Sophies's Happy Story Jan. 2009

Dear Jo,

I should have written sooner, but I have been so busy in my ‘forever home’ that I just haven’t had time. You didn’t tell me when I left that I would have to work so hard.

My day starts at 6:30 am when I have to give the mister a wake-up call. He then pats me on my head and says “later”. I try again at 7:30, but he just pats me on my head and says “it’s too early”. He finally arises with my 8:00 alarm.

But my day has just started. When the misses gets up, I need to massage her fingers. I do this by walking back and forth under her hand as it hangs over the arm of a chair. Back and forth, back and forth. You can imagine how tiring this is. When her hand has been fully massaged, I am supposed to climb into the window and inspect the yard for birds, dogs and other intruders.

Then I go outside and check who has been in my yard during the night. I used to love this part of the job, but master replaced the ground cover with lawn, and I just can’t bring myself to walk on it. I will walk around it but I won’t put a paw on it.

At noon I am expected to remind the mister that he needs to stop for lunch. Sometimes I get a few treats for this service. After lunch I collapse into my bed for a quick nap. At six I need to again remind the master that he needs to stop work for the day. Again I may get a few treats for this service.

After dinner I am forced to turn my body over to the master for combing. This is particularly onerous and a definite invasion of my personal space. But duty is duty and I accept my fate with resignation.

At 11:00 I put the master to bed. I always sleep at their feet. During the night, whenever they get up for some reason, I need to re-tuck them back in. I chirp and meow until they pet me and reassure me they are okay.

A note from the Misses:

Sophie is becoming a wonderful companion. It has taken awhile for her to get use to us, and for us to get in rhythm with her. She is beginning to get use to traveling and is becoming curious about her surroundings. However she will not go outside into areas she is unsure of. We have found that traffic noises send her into a panic. We are looking forward to spending many years with this dear, sweet cat.

Myra