News and Stuff from Bald Knob

The long 4th of July weekend was hot and humid. I spent a good bit of the afternoons on the back porch, under the ceiling fan, rocking on the glider, sipping my ubiquitous iced tea, and reading the new Elmore Leonard novel (The Hot Kid). I was contemplating and enjoying not mowing the lawn. A swift movement attracted my attention; a chipmunk had teleported to the edge of the decking. He peered out from under the railing, suspiciously eyeing me and the cat in the rocking chair. He dashed under the end of the glider while I maintained the status quo (rocking and not watching him directly). A few seconds later, I heard a rustling in the cat’s food bowl. The chipmunk was sitting on the edge of the bowl, stuffing its cheeks with nuggets of dry cat food. When fully stocked, it scampered back under the glider, across the porch, tail held straight and high, and headed to the rock pile at the end of the garden.

Did I say it was hot? Throughout this entire time, the cat, White Socks, was ensconced on the rocking chair, not more than 4 feet from his food bowl. He was stretched into a curve, on his back, forelegs next to his head which was hanging a bit over the front edge of the rocker. Not once did he take his eyes off the chipmunk. Not once did his tail flick. Looking upside down at the events, those eyes revealed his attitude, “Yup, I see you, but it’s too hot and I’m too comfortable.”

# posted by Brandon C. Nuttall @ 7:56 AM