Stray Cat

A black kitten has been hanging around, I have no idea where she goes at night. She meets me on the driveway, when I'm walking in, and sometimes scratches at the door. I don't feed her, I've never let her inside the house. I don't want a pet, don't want to be responsible, it's more than enough to deal with my own needs, this time of year. But it tugs on my heartstrings that she'll die this winter, and be eaten by her fellow members of the food-chain. Sympathy only extends so far. For years I tended so many animals, 50, 60 at a time, but I'm well and truly shut of that now. I can't do it anymore. Went in to work, started inventorying the light bulbs. We use a lot of light bulbs, a lot of different kinds of light bulbs. I gave Mark a break, so he could go to lunch; went over to the pub, but I'd had a sausage, egg and cheese biscuit on the way into work, wasn't hungry, and just had an oatmeal stout. A friend, Loren, who actually works in the kitchen at the pub and was sitting at the bar, on his day off. Speaks highly of a place if the help hangs around on their day off. He was Pozzo in my "Waiting For Godot" at the college. We worked together for several years, so we smoked out back (theater people are good at this) and talked about various things. Single people, that are not in a relationship, are almost universally completely concerned with relationships. I'm more concerned with keeping the weevils out of the cornmeal, not to draw too fine a point. The driveway was slick coming in this afternoon, and I wished I had just parked at the bottom and walked in. I should be able to get out early tomorrow, before the next freeze/thaw cycle begins, leave the Jeep down there, so I can get to work next week. Doesn't take the entails of an animal to fore- see mud in my future. Assuming I get out safely, I can shave and wash my hair at the museum, get a few things, do my laundry and leave it in the car, walk back in, and be snug in clean long underwear. That's my goal. Pork Fried Rice, and a book from the library. Sunday I need to saw up a couple of things. Monday I can do the list of the strangest ten things that happened to me in the past year, and Tuesday I'll cook and drink to excess. It's a plan.