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November 30, 2004

Scarlet Doesn't Give a Damn

I'm in a fight with my mom's cat.

Last night she was laying on the step up from the family room, in the dark. When I walked towards her, as she could hear and see because I came all the way from the kitchen, she apparently didn't feel the need to move. I was looking at my cellphone, not at the floor, and well, I stepped on her.

She immediately ran and hid. I felt bad. I didn't mean to step on her. I tried to find her to apologize for the next hour, to no avail.

Now, she and I have recently been bonding. She comes and greets me when I get home, comes up in my room while I get ready for bed at night and while I get ready in the morning. Generally walks into a room and meow's hello, then you say hello back, then she meows a couple more times and either leaves the room or comes and sits on your lap. The other cat, Mouse, is very skiddish, and runs if you even think of coming near him. But Scarlet is very calm, she doesn't jump at loud noises or run away from stomping.

So, this morning I was hoping that she'd be over it, and that she'd come upstairs when my alarm went off. Nope. Maybe when she hears the shower (she always meows to get into my closet in the morning - no one knows why b/c she only stays in there for 3 minutes). Nope. So, I go downstairs after getting ready, and see her lying in the middle of the entryway (where she can hear everything I'm doing upstairs, and see when I come down). As soon as she sees me coming, she runs away. I go to follow her, and she lets me catch up in my parents' room. I pick her up and apologize (here I am, apologizing to a CAT, btw), pet her, rub her in her favorite places using an apologetic voice (?). She doesn't struggle and try to get down, but she doesn't purr either. I put her down, and she runs away.

I go about my business, eat breakfast, gather my lunch. Before I go I go into the dining room (again, adjacent to the kitchen where she can hear what I'm doing and see me when I leave the room) where she's sitting, and she runs into the living room. I go to try to follow her there, and she runs through the sunroom and into the family room. I am late for work at this point, so I leave.

On my drive to work, thinking about it (THINKING ABOUT MY FIGHT WITH THE CAT), the feeling starts to remind me of "fights" I've had while dating. When you're dating someone you're in an activity with, where you're forced to be in the same room and you're having a disagreement - the whole stupid jr. high cat and mouse game we play with each other - "is he looking?" "is she looking" "what if I go over there" "I can't believe she didn't follow me."

Then I realized that the last time I had this feeling was a mere month ago. And that I was proud, because I (for one of the first times in that relationship - my life even), didn't chase. Mostly, b/c I hadn't stepped on anyone. If anything I'd been stepped on.

People (and cats) who play games like that are wasting their energy, and a waste of my energy, and dammit, I will treat you with respect, and even try to make up for any hurt I've caused (accidental or otherwise), but even if I love you to death, wagging you tail and walking away will get you just that - away.

Posted by nikl at November 30, 2004 09:51 AM

Comments

haha. nicole is dating a cat.

Posted by: kristen at November 30, 2004 04:58 PM

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