Echoes in a Hollow Space

Random quote of the day:

“Conversation enriches the understanding, but solitude is the school of genius.”

—Sir Edward Gibbon, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this random quote of the day do not necessarily reflect the views of the poster, her immediate family, Siegfried and Roy, Leonard Maltin, or the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. They do, however, sometimes reflect the views of the Cottingley Fairies.

Mirrored from Better Than Dead.

Random quote of the day:

 

“Debate is masculine; conversation is feminine.”

—Amos Bronson Alcott, Concord Days

 

 

Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this random quote of the day do not necessarily reflect the views of the poster, her immediate family, Siegfried and Roy, Leonard Maltin, or the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. They do, however, sometimes reflect the views of the Cottingley Fairies.

Mirrored from Better Than Dead.

Random quote of the day:

 

“I think to talk well a rare gift—quite as rare as singing; and yet you expect every one to be able to talk, and very few to be able to sing.”

—Benjamin Disraeli, Lothair

 

 

Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this random quote of the day do not necessarily reflect the views of the poster, her immediate family, Siegfried and Roy, Leonard Maltin, or the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. They do, however, sometimes reflect the views of the Cottingley Fairies.

Mirrored from Better Than Dead.

Min: I don't want to be fed in my usual place. I want to be fed out here in the middle of the livingroom.

Me: Too bad. I'm not feeding you there.

Min: But I have a right to take my meals where I want them.

Me (walking to the usual place and putting the food down): Not in this instance.

Later, after having made a bed for herself in the clean, folded laundry.

Min: How about feeding me here?

Me: I don't think so.

Min: You're really rather rigid, you know.

Me: And you're really rather spoiled.

Min: Not spoiled, no. I just know my own worth.

The roommate: That cat is spoiled.

Me: I know! But I didn't spoil her.

The roommate: Neither did I.

Me: Somebody must have snuck in here when our backs were turned and did it.

The roommate: That has to be it.

Me: Ninja cat spoilers.

Min (lounging by her cat toys and catnip stash): Hey, one of you humans over there! Peel me a crunchie!

Me and the roommate: Yes, Min! Right away, Min!

When you have to spell certain words so the cat doesn't know you're talking about her. M-i-n, of course, but also c-a-t and k-i-t-t-y. If you say any of those words out loud, Min thinks you're talking to her. In the normal course of events this isn't such a big deal, but during the day on the weekends when she has to be locked into my wing of the house because the bird is flying around and I'm out in the front room talking with the roommate, Min thinks she should be included in the conversation. Either that, or I'm supposed to spend all my free weekend time in our suite of rooms with her. She'll stand at the door, jiggling it to try and make it open, and caterwauling. Eventually, if you ignore her she'll wander off and go to sleep, but if she hears "Min," "cat," or "kitty," she's right back at the door caterwauling.

W-h-i-p-p-e-d.

I've worked really hard to spoil her this bad. I am proud of my accomplishments.

Conversations with Min really do occur all the time, though maybe not quite in the form they are sometimes relayed here. Min allows me creative leeway in my portrayal of our conversations. She understands the need to stay adaptive that way because she's a very chatty cat and has a wide range of vocalizations she likes to employ—her own creative leeway. Amongst my favorites:

Nyuh - ending on a downward note, it's quite a definitive negative response
Myeep - ending on an upward note, it sounds quite affirmative
Muh - this also ends on an upward note and you can practically hear her shrug with this one

She often responds to questions with one of these, or one of her other myriad sounds. She likes the back and forth and has apparently realized that when the human ends a babble on an ascending note, some response is called for. Sometimes she also shakes her head. I thought this might be due to ear problems, but her ears are clean, and it's something she only does now and then. I read somewhere that fans will sometimes tickle the sensitive hair inside cats' ears and make them shake their heads. This is supposed to also be why they don't like you kissing them or holding them too close when you talk—although I think it much more likely that's a dignity issue.

Anyway, last night I was reading "Inhuman" by Eileen Wilks from the new anthology On the Prowl (also starring Patricia Briggs, Karen Chance, and Sunny). In this story, one of the characters says that cats can sometimes attain sentience, if they hang out with sentient beings and have telepathic abilities. I was mulling this over when Min came running into the room and put her front paws up on the footstool.

Me: Is that right, Min? Are you sentient?

"Nyuh," she said and shook her head.

When I dissolved into laughter, she added, "Stop laughing, you big goon, and come to bed. It's past our bedtime!"

Whether Min cares to acknowledge her sentience or not, she has certainly managed to train me quite effectively. I immediately got up and prepared for bed.

ETA: Min just found out I'd originally used my default picture on this entry instead of her picture. She was not amused.

Min (sitting in the high window): I want that crow out there! Pleeeease give me that crow!

Me: No.

Min: Pleeeeese??

Me: Baby love, that crow is almost as big as you are.

Min: But I want it! It would be such fun!

Me: If you were out there face to face with that crow, it would scare you to death.

Min: No, it wouldn't. I'm largely over my tendency to get skittish. (A loud bang outside. Min dashes under the bed.)

Me: You see? You'd be scared to death of that crow.

Min (from under the bed): Okay, how about the squirrel?

Me: No.

Min: One of those little bitty birds? Pleeease?

Me: Sorry.

Min: You are so mean to me.