Mister! What am I going to do with you?!

 Despite the frigid temperatures, we ventured out for our morning walk. As we headed out the door, Mister, my jungle cat, ran out, yet again. If you know of Mister's history, you know he once escaped for two weeks and two days. He's not the kind of cat we can just let out, who we can trust, who will come back nightly. Since we can't guarantee his safe return, we just don't take risks with him anymore. And it is rather sad, since he loves the outdoors and spends hours at the window tracking birds and squirrels. The other two cats I am currently cat-sitting (my daughter's cats Ollie and Benny), are content to be in the house - warm, sitting close to the heater, sleeping on comfy beds, awaiting daily treats. They are content to be inside, to luxuriate in the warmth of the sun through the window, not outside the window.

But back to Mister's latest escape. We had just opened the door, and in a split second he snuck out, between our legs. He ran from the front of the house to the back, frolicked in the bushes and defied us at every turn. He pranced onto the neighbor's porch in the front, went under their car, and darted back again to the backyard and scampered across the lawn. He stopped to gaze up at the birds in the trees, and enjoyed nibbling on the grass. We spent 45 minutes in the freezing cold attempting to lure Mister back home.

Eventually, he ran into the open garage, and we very quickly closed the garage door. Mister is currently sound asleep on our bed, dreaming of the birds, branches, bushes and squirrels he loves so much.