Of spring and stray cats

Spring weather has an early arrival - this afternoon felt like a cool summer day, it smelled delicious and I could only think of swimsuits and picnics. Flu season, on the other hand, came late - half the people around me are wheezing and hacking, absolutely miserable. Of course, not long ago I was one of them and there's no saying I won't join them again, but for now I'm glad to be up and about with a clear head. (Never underestimate the simple pleasure of being able to taste your dinner...)

Yesterday, after spending many hours and a small fortune at the laundromat, E and I were about to lug our six loads of laundry up to the apartment when I heard a wee little mewing in a distance. It came from down the street, and under the amber streetlights, I saw a little shadow scuttling down the sidewalk towards us, mewing urgently the whole way. E set down his load and walked up to pet the creature, heck with rabies and all. It had just been raining so it was kinda nippy; poor little kitty was cold and confused. Little baby must've been no older than 5 months, it had a short white coat with patches of brown and black. Desperate-looking eyes. It didn't have a collar; it was too well-groomed to be a stray, but kinda scrawny for a domestic cat. We decided we should at least carry our stuff inside first, and kitty kept following us, all the way up the stairs. Our own princess kitty was waiting for us at the foot of the steps, and she knows there's another kitty outside - good thing for the two doors between them. Pepper was restless and at attention, her tail was bushy and pointed straight up like a radar. E stayed a while to soothe her, but he kept thinking about the other cat. (Sigh, men.) So I held Pepper while E stepped outside to 'work on the lost kitty', who had been mewing at the door the whole time.

Through the glass, I could see E perched over, looking genuinely concerned, trying to figure out what to do with the cat that couldn't stop mewing at him. He came up with an idea to feed the lost kitty with the fancy cat food and sippy milk we got for Pepper. Zipping in and out with bowls of chicken livers and warm milk, E was like a busy OR tech. Pepper watched on. It was quite something to watch; E, my super alpha male, all mushy and soft for a cold, lost kitten, crouched over like a little boy.

Bringing the other cat in was a bad idea, so with a heavy heart, E left it on the porch (with food and milk) while he came back inside. I wondered if Pepper had any concept of cheating and feline polygamy, but she seemed to have forgotten by the end of the night.

Hope the kitty is okay! Wonder if we'll see it again...