Monday, August 15, 2016

The Intelligencer

Almost every night, she takes up her position. Cammie sits on her haunches, or lies with her legs folded under her, on the carpeted shelf by the sliding door in the sitting room. The door is open but the screen, of course, is closed. She trots in as twilight coalesces, and takes her place.

I can’t believe that the princess sees much from where she reposes, almost at the floor. Sometimes, she lies on the top perch of the cat-tree next to the screen, but usually on the shelf, ten inches or so above the floor. I think what she may observe is secondary or tertiary to what she hears and smells, two senses which, for a cat, must be as open to stimuli as sight, if not more.

So she sits there, usually for a few hours, collecting the fragrances and the sounds, and the odd sight, from the neighbourhood, as it closes for the night. She learns what the deepening dark tells her; her spies come to her on the breeze. Now and then, there is excitement: an intruder-cat to be warned off, or a passing human warily to be watched. But usually, this is a retiring time, with the world providing information and gossip quietly, and in small pieces.

Cammie will miss the open door come the cold months. But the apartment has advantages over the old house, with its storm-windows and screens that came and went. Even when the temperatures drop, a slight aperture may be arranged in the sitting room, a little window within the window, large enough for a small black nose, or a twitching ear. The duties of the intelligencer know no seasons.


10 comments:

  1. A kitty can't let her guard down, no matter what the season, so it's great she has even a mere window crack all year round. :-)

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  2. just keeping up on the neighborhood news :)

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  3. She really takes her job seriously.

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  4. There must be a great deal of action in your neighbourhood - and many activities requiring Cammie's close watch. Of course, as a human you are ignorant of much that is happening. Good thing you have the Princess to keep a watch. Holly has just finished up her "window time" and is now fast asleep on the bed.
    Ps. I am so happy to hear dear Renn is feeling well again.

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    1. Yes, the evening looks pretty ordinary to me, probably quite different from what Cammie observes.

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  5. Who needs a watch dog when you have a watch cat? =^..^=

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    1. They're all pretty darn good at lerting me to something unusual.

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    2. Cammie has her evening rituals that help her to feel relaxed and peaceful. She really seems to like the new place and all it has to offer. I think she's found her sense of security and savors it in her own special way.

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  6. Keeping tabs on the neighborhood is quite a chore and she rises to the occasion with grace and attention to detail

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  7. Cami does seem to enjoy the new place. I find myself cracking the side window in the kitchen in the winter for a short bit so that Ralphie can get his whiffies and satisfy that need to have the outdoors.

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