Mom and I have been busy here in the Charles. First of all we are working with Jan, Jim and Jose. Mom feels left out because her name doesn't start with J, but it doesn't bother me. After all, I'm the cat and they are all in awe of my majestic demeanor. Well, I don't worry about fitting in with humans, anyways. Still, I remind mom that they may start with Js, but Jose is a four letter word. And the boss is named Andy (like the doll) and that's a four letter word as well. I think it made her feel better. Either that or she just started ignoring me again.
We've been visiting some unusual people who need some kind of help or another. The other day we went to a place where the lady had a puppy. I have to admit, with his orange and black tiger stripes, he was awfully cute for a dog. Mom bent down to pet him and he flopped over on his back to get his belly rubbed and peed on her hand. I snickered, but mom gave me a dirty look. Still, she petted the dog some more (I guess he was empty) and the lady there said she had two of those puppies but lost one who ran off. The lady had pink eye, so when we got in the car everyone washed their hands with wipes.
The next place we went wasn't too far away. When we got there, there were a lot of dogs, so I stayed on the roof of the car. I couldn't tell which the lady there had more of, dogs or junk. She had one trailer that was full of puppies (and all the stuff puppies do). The dogs there were so thin and hungry looking, I was very upset. You could see their ribs and hip bones. I thought someone should contact the ASPCA or something, but you know, who listens to the cat? Still, it was very upsetting.
Mom and Jan got out of the car to talk to the older lady there. She had lots of wrinkles around her nose and had bare feet. When Jan mentioned the brindle pup dancing around her feet, the woman said, "Yeah, that pup just showed up one day. I don't know where he came from."
Jan brightened up and said, "I bet I know where that puppy came from. The lady we just visited said she had two pups like that but one disappeared and she lives just up the road!"
The woman gave her the stink eye and said, "Yeah, that's my sister in law. She says I killed my husband." Jan and mom were speechless (a rarity for mom) and I just snickered. The guys were inside the car and didn't hear what the woman said, but they saw the reactions. Still, they just stayed there, letting the gals wing it.
"After being married for thirty years, my sister in law says I killed my husband!" the woman continued. Mom, I could see, was dying to ask her if she did. Then she said, "My son, he's in prison."
Jan started to get the conversation back on track when a younger woman sidled out of the human trailer, kind of slinking like the dogs. She stopped a ways off and just looked at all of us. Then she came a little closer, then stopped, then got close enough to join the conversation. Jan was telling the first woman what paperwork she would need to collect. She turned to the new woman and said, "Maybe you can help her get her papers together."
Older woman piped up, "Naw, nobody can know where she is. She's hiding out here. She doesn't have an address or a phone number. She doesn't exist." That confused me a bit as clearly, she did exist. She continued, "A guy she put in prison is trying to kill her."
Then the younger woman finally said something. "Oh, yeah, but I put him in prison for fifteen years. He stabbed me in the chest and held me hostage for three days." Then they started taking turns.
Older woman: "She's my daughter in law."
Younger woman: "Yeah, he's in prison."
Older: "Somebody came around here looking for her."
Younger: "I can't let anyone know where I live."
Older: "His name was Cadillac."
Younger: "He'll be getting out soon."
Older: "You know how those people are." No, I don't. Are they car dealers? Native Americans? French Canadians?
I was confused.
Finally Jan got the information across to both women and we got in the car and left. Mom and Jan told the guys what happened and they barely believed it.
We also went to a man's house and asked to talk to him. We were in the living room and there was a lady on the couch. When Jos (I changed his name to a three letter word) asked for him, the lady said, "Yer not lookin' at him, but yer talkin' to him. That confused everyone. Mom did a quick glance at her chest and confirmed she was a woman. Jan thought she might be a he who cross dressed. I think Jos was taken aback. Personally I knew what she was talking about. She was being a smart aleck and instead of saying 'I'm his wife' she said that. Well, if confusion was the goal, it worked. The rest of the interview went well, though, after everyone sat down because she felt intimidated because we were all standing over her. (Except for me. I was curled up on her daughter's lap purring)
Today we moved into and apartment at an old downtown department store that's been refurbished. It has a washer and dryer. Mom loves that. It's very nice with wooden floors and hardly any doors. I can run the whole length of the place without stopping then jump up into the wooden blinds. They make a lot of noise and it really freaks mom out. I love it.
Well, it's time to go. I'm getting the hairy eyeball from you know who. She wants me to leave her alone so she can watch tv.
I'll catch you up again soon.
Perry
