Friday, January 27, 2012

Table Trouble

I know that there are many of you out there who don't mind cats on your counters and tables. I know that there are many of you who think even if you don't allow it, that the cats get up there anyway. Around here, we've worked hard over the years at getting the cats to know that they do not belong on counters or tables.

I will admit this next bit only to you.... I know that they do get on the counters, but I prefer them to hide this fact from me because if I don't know, it's not gonna bother me. Don't tell Greg though! He believes they don't get up where they aren't supposed to! And I sure as heck ain't gonna be the one to tell him any different!

The broken curtain rod on the window who's only access is from the counter or stove? I have no idea how that happened! So the bend in the rod resembles a certain black cat's belly and there is black fur on the curtain, I'm sure the rod bent from age and the fur means I need to vacuum more.. (his name was Calvin, he was so well behaved, except for this one window thing)

Tongue prints in the butter? Can't be!

Paw prints in the kitchen sink? That must be a water spot from an odd shaped dish..

Someone knocked stuff off the counter? Must have been one of us..

Fur clumps on the stove? They had to have floated there on some freak indoor wind..

Someone keeps opening the curtains that I can't reach past the table? Huh, maybe the rod is just slippery. No, those are not claw pulls in the gauzy material..

Denial, not just a river in Egypt! That's my motto!

Now that I've set the stage, so to speak: Along came Leo. By the time he arrived our kitchen table was turned into a computer table. And even though Greg wanted the 'no cats on the table' rule to stay intact, I was a little more lenient. Mostly because I didn't have my laptop when he arrived and sat there a lot during the day and Leo loved to hang over my shoulder there. Then he'd slide down and boy, he got heavy so I'd rest my arm on the table, and before too long it was Leo resting on my wrist rest. I told him that if Greg caught us, Leo's new name was 'wrist' so he was allowed to rest there!

When it comes to the folding table that we actually use for dinner, I'm with Greg. I'm not crazy about the thought of kitty butts where we eat..

Tonight I glanced up from my laptop and saw this:
Scanning... hmm, no chicken. Rats

Before I digress into 'who could yell at that face to get down??' take a good look at that picture, there's a lot going on! Aside from the fact that it hasn't been wiped off yet, just ignore that please... Notice the double lasers glowing along the table, like he's trying to slice it in half. Notice the one fat paw on the table. There were two when I looked up, I think that was his attempt to show that he was not, in fact, on the table. There's the nose just below the edge, hidden at the same time the other paw went down.
There's the complete absence of his huge floofy tail! There's the fact that he's completely ignoring the feather behind him! There's his LONG tummy! And then there's the back feet!

Let's get a close up on those:
You can totally see the extra back toes! You usually can't that well, they're much less obvious than his front paws. They look like little hands standing there.. or as his front paws were once described, like little blooming onions!

Back to the subject. All I had to do was look at him and he knew to drop back down. What a good boy! I was proud of him, and saw no reason to wake Greg in his chair to share the experience of having such an obedient boy.

I gave him a good snuggling, then he went off to see if his snack had magically appeared. He does that several times a day. I went back to reading kitty blogs because I'm kind of addicted to them.. Don't tell anyone!

A little while later, not even half an hour! I heard a noise, looked up and saw this!!
Hey. How ya doin'?

Gasp! ON the table Leo? Right in front of me?? Say it ain't so! Say my boy wouldn't disobey so blatantly right in front of my face! While daddy's right in the room too?! Get your butt down from there!

Daddy's snoring. Besides, I can't get down. Princess HissyFace is chasing me again.

And she was. She was sitting right below him, not letting him get down. I told her to chill out and keep moving, but she ignored me and stared at him. He glanced at her and didn't move. Alright, I'll have to deal with this, "Star, stop being ornery and go play with your kick-a-roo!"

That did it. Not that she paid any attention, but it woke up Greg! He was all, "Hey, what's he doing on the table!" I told him that his baby girl was preventing him from getting down. He scoffed, "Come here, Star" She went. Leo got down. Whew!

Now we can go back to believing they don't get where they don't belong!

15 comments:

HubbleSpacePaws said...

More toesies = better balance. Yeah, sure, right... Star's to blame, huh? Had nothing to do with asserting kingliness, now did it?

Random Felines said...

MOL - that is great. We admit that mom would love to enforce the "no cats" rule but has surrendered. She does admit that it is partly her fault - she treated Mo for an eye infection when he was a kitten (5 yrs ago) by putting him on the counter since it was a good height...and now he is SURE he is allowed up there (she has found him sleeping there). But hey - if denial works, we say go with it!!

Katnip Lounge said...

WOW!!! Leo's back feetsies are amazing! Good shot.
The only things the cats here are Not Allowed on are the piano, and the pot shelves in the kitchen...and it took upside down mouse traps and contact paper (sticky side up) to convince them otherwise! I use a lot of disinfectant on the kitchen counters before I cook...mostly...maybe those kittyprints build up my immune system!

Unknown said...

Kizzie isn't allowed on tables either, except in the conservatory, which isn't used for eating on.

GLOGIRLY said...

WOW...that was great. : )
We have plenty of townhouse rules here too. I ALWAYS obey them in front of Gloman. Glogirly on the other hand...well, I'm a little loose there.
; )
Katie

Brian's Home Blog said...

HA! Hey, if it is in the house then we belong!!!

ANGEL ABBYGRACE said...

Long ago I knew the cats when where they pleased. If I wasn't home and they wanted on the stove that's where they went. So I just let it happen. It means I clean more...:)

purrs
>^,,^<
♥Abby♥Boo♥Ping♥Jinx♥Grace♥

The Island Cats said...

Haha! Our mom gave up long ago trying to keep us off the counters and table. The only thing we cannot do is be on the table when the humans are eating or on the counters when mom is cooking.

Katie Isabella said...

It's like at the Island Cat's home for me. My sister Admiral too.

I loved every word of this blog and the pictures. I am following you now. xoxo

Gigi said...

Sigh. If there's furniture in the house, it all are belong to the kitties. why do you think they call it FURniture? How many times must you Humans learn this same lesson?

BTW, Star, that was the nicest ear-lick I effur hadded. Do it again, anytime.

Mark's Mews (Marley, Lori, Loki, and Binq) said...

The rule here is that we are not allowed on anny kitchen counters. It always takes a new kitty a few weeks to learn which ones those are. But it werks. All other horizontal high surfaces are OK, though.

So we give up a couple high spots in ONE ROOM, an "all the others are ours". Its a good deal...

Oui Oui said...

Just testing the waters, mom! Our mom believes we stay off the counters too, until there's lick marks in butter or we jump up to see what she's doing. Everyone has to believe in something, ha ha ha.

GreatGranny said...

Mom laughed out loud. Mom thinks that the only time I get on the sink counter/stove is when I manipulate her to my will. I jump up to be close to her for petting and she always uses the germ killing wipes when she cooks or uses the counter for food..
We are following you. We really enjoyed this.
xoxo Kassey

A Tonl said...

FaRADaY: Well of COURSE we don't ever get on the counters! That was all a figment of your imagination, right Leo? (*HIGHPAW*!)

That's why Mommy bought Food Grade Hydrogen Peroxide. She hosses the counter off before cooking anything & 30 seconds later - absolutely SANITIZED. (Great on killing all germs on veggies & fruits too!)

A Tonl said...

*HOSES not hosses (glares at Mommy - aka Typist. *sigh* Good human help is soooooo hard to find!)