad pushed me off the bed. Then I felt really bad and have been extra good the last couple days to remind him what a nice cat I really am. He has remembered and we are best friends again.

People! You gotta not give up on training them!

I have a love-hate relationship with Ben-Gay. My Mom puts it on my Dad's back. It makes me squint my eyes and it tastes awful, but I just have to taste it. Mom and Dad think it's very funny and I don't think they should laugh at me!

I agree that "Cats Rule and Dogs Drool". Wishbone can be very dumb. He crawled under the deck a couple nights ago. He just barely fits and was probably chasing a toad or piece of grass. He got LOST under the deck and started to cry because he couldn't get out. Mom heard him crying and yelled for Dad. Dad stayed very calm but Mom wanted to tear the boards off the deck. I stayed inside and watched from the door in their bedroom so I wouldn't get stepped on.

Finally, Dad was able to lead the dumb dog out from under the deck with the flashlight and Mom calling him. She said she was afraid he was hung on a nail. Dad wonders why she worries so much.

The thing that is the craziest of all is that Wishbone wanted to go back outside as soon as he got in. Mom opened the door to let Poppy in and Wishbone dashed around her legs and escaped. He was headed for under the deck again!

Well Mom got really mad, she caught him and carried his naughty self into the house. She was running in the backyard in her nightie. Good thing there are trees all around!

I have NO problem getting out from under the deck and certainly don't get lost. Yup, "Cats Rule and Dogs Drool"!

Trying to get outside

I have noticed over the weeks how often the Dog gets to go outside. Practically whenever he wants. Now Poppy has taken to standing and the door and meowing and looking pitiful till someone opens the slider and let her out.

She even left the back yard through a hole in the fence to visit with another cat in the driveway!!

It isn't fair.

When I'm let out, it isn't but a few minutes and I can hear the thundering paws of Wishbone and Mom and Dad saying "Go get Cheetah!". He thinks he's a darn herding dog, but he's so enthusiastic about chasing me that I admit to freaking out a little and headed toward the door as fast as I can go.

The funny thing is, I can slip between the rails on the deck and be right at the door. Wishbone is too dumb to know that he still can't fit between those slats and tries to get through to chase me right into the house. The few seconds it takes him to figure out that he's not going to fit through this time and either and then run to the stairs gives me time to get in the house and feel safe again.

They all say that I'm the baby. I'm no baby and I want to be given the same respect the Poppy and Wishbone gets. It's just not fair. It's not fair.

That's my complaint for today.

Otherwise, I've got lots of places to run here. I've even lost a pound or so with all my running around. Mom and Dad laugh when they hear my footsteps pounding upstairs while I play imaginary games. I like to look down on the living room from the open hallway upstairs. It makes me feel important and like I'm surveying my world.

Mom and Dad think it's cute. Sheesh. I get no respect for being the Cheetah I am.

Daily Entertainment

Here's a more recent picture of me reclining on the animal couch after a busy day. It's kind of like a futon as the couch even opens up--but we never do. I am the baby of this family and I like how spoiled and loved I am.

I do like to lay at the sliding doors in my living room. Mom and Dad have put bird seed in the feeders and I like to watch the birds. Just lately, a squirrel has decided that our deck is the place to eat. Yesterday, he was just inches from me! He was eating out of the bag of bird seeds that he'd torn a hole in and just goin' to town on the sunflower seeds! We looked and looked at each other and he must have decided that I couldn't get to him. I wanted to jump right through the glass but knew I couldn't do it.

Watching him makes my tail twitch. And watching him makes me talk. Mom and Dad think it's funny.They say I "chirp" when I'm excited. Alicia says that my cat-dad, Phoenix, chirps too. I think that's exaggerating though I do find it hard to be completely quiet. I'll lay for a very long time and watch the squirrel whether he's on the deck eating or playing in the tree beside the deck.

Wishbone only wants to chase the birds and the squirrel. What's the matter with him? When the squirrel is chased, then there is nothing to watch anymore. Sometimes I want to play with Wishbone, but I'm not quite sure how. He can get kinda rough.