Peter Recalls Jane the Cat

Today I am going to write about cats, or rather, a cat. Not the musical, mind you, or even the upcoming movie.

Nope, I am going to write about the actual quadrupeds, or as some people call them, ” our feline overlords “. Today I am going to relate some of the background of my little buddy Reg’s mother Jane A later column will feature CoCo, who is the current official cat of Chez Montreuil.

Actor Kitty in the Role of Jane the Cat

I began to see Lois in February 2002. As I have mentioned in earlier columns, my marriage had rapidly become toxic and I needed an intimate relationship to re establish my equilibrium.

One Friday night in October of that year, I came home from work and found Jane in a carrier, with an explanatory note. I guess that my ” wife ” figured that a cat would keep me home in my basement apartment more often. a) I set up the litter, food and water and then let Jane out to explore her new home. At about noon the next day, Jane came and sat on my lap, purring. Another Actor Kitty >

She was the queen of attitude. One day she was sitting beside me and swatted at me with a paw. (I guess that I had annoyed her. )She then turned to leave, except that one of her claws snagged in my sweater and she wound up twirling in slow motion like a furry square dancer. Laughing, I disengaged the errant claw. She stalked away, dignity wounded, and sat on the opposite side of the room, facing the wall, with her tail wrapped tightly around her. About an hour later she deigned to come back and sit beside me.

Another time, I entered the room and was wearing a baseball cap. She was sitting on a fridge beside the door. Suddenly my baseball cap was knocked off my head and landed on the floor. I turned around to look at the only possible perpetrator of this heinous deed. Jane was looking out the window in the opposite direction, the picture of innocence.

I was whistling Mozart one night, and again Jane was sitting on my lap. Suddenly she turned to me and put her paw on the tip of my nose sending a very clear ” cease and desist ( please) ” message. Now, whether it was my whistling or the fact that it was Mozart, I have no idea. One More Actor Kitty>

Another time she was lying in the sun by the sliding door. The patio was covered with birds. All of a sudden Jane threw herself at the door, looking like a grumpy old woman wanting a bunch of kids to get off her lawn! The sky above every backyard within view was suddenly full of birds ” getting the hell out of Dodge “!

Real Birds Actually Terrified of Kitties 

One fine summer evening I was getting ready for bed when Jane got out the door somehow. I chased her into the yard and retrieved her. Around me, house lights were snapping on like in the closing credits of “The Flintstones “. I smiled, but then realized that I had just run out into my backyard in my underwear, yelling, “Jane! Come back!”

I will finish off this part with a picture which is indeed worth a thousand words. I had been hit by a car, was home recuperating and had been loaned a chair which could rise to let me sit down or get up more easily, as I was still very weak. I had left the chair to run an errand, came back and found Jane comfortably positioned in “my” chair. I am out of sight to the left, and Jane’s blasé expression says it all.

The REAL Jane the Cat

She was a great cat, and I miss her very much.

See you soon

1. a) She was wrong. That ship had sailed, and I was striking out on my own.

=PJM=

A confirmed Cat person, Peter dabbled with being a water boy, a paper boy and an altar boy before finally settling on a career with the Canadian federal government.  Once, in his youth, he ate a Dutch  oven full of mashed potatoes to win a 5 cent bet with his beloved sister Mary’s boyfriend. (Of course he was much younger and a nickel went a lot farther!) He has retired to palatial “Chez Montreuil”, which he shares with his diabetic little buddy Reg the Cat. He is blessed to have his dear Lois in his life. He is not only a plastic aircraft modeller, but a proud “rivet counter”. Military aviation and live music are among other interests of his, and he tries to get out to as many shows as he can. He will be here for your enlightenment whenever the stars align. Profile photo courtesy of Pat Blythe, caricature courtesy of Peter Mossman.