day 40: a sunday. not a good day to be my cat.

so i went for a couple beers with my buddy after work last night. i stayed out way too late, and was totally wiped when i got home. i let the dog out. i let the dog in. the cat ran out. he wouldnt come in. i closed the door, thinking he'd come running back to me in a few minutes once he got out into the yard and realized it was cold and wet.

i laid on the couch for a few minutes and snuggled with the dog. i got up and went to bed. i slept in super late, waking at about 11am. i got up, started the kettle to make coffee. let the dog out. puttered around a minute, and started the calling the cat to give him a new cardboard box. no reply. checked the bedroom, no cat. then it hit me.

oh crap.

i forgot to let the cat back in last night. i saddled up the dog and grabbed the can of cat treats and out we went. shaking the treats in the yard to see if he had hidden in the bushes. i kept calling him, no response. we started out the gate, and then backtracked. i decided to check the biggger, thicker bushes around the side of the house. i called and shook the treats, then heard him wailing. his little face poked out of the ground level opening under the house...

we rent the bottom floor of an old victorian in san diego. its built on a hill, with the backside on the down-hill. front of the house is flush with the street, but the back end is built up a tad, so there's a shallow basement sort of thing, not really tall enough to stand up in. the little opening on the side of the house has a mesh on it, with a hole in it, of course. the cat had wandered into it and spent a cold wet night under the house.

he screamed and screamed and tried several times to work his way out of the screen again. but finally, he came out, nice and dirty. i scooped him up and tossed in the front door. he ate a little, cried a little, told me all about his miserable experience, then disappeared to sleep all day.

the dog is napping too. looks like a good idea. i've been awake for 2 hours, but they were emotional. and i think that deserves a nap.