Saturday, 10 October 2009

• My Pets

  The cats are back.
  Dave called me a couple weeks ago and said he had to get rid of his cats.  He brought Mimi and Bobo over on the Monday night before Chusok.  I told him that one of the conditions was that they would be "indoor-outdoor" cats, as I couldn't see keeping them penned up in this tiny apartment for the foreseeable future.

  They stayed indoors for the first 4 days, until they accepted that this was their new home.  Then I started letting them out for short periods, and feeding them when they came in.  Mimi decided that she needed to protect the yard from any cats who wandered through.  My Soul!  I hadn't realized that this yard was a 'right-of-way' for every cat in the neighborhood!  She is a very territorial creature. 

  While chasing a brindled cat Friday night, she jumped up on the wall that separates our yard from the next-door neighbors' yard.  After jumping down, she discovered she couldn't get back out.  The wall is only about 4 feet tall on our side, but it's about 8-10 feet tall on the other side.  That's because our houses are on the side of a mountain.  I discovered her dilemma when I went out to call her in after midnight.  The young woman who lives over me came out and we tried to get Mimi out.  The upper apartment's lights were out, so I decided to wait till morning, and G* agreed that was best.  She said she would explain the problem to the owner next morning.   

  We went over and talked to the gentleman.  He fetched his key, came down and unlocked the gate, but Mimi didn't come when I called.  I walked down around the back of the house and found her, huddled under a bike tarp next to the bike.  She was not a happy camper.  She hissed, but offered no resistance when I uncovered her and picked her up.  She actually snuggled against my warm shoulder as I walked back to the small group of curious Koreans.  When I got 'too close,' she hissed.  I quickly said, "Mimi is scared," and G* translated, so they stepped back and let us through.  

  When we got to our front gate, she began to struggle.  G* gasped when I put her down on the ground.  Mimi was doing a thing that's logical for cats; she was telling me, "Okay, I see home, Mom, and I want to go in on my own four feet!" and she SHOT through the gate, turned and looked at me all wide-eyed, made a feint toward the left and then dashed through the open door into my apartment.  I explained to G* that she was struggling because she recognized 'home' and wanted to go in.  G* said she gasped 'cause she thought that Mimi was going to run away, and we'd never see her again.

  Mimi was quite the neighborhood attraction over Chusok holiday.  Several grandmothers brought their toddlers to see the 'tame cat' and, after some initial nervousness, Mimi seemed to enjoy the attention.  She sat in the open doorway and allowed grandmas to come up and talk to her in a 'cat voice' to which she responded.  I got a real kick out of the lady who said, "Annyongsayo" in a meow tone.  When Mimi mimicked her, "Ayow," the lady said, "The cat is saying 'Hello' to you." to the toddler in her arms.

  Happy Trails! 
  ~ Sil

  • 12:50 PM
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