Orange Animals

Today I observed that all of the animals in my house are orange. I think that's funny.

The cat is a tumbleweed. He's calm and then he's hyper. He's calm and then he's hyper.

He ponders my movements with big, blue eyes. He needs to know where I am so that he can maneuver elsewhere. His latest shtick is climbing in between the wall and the bed to escape my ubiquitous gaze. I am going to be one of those over-protective mothers. I freaked out when he tried to eat my Cheetos (no junk food!). I do not want him out of my sight for fear of some sudden calamity (no jumping on the bed!).

I am watching him as he is watching me and his eyes have gradually closed into tiny slits and, as I take a deep breath, he opens them quickly before he dozes off again. He is still watching me as he simultaneously falls asleep. He has tucked his head into the nook of a teddy bear-- a present from a boyfriend--now he looks like a puzzle picture-- the kind you see at Walgreen's for 99 cents. To me, he looks not like a George or a Bunny or an Atticus or a Scout-- he looks like Oscar. Oscar the cat-- it sounds just enough like Rascal.