Cat Box

I finally figured it out. I was wrong before, but some time spent observing has set me straight.What is the main reason we have cat litter on the floor near the cat box? It isn't that the cats are flinging it out while trying to dig and then cover a hole. No, like World War II POWs, they're smuggling the dirt out in the cuffs of their trousers--or in their case, stuck to the fur of the legs and between their toes.

I will probably obsess about a solution for the next week or so, but deep down I understand that the only solution is the one we now use: A broom applied several times a day.

Still, I hate walking through that room barefoot.

Still Life of Chair--with Pets

I meant to post a picture of Jack with my last post, but found I didn't have a copy of the picture I needed. Here is Jack, along with Minja and Maki (on the chair--Minja has the glowing evil eyes and Maki just looks contented).

These three will figure into far too many of the blog posts you will see here. They have rearranged my life, mostly for the better, so I spend a lot of time watching them and thinking about them.

Stay tuned.

Jack & the Bird

Jack chased his first bird today. A robin.

I know this isn't a big deal. I know dogs chase birds all the time. What I don't know--or what I didn't know until today--is just how gloriously happy running for a dozen steps or so could make a dog. Jack ran and as soon as he got close enough for the bird to notice, the bird flew away. Jack ran back to me and he was positively *vibrating* with joy. Looking at him, I knew that I have never in my life felt as happy, as perfectly in my place in the world, as Jack was at that moment.

So I let him chase another bird. Then I took him back to his "crate" and I drove back to my cubicle.