28/05/22 Something is Up and the Cat is Clingy.

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The cats owners were in transit, whiling away time in an aeroplane somewhere between a long way away and home. Had we the desire to do so, we could have tracked them in FlightRadar (and I confess one of us did) however due to our previous procrastinating we had a lot to do and were jolly glad that they wouldn't land until well into the evening.

Wanting to maintain our very nice 5-star house sitting reputation we spent the day cleaning and polishing and washing linen. We scrubbed all the surfaces and dusted all the other surfaces and mopped and wiped everywhere that would benefit from mopping and wiping. We brushed the cat to perfection and dosed him with antihistamines so he wouldn't sneeze in his owners' faces when they were reunited. He has a habit of sneezing in people's faces and you wouldn't believe how much snot one cat can produce, or how far he can propel it.

We packed everything up and put it in the car, marveling both at how little we'd managed to live with for the last 10 months, and how it all multiplied quietly in dark corners when we weren't looking so we had to keep throwing things out.  By then the cat knew something was going on so he got himself accidentally locked in the garage and then tried to stow away in the car.

No, you have to stay here.

He got so underfoot that I had to take on cat-settling duties which involved a comfortable chair, a cup of tea, and a clingy cat draped all over my lap. From this position I watched Roger finish steam mopping the floor, and I would like to make it very clear that I felt very hard done by and was merely doing my duty and would of course have preferred the steam mopping but sometimes sacrifice is required when caring for a cat.

I want to help, I truly do.

We had a last cup of tea and made sure the fridge was stocked with fresh bread, milk, and chocolate. Feeling guilty, we gave the cat a treat and tried to sneak out when he wasn't looking. He was too smart for that so under his disapproving gaze we left a bottle of Merlot (because the cat's name was Merlot), a goodbye note, and the keys on the kitchen bench and let ourselves out through the garage.  It was late and we didn't go far: just down to the Ramsgate Hotel at Henley Beach.
 
Home for the night: Ramsgate  Hotel, Henley  Beach.

 The Ramsgate was grand  in an old-fashioned-renovated kind of way. By the time we'd  made the most of our complimentary drinks voucher and wandered out to find dinner most of the eating places were closed (the ones we were interested in anyway) so we were forced to settle for pancakes and waffles for dinner.
 
T'was difficult, but we made the best of it.

 After a brisk walk we retired back to the Ramsgate and gave thanks for its thick stone walls, which effectively muffled the carousing from the crowds in the bar downstairs.

 

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