Spring springs eternal in trees, flowers, grass and plants...

...and cats.

They are feeling their "oats", even being indoor cats in my mansion in the sky.

Going into the hall is the new thing now. Bella and Tippy would hardly ever nose out the front door, leaving the territory; but seeing Cleo and Velvet leave and go out into chasm which is 10 feet wide by 270 feet long is just too much for them.

So, on a quiet Friday night, we all decided to go out into the hallway for some quality time together. Cleo and Velvet first, joined by Tippy and Bella next.

Bella took the lead early on, walking 30 feet down the hallway. Sniffing at every little thing, whilst I scratched a reluctant Tippy. Velvet flopped down her usual 20 feet down the hall from her haven.

Bella kept cautiously going. Farther and farther away, going to uncharted places in this narrow linear space.

Cleo, the alpha cat, never enamored of the hallway, and being a former street puss is wary, and never strays too far along, but being a boss means that you must sometimes throw caution to the winds. She kept going too.

Bella is now one hundred feet down the hallway, by the elevators, looking very small now. I must admit she is making me just a bit nervous. Tippy too, because he couldn't bear to see his sister getting so small. He ran back home. I was just waiting for the elevator door to open.

Thirty seconds later, it did. Bella leaped in the air and ran like a cat possessed! In full Corvette mode, feet barely touching the ground, head down, like a cheetah, but with the longhair flag straight up. It looked like the rudder on a plane. Tremendous speed. Cleo was running for home too, but Bella went by her like she was chained to a post.

Velvet yawned, got up, and sauntered towards home. The people were going the other way.

Fun on the run! Bet Bella won't do that again in the near future. But with Bella, you never know.

Copyright © Bill Mason
July 19, 2002