Gather around, folks… and I will tell you another little adventure in the life of Billy Cat.
Because Billy Cat has some destructive issues around furniture and some medical problems that can get quite messy at times, he spends most of his day in his own room. The room is large, has a couple of places to hide when he’s not feeling well, has plenty of places to nap, including one spot at the window. If you saw his last adventure you may recall the photo of a busted screen, where Billy Cat broke through the screen to scare off a neighborhood cat (Clemson Kitty) who got too close to the window.
I almost always let Billy Cat out into the rest of the condo for a little while every day, but only while I can watch him. Some days he’s too sick to chance it. If he’s getting lonely and needs some attention he will start meowing, usually while sitting right on the other side of the closed door. I have to be careful when I opened that door because, if I’m not, I might bump him with the door, which I’ve done a couple of times. That hasn’t stopped him from waiting there for me, though.
Yesterday morning I was in the kitchen and heard Billy Cat meowing quite loudly. I figured he probably just wanted a little attention, so I carefully opened the door and went inside. He wasn’t at his normal spot. He was at the window, looking out. I was surprised that he didn’t jump off the little platform at the window and come to me like he usually does. He just kept staring out, then looking back at me and meowing.
I walked over to the window and could not believe what I saw. There is a cast-iron table right outside the window. On that table was a tiny beige-colored frog. It was so small I wasn’t sure it was a frog at first. Whatever it was, Billy Cat was very interested. I had to get a closer look.
I went outside.
Sure enough, it was a frog. He looked so tiny on that enormous cast-iron table. And he was tiny, probably less than an inch in length. How on earth did that little frog get up on that table? The table surface is at least 2 ½ feet from the concrete patio. There is no way a frog that size could jump that high. And if he jumped off, he would land on that concrete. That did not sound like a good idea. So, I decided I was going to have to help him out a little bit.
But first, I had to get a photograph.
I ran back inside (that’s just a figure of speech, I ain’t running nowhere). I got my camera. When I got back out there the little frog was still there and Billy Cat was still watching. The window was open to let the room air out. I guess if Billy Cat wanted that frog bad enough, he could’ve gone through that window screen.
Fortunately, he didn’t do that.
I went to the end of the table, got the frog in focus, and noticed Billy Cat’s out-of-focus face still staring through that window screen. It was hard not to laugh. But I got the shot. That’s what you see in today’s photo.
I took my camera back inside and then came back out with a small plastic container. I coaxed the little fellow into the container and carried him out to the edge of the yard where there is a big tree and some high weeds. There is no way to know what’s next in that little frog’s life, but at least now he’s got a chance.
Seeing all of that, and not feeling very well anyhow, Billy Cat jumped off the platform, went to the back of the room, and climbed inside his favorite hiding place, a little table with a towel draped over it to give him some privacy. He probably spent a good part of his day there, napping in the soft material of the little pet bed under that table. And I suspect that he was dreaming about a tiny beige frog sitting on a table right outside his window.