Christmas 2007

We immediately accepted an invitation when it was offered to spend Christmas again this year in Cambria with the Nelsons. This was the 3rd year we celebrated with them. They are our son-in-law's parents and have a home there, but live most of the year in Singapore. Kathy, Matt and Connor -- our grandson -- usually spend the Holidays with them. There are about 15 others in the family who arrive and we fill a large table.

Many lively exchanges occur, as these are intelligent and very sociable people. A niece and nephew are completing medical school, and both recently became engaged, so there were several toasts to them. Of course, most eyes are on Connor, who turned 3 in November. He's a pistol, busy with 3 things at once and deciding what's next. His parents have taught him to be very polite and I love it when he says, "Tank ou." Papa Patrick had picked out a wooden train for him.

It was a lovely day and the chocolate cake that Patrick baked for the occasion was a huge hit.

The Cat Who Came for Christmas

We returned to our room in a Motel 6 in Morro Bay about 7 PM that night. I had one, last thing to get out of the car and, when I returned to the room, there was a full grown cat sitting on the bed with Patrick. His yellow eyes were wide as he looked me over, I think deciding whether he could stay or go. He gradually relaxed as I petted his glossy, shiny coat and told him how beautiful he was. Long and on the thin side, he was a tiger stripe, black and gray with perfectly matched marking on each side. Asymetrical? Looked like a Rorschach test.

Because he obviously belonged to someone, I called the desk and asked if anyone was looking for a cat. The woman said, "Oh is he a tiger stripe?" When I said yes, she said, "Well, he hangs around here and we don't know where he lives. You can take him home if you like." My immediate reaction was, oh no, we can't have a cat where we live. Yet, as the evening wore on and Noel (I decided to call him IF we took him home) snuggled up with us in bed, quiet and extremely polite (like our grandson), and very, very sweet, I began wondering just what we would do in the morning.

Sometime after midnight Noel meowed very gently, letting us know he wanted to go out. He came back in shortly. We rifled thru our stuff and found some lasanga that our hostess had pressed upon us to take home. He ate a few mouthfuls, then hopped up on the bed for a while longer. It was still dark outside when he wanted to leave again. I told Patrick that the cat would decide for himself if he was to go home with us.

It was about 8 AM when we stirred, opened the door and looked for our new best friend. He was nowhere to be found. As we checked out I asked the woman at the desk about "Noel." She laughed and told us that he liked to visit the motel guests and that "He even sleeps with some of them." She added, "I've had at least 5 people who wanted to take him home with them. But, in the morning, he's always gone. We call him 'Houdini,' cause he disappears."

So we'd met a kitty with loose morals. But he was beautiful and we loved him for a few hours. I think he's doing a very good job of taking care of himself.

Darn it!