The Circus Comes to My Home

This has nothing to do with anxiety, but perhaps it’s a cute story. It sure made me laugh!

I was working on my home repair and renovation project today, in an area that used to be a screened in porch but has been mostly boarded up and used for storage and entry way for several years. Boo was hanging around watching, occasionally stealing a nail, screw, staple, carpenter’s pencil, or anything else small enough to pick up and run off with. He is such a great helper!

This house isn’t on a conventional foundation. Since my improvements of ten years ago, it sits on concrete posts which go down into the ground about seven feet. Under the middle of the house, there is a portion where the dirt has been removed so as to be able to walk around down there. It’s like a basement, but instead of vertical concrete walls, it has sloping dirt walls well inside the perimeter of the house. The porch come storage area has a trap door in the floor for access to the “dungeon” as I like to call it. For now the trap door  is open with a ladder for access to the world below. Eventually, as part of this project, I will be building a set of stairs down there. There is no danger of Boo escaping through the dungeon, because he is afraid of ladders or stairs of any kind! Strange cat.

I was sitting on an overturned plastic milk crate while on a break, when Boo and I heard some faint noises coming from down below. Before either of us could investigate, faint noises became the sound of claws clicking on the rungs of the aluminum ladder going down to the dungeon. A second later a sleek gray tiger cat burst upon the scene through the hole in the floor. It appeared to be a young cat, perhaps less than a year old.

Boo immediately freaked out. He commenced fearsome hissing and growling, his fur all fluffed up so as to appear much larger than he really is. Yet at the same time, his belly flat on the floor with a look of pure terror in his eyes! “An invading beast! Help me!”

The strange cat apparently had no idea it was entering a place occupied by other creatures, let alone such a noisy one. This was obviously not what it had in mind! Frantic to escape, the thing climbed up the storm door, only to realize this was not a way out despite being able to see the outside world through it. It climbed all the way to the top of the door, then flew off, landing  on the far side of the room. It then commenced running around at unbelievable speeds, jumping and bouncing off walls at about my normal eye level. This was one very energetic young feline. All the while Boo kept up a steady barrage of hissing and growling, his belly inseparable from the floor and not moving a  muscle save those necessary for the making of much noise.

Finally our young visitor remembered (or saw) the opening in the floor, and made a huge leap across the room for it. By the time it hit dirt seven feet below, all four paws were already flailing at a full run. Gone in and instant! All the way to the far end of the house, up the dirt bank, out from under the house. Who knows how far it ran before stopping!

Boo continued making noise for some time, at least two full minutes, maybe more. Slowly the hissing and growling slowed. There were detectable pauses now. Some of the noises seemed to be more of a question, rising at the end. “Is it gone? I don’t see it. I don’t hear it. Is it gone? is it safe? What the hell was that thing, anyway?”

Suddenly Boo became aware I was laughing, rather uncontrollably as it were. He realized in an instant I was laughing at him, which is not allowed and definitely not appreciated! He got up, marched across the room, swatted my ankle as hard as he could (I’m sure to have a bruise there tomorrow!) and screamed at me. He then turned, fully extended his hind legs and slightly crouching at the front, while laying his tail over his back so as to make sure I could see his… uh, hind end. After that he left the area, muttering every step of the way. I didn’t see Boo again until feeding time and he’s been very cool with me this evening. Not only did I fail to assist in getting rid of the invader but worse yet I laughed at Boo. I am definitely in the dog house.