International Bad Cat Day -- Musical Version

[pameladean]

I don't always sleep very well. Last night was pretty good to start with. I went to bed around 1:30, petted the purring, kneading, face-patting, wrist-licking, belly-showing Saffron, and was asleep before I looked at the clock to see how long it was taking me to go to sleep. I woke up at six and used the bathroom and actually got back to sleep rather than lying awake worrying about things I can't do much about. Into this unusual sleep, after two and a half hours, came a strong sound of music. I sat up groggily. Saffron was sitting on a stack of storage tubs, swiveling her head around and looking inquisitive. Cassie was sitting in the middle of the bed with her ears back. It was a rather pleasant piece for violin and flute, and I thought that under other circumstances I might recognize it. I got up and went into Raphael's office, since that was, I believed, the closest possible source of music. All was dark and quiet there, however. Both cats followed me, campaigning for breakfast.

I went back into my room and there was the music. I finally remembered that the clock on top of the dresser, which Raphael and I got long ago either in Arizona or in Bemidji, I can't recall, because we needed better weather reports than the Weather Channel could provide when we were planning on being outside all day hiking, actually has a regular radio in it as well. The button that turns on the weather radio is on top, and Saffron has stepped on it before. But I did not awaken to the automated voice describing the weather. I hit the button, and there was the weather radio. When I hit it again there was supposed to be silence, but the music came back. I finally had to turn the volume down all the way because I could not figure out what Saffron had done. The time-setting controls and the weather radio button are on the top of the clock, but everything else is on the sides. She might have been sharpening her face on the sides, I suppose.

I didn't feed the cats, partly because it was only 8:30, but mostly because I didn't want to encourage whatever it was she had done. I wouldn't put it past her to remember what it was.

In other news, we got the final digital files for Points of Departure from the publisher, and I'm going over my stories looking for errors. There is an error spreadsheet one is supposed to use to locate and describe what should be corrected. I had to ask the nice person in Production how to use it, but it's simple enough.

By this time I am extremely tired of "The Green Cat." It being the oldest of the stories, the digital version had not survived translation from format to format and repeated backups, so I ended up typing it all in again not really that long ago. I was a little impatient with "Two Houses in Saltigos" too, but am both pleased and abashed to admit that "Paint the Meadows With Delight" still makes me laugh, even though I wrote it. Then again, Silvertop is not my character, but Emma's; so perhaps that explains it.

Pamela

Comments

[seekerval.livejournal.com]

As Saffron is a cat, you may want to consider wrapping all sides of the clock radio in bubble wrap. The parts you want to manipulate/read could have thinner, strategically placed wrap that your finger could work through, but might cause Saffron at least a few attempts before she can make it work.

Of course, this COULD mean small popping sounds disturbing your sleep now and then...

[graydon saunders (from livejournal.com)]

Cats are surprisingly strong for their size, and can get stuck in the bubble wrap, panic, and hurl the dense (in my case it was a hard drive) object wrapped in bubble wrap a surprising distance.

I'm not sure I'd want that to happen with a radio kept at altitude, as it were, in a room where I sleep.

[seekerval.livejournal.com]

Rats! Another fine plan foiled by the ever-inscrutable and resourceful feline nature.

[pameladean]

I am sure dogs are very devious in their way, but it's not the same way.

P.

[seekerval.livejournal.com]

So very true. Dogs aren't "inscrutable" at all.

[pameladean]

Oof.

We say of Saffron that she is a LOT of cat. But I think Aiofe is even more cat than Saffron. The vast majority (I typoed that as "bast majority") of it completely benign, just orthogonal to some human preferences, in both cases.

The clock is plugged into the wall, so it probably wouldn't fly as far as your hard drive. But I think I won't risk it.

P.

[graydon saunders (from livejournal.com)]

Well, to be fair, the packing stayed on the hard drive so it just went about six feet and then sort of flumped to a stop on a wood floor because bubble wrap doesn't slide well.

"Orthogonal to human preferences", oh entirely so. Eef has strong opinions about what should happen when, and is the only cat I've ever interacted with who will go right on growling at me -- for the sin of picking her up when she Was Not Done inspecting the hallway outside this apartment -- while bonking the top of her head into the underside of my chin because I was gone all day. It's peculiar, dealing with a cat who can maintain two thoughts in their head at one time.