Tabby’s Place is like the biggest gifting day every day. Instead of bows and wrapping paper, in place of bags and cards, there are whiskers and tails and more-or-less boopable noses. The thing is, no matter which cat, no matter the prior relationship – or lack thereof – little surprises lurk throughout the building, ready to pop out on a person like the best ever version of a jack-in-the-box (Except maybe for the restaurant. Hmmm. Could kinda go for a Jumbo Jack® right now.). As it happened, a recent Friday delivered very many little surprises.
On that day, it was time for a visit to Suite E in order to see my Jujubee, whom everyone else calls Juel because that’s, like, his actual name or something. When there, it is important to visit all of the residents and spread the love. This includes offering friendship to cats like Kombucha, who can be nervous and shy and uncertain of whether or not they want human friendship. Over the weeks since her introduction, Kombucha has entirely (cringed) or mostly (sniffed my hand then cringed) rebuffed my peace offerings. But, what a difference a day makes. On this surprising Friday, Kombucha made the overtures. Beginning with hesitant head butts, SURPRISE, we were suddenly friends. Kombucha, with her creamy white filling all over her face and tummy, is proving herself to be a very sweet cookie. Tushkie (You know, that spot just above the tail) in the air in response to scritches, there is no sign of the sourness characteristic of her namesake beverage. This wonderful girl is still in the go-slow zone, but she’s making me think the name “Texas Sweet Tea” would have been more apt.
Meanwhile, Sandra, a beautiful tabby, came home to Tabby’s Place a few short weeks ago. The 2 years between her adoption and return have done nothing to dull her zesty spark. So, the instant she spotted me, SUPRISE, Sandra decided that we are the very best of friends. We went from “hello” to “let’s do this all the time, non-stop, always” faster than a Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+ can go from 0 to 60mph (2.4 seconds, FYI). Sandra stretched, reaching for the love, and showed off how very pretty her furry belly is. What a show of trust! This was followed by an up close nose-to-nose inspection. So much instantaneous affection was completely giggle inducing.
But, then, LO! What did my little eye spy? SURPRISE! It was a glory of swirls and swooshes complete with giant, wide-open green eyes. It should be no surprise that with such wide open eyes Dora looks as though she, herself, is surprised. Being the bearer of an orange collar, it was unsurprising to learn that Dora emits a great big “NO” to other cats. Yet, with a careful approach, an alert eye to changes in body language, and an awareness as to the nearness of other residents, Dora exclaims a hearty “YES” to people. Even so, swiftly flicking tails tell no tales. “NO, INDIE, GO!” Oy. Some things are no surprise at all.
But, sometimes, a guy like Vinnie can practically give a person whiplash with SURPRISE! First, he leaned into offered fingers then, SURPRISE, a punch on the knuckles. No harm to either of us. But, SURPRISE, just a short while later, Vinnie pushed himself full face into my hand and rolled over. Another very short while after, due to the arrival of amazing enrichment volunteers Marc and Susan, armed squeeze treats, SURPRISE led to much more petting and dancing around happily.
But, Vinnie being Vinnie, doing nothing at all for just one moment earned me another punch in the hand accompanied by a yap – yes, just like a tiny dog – at my cell phone for good measure. For what it’s worth, 2 suites ago, Vinnie was my shy friend. One suite ago, Vinnie was wholly uninterested in me. So, now, in Suite E, punches (no claws) notwithstanding (others assure me this is his way), it is an amazing SURPRISE to find Vinnie thawing toward me once again.
Speaking of thawing, my good friend Tommy was, SURPRISE, out in the solarium snuggled in the igloo, basking in the heat. Actually, it was so warm outside, it’s a little surprising that the igloo hasn’t melted, even if it is made of plastic. That said, the bigger surprise was that affectionate Tommy didn’t bother moving a whisker from his spot, not even for a treat. No surprise, his squeeze treat was handed to him on a silver platter vis-à-vis a human finger.
Meanwhile, Tag was hanging out with her tongue out. Okay, no surprise there. She did come over for some squeeze treats, though. That was a little surprising. A bigger surprise was that my very good friend Bing gave me a clear “no thanks” to any kind of a visit. Bad timing. Bing was unsurprisingly untrusting after having been person-handled by some stellar staff members for weights and nails.
Throughout that entire day, not just in Suite E, there were very many kinds of little surprises including news of upcoming adoptions and a forever foster. Happily, there was a dearth of the kinds of surprises that require clean-ups (Yes, we’re talking poop. With somewhere over 130 cats in the building, there is always poop.)
Even more happily, were the greatly appreciated donations that were not totally a surprise yet were, as always, a delightful surprise. Little surprises in every form make a day at Tabby’s Place complete. Next time you’re in the area, come for a visit. If you’ve never been, you might just find yourself in for a little surprise.