geez, why do we have pets???  as if people-relationships aren’t enough, we crave the domesticated  animal to feed and stroke.  so it was that i came to own a 1-eyed cat called wink.  my aged feline, the legendary Sonny (of Sonnystone Acres fame) died at the venerable age of 16-or-so…i was volunteering at the lutheran school library when the librarian noted my distress and decided that i should take on a new kitten.  this kitten had been thrown out on her countryside property with its eye hanging out of its socket.  her brother is a veterinarian (which is why she gets a lot of throwout-animals) so she took it to him.  at first, they tried eyedrops and such, but finally his eye was removed and when i met him he was about 3 months old and his stitches were still covering his missing orbit.  he was playful and seemingly unaware that he was different—i fell in love and brought him home.  he hides…especially from children (who i think may have contributed to the eye-loss).  he’s a Great friend…loves feet…vigilant protection from salamanders…always hungry.   he never went outside of the house, but when we built the screened-in back porch we would keep the window open so he could go from the kitchen in and out.  i’ve never seen him try to get out of that porch, though he runs wildly window to window when critters come near.  i’m thinkin’  he must have been planning this escape…like the shawshank redemption…he probably would wait until we were soundly asleep and throw himself at the screendoor (held shut by a snap-latch) until…last night…he finally broke out….

he won’t talk about where he’s been for the last 24 hours.  we just kept checking, listening, and finally he showed up at the screendoor…hungry…”okay, rub me, but feed me Now”…he’d lost his collar (we put his old leopard-skin-bell back on)…i’m pretty sure he’s going to write a book, though, so i’ll let you know.