The last few days I’ve been trying to get more exercise, so I’ve been going over to the local High School’s track and walking four laps for the even mile.  On my way there I cross their big parking lots, and on several occasions I’ve spotted a little kitty doing various thing that kitties tend to do.  One morning she was busy chasing the birds, finches I believe, that were out fluttering and chattering around.  I’ve seen her in the evening a few times as well, either walking around or just lounging about.   Last night I took my football over to the track and kicked it up and down the field for a bit.  On my way back I saw her again and decided to see what she’d do if I called her.  I have a tendency to call out to cats that I see, a habit I’ve picked up, and so I started whistling to her, and calling out lightly.  To my great surprise she responded and came trotting towards me.  She was a little skittish as I sat down on the curb, but after a quick inspection she lunged into my hand with reckless abandon.  I sat and petted her for awhile, I didn’t see any collar, and I imagine she isn’t fixed, but that’s hard to tell.   Of course, now I’m eaten up with the impulse to bring her home, but with four cats already I don’t know if there’s room.

I went for a walk this morning over to the local High School’s track, and put in my obligatory mile.  On the second lap around I noticed kitties lounging about on one of the temporary building.  It appeared to be a mother and three or four kittens, though the kittens look to be pretty old at this point.  They weren’t overly concerned by my presence, but they had skedaddled by the time I made it back around.

So a few days ago I’m sitting on the sofa watching TV with the usual cat in my lap, because for whatever reason, taking Chacho to get fixed bound him to me in ways that mystify.  I can rarely sit down without him suddenly appearing with an eager glint in his eye.  It’s as if my lap emits some sort of high-frequency sound that summons him from any point in the house.   So, like I said, there I was on the sofa, and Chacho was in my lap.  Blue the Cat was lazily lounging in one of the other chairs across the room, but as time passed he made some sort of mental adjustment and decided that he would come over to see what we were up to.   I watched him meander over from the chair to the sofa, and make his way over the piled up pillows.

Chacho can be a little territorial, but he’s a big guy and physical exertion isn’t his thing, meaning that confrontations with him don’t last long.  On this occasion, as Blue the Cat approached and Chacho noticed, I had a feeling that there was going to be an altercation; there was a sense of expectation in the air.  Blue the Cat gave Chacho, and me, the once over, most likely gauging how he could get onto my lap.   After a few moments, in which I’m sure there were complex calculations involved, Blue made his move.  He stepped up onto my leg, and at that moment Chacho lunged, well lazily lunged, and bit Blue on his fore-leg.  It looked to be a pretty significant nip, not enough to do any real damage, but enough to convey a message that the lap was occupied and he’d best be moving on.  Blue’s response wasn’t to retreat, or run away, instead he gazed at Chacho a moment as if to say, “What the hell, dude?”    Now I’m really curious, and I’m wondering what’s going to happen, Blue is our special child, and while he will instigate the other cats to chase him, he’s not overly confrontational.  That’s when he raised a paw, Chacho was still staring at him, then the warning shot came, hitting nothing but air.   In retrospect I imagine that Blue had been testing his range, gauging reaction, because then came two very quick whaps to Chacho’s face.   His eyes closed, he pulled back his head as the blows landed.
Like I said, Chacho isn’t the most energetic fellow, and besides he was already lounging on my lap.  He did nothing, but he looked up at me as if imploring me to do something about this egregious affront to his dignity.  In the meanwhile Blue had already climbed over Chacho and was positioning himself to lay down on the small part of my lap that wasn’t covered in cat already.  I guess they had both made their point, and they both settled in, willing to share.