Alarm Clock

Hi All!

I would like to introduce you to my alarm clock.

What's that? It looks like a kittie, you say? Well, that is what Hubby and I thought at first also. In fact, we thought he was a kittie for almost 8 years. Then, we found out the truth. He is an alarm clock.

I had inklings that something like this might be the truth a few years earlier when I would be home for the summer. Q-Tip - that is his name - would wander into the bedroom where I would be napping and he would start meowing. I would open my eyes, look at him and tell him that I wanted to sleep for another 30 minutes. He would blink at me and then walk out the room. Almost precisely 30 minutes later, in he would walk, jump up and the bed, and begin meowing right into my ear. Hmmmm. I wondered if he could tell time.

Time passed and I was no longer working. This confused the living daylights out of both of our cats. For about three weeks they didn't quite know what to do when Hubby got up first in the morning and I was still in bed. Oh my goodness! This had never - and I do mean never - happened before to their knowledge!

After the three week adjustment period, Q-Tip began to see that Hubby would walk into the bedroom and gently (well- sometimes it was gentle!) roust me to come to the kitchen to make his lunch. I don't mind getting up to make his lunch by the way - it is just the whole getting up thing that isn't my favorite!

Observing this for about a week or so - soon, Q-tip began to accompany Hubby into the bedroom to wake me up. This was done at pretty much the same time every day. The next thing Hubby and I know, Q-tip is wandering in to wake me up before Hubby. From that time on, he revealed his true nature - alarm clock.

Now, Hubby rarely has to come to wake me up. Q-Tip does that. He is never more than five minutes off of the "normal" time for waking me up. He saunters into the bedroom giving a few testing meows and then jumps up on the bed mere inches from my dozing face. He headbutts me and gives another meow. If I don't reach up and pet him at this point - proving that I am, in fact, awake, he gets much more aggressive. He will spread his glorious hair across my face so I can no longer breathe. He will start massaging my belly or rear with his claws - one of my personal favorites! He will park himself centimeters from my ear and begin a concert of meows like humans have never witnessed.

You may understand why he is such an effective alarm clock. It is actually quite convenient. The only problem - there is NO snooze button. I have tried bopping him on the head (gently, of course) but he doesn't go away and come back seven minutes later. He simply continues his wake up routine.

Everything is wonderful until the weekend comes and my "alarm" goes off. Try convincing a cat that you don't have to get up pre-dawn to make a lunch on Saturday or Sunday. It doesn't work.

Which is odd because he does get the whole - come back in half an hour thing.

Trisha

Voice Update: Good. Still working on those exercises and not really liking the massage. But - I AM doing it! I am reading more now - probably up to 45 minutes at a shot and then some more odds and ends during the day. I am also continuing to talk to myself - much to my Hubby's delight!