random truths – Day 1,024 (Thursday) – moose memories

Moose, December 2009.

In January 2010, Moose and I and the sometimes cat were still getting used to each other.

Merriwether, the stray cat that would stay for a few days at a time before taking off again, was still coming around and tormenting Moose, but had at least stopped hissing at him all the time. At least when I was around, anyway. Moose would eat the cat food, Merriwether would play in the water bowl, and I figured he was probably spitting in it. Merriwether meowed incessantly, Moose followed at my heels as silent as a shadow. 

One day I came home and Merriwether was sprawled on a couch cushion in front of Moose, who was backed into the pillows in the corner of the couch as far as he could be. As I walked into the house, Moose’s eyes locked with mine as if in a silent plea for help. Merriwether looked at me with more of a “yo, wassup?” casual attitude.  

If Moose was on the couch with me, Merriwether would cast off his aloofness and climb onto the couch and invade Moose's space. In his defense, Merriwether had been coming around for about a year, but only when he felt like it and could never be convinced to stay. He'd come back looking a bit ragged, stay a few days, and then take off again.

One night when he was on a visit, Merriwether climbed onto the couch, curled up, and jammed his butt in Moose’s face. Shortly thereafter, the too familiar nasty hiss was issued. It was followed by an unfamiliar and surprising bark that startled me and caused the cat to launch himself from the couch. That was the night that Moose found his voice, and for the next 11 years he used it. A lot.

Merriwether.

On January 5, 2010, according to Facebook memories, I discovered that Moose had managed to potty in the bath tub while I was out. It was a mystery how he figured it out, or even how he got into the tub and then back out, but it was a lot easier to clean up than when he went on the wool rugs and the hardwood floors. He soon abandoned the concept of the big porcelain litter box and returned to peeing on the rugs, usually under the coffee table. 

In the years that followed, Moose had other bathroom antics. One time, he opened the doors under the sink, pulled out all the plastic baskets and emptied them onto the floor and chewed the edges of baskets. He also peeled the facing off the front of one of the vanity doors. Until that day, it had been innocently believed that the vanity was made of wood that was painted white. Moose’s handiwork revealed it to be the popular pretend building material glit (glue and shit) with a covering of some sort. I learned a lot about a lot of things from my time with Moose. Dang, I miss that little guy.