My backyard is somewhat of a haven for the neighborhood cats. It could be because my yard is equal parts sunny and shady – for the perfect mix of warming and cooling. It could be because they love the smell of lemon/mint grass that grows in one corner of my yard. Or, it could just be that I don’t have a dog.
Needless to say, it’s a cornucopia of different cat breeds, sizes, shapes, attitudes, and territorial urine marking capabilities.
Every once in a while, I will wake up in the morning and open my blinds – and see a cat sitting in my yard that looks exactly like one of my cats. It’s a tabby pattern that is pretty distinctive – and the yard cat is usually facing away from me, so after just waking up I’m thinking, “Hey, did my cat get out last night?”. I’ll bang on the window and the cat will look at me – and I’ll realize that it’s not my cat after all – the face is wide (male) while my cat is female.
Today, I awoke and opened my blinds, and didn’t see any such cat. Going into the kitchen, I opened the blinds in there so that I could begin my morning ritual of making coffee – I spied what I thought was a black cat outside – that looked like my OTHER cat. Having been fooled so many times before, I chose to turn away and continue with my coffee exercise regiment.
Having completed the pre-flight checklist, mug in hand, I glanced back out the window. It was still there. I looked closer….the cat was motionless.
I parted the blinds, then knocked on the window – because at this point the fog of morning had not lifted. No movement.
I squinted, took a sip, and looked again, and realized I was looking at a small black bucket in my backyard.
*sigh*
At least it wasn’t my cat.
