Life With Basil!

To those of you who love cats but do not have a ginger one, I say, get one! It is now just over three months since Basil Jones (to give him his full name) arrived on our doorstep and life has never, but never, been the same! We have had kittens before, many times, but we have never encountered one who is so involved in every aspect of our lives! Our other three simply get on with life, they arrive for breakfast, sleep most of the day, pop in for a little nibble now and then, sleep, lie around at night, and  sleep.

Basil, aka Captain Chaos! (All pics, thanks to Rob)

As I write this, Basil is upstairs batting an empty eye drop container round the bathroom floor. He arrived in a rush as I was cleaning the bathroom and dived into the rubbish bin. He 'helps' me sweep, dust and wash up.

Washing up duty.

He leaps into any container or jug or waste-paper basket that he can find. He will suddenly climb up my legs to end up perched on my shoulder when I am chatting to the neighbours and if I am bending over weeding, he jumps onto my back to survey the scene! I have claw marks on my legs and back to prove it! He balances on the top of the wooden washing rack and completes manoeuvres that would make a Springbok Gymnast jealous. I feel that I should be holding up a card with '9' for difficulty and execution, but at the same time I am worried that he will fall.

A perfect 10 maybe?

His balance is unquestionable, but his common sense is limited!

Quiet time.

He loves Alfie with a passion and will choose to lie with him or sit on Rob's desk with him and stare out of the window. When he sees a mouse in the garden, he throws himself off the desk and plunges through the cat flap to sit for ages under one of my wheelbarrows. He has no fear of dogs and has sent a few home with their tails between their legs!

Basil and best friend Alfie!

At night, when Rob takes Alfie for his last 'emptying', Basil goes along. In fact, Rob often has three of them with him, looking a little like the Pied Piper of the Night. Basil does have a healthy respect for Dilly though, I think that Dilly gave him a clout at some stage and he has remembered! And learned a lesson on the pecking order around here! My hot-water bottle is a favourite of his. He loves to pounce on it and 'make porridge', I think he likes the sound it makes!

And finally, this reminds me of a joke. An old lady had her lounge re-carpeted. When the chap had finished, he called her in to have a look, but said to her 'There seems to be a lump in the middle that I can't get out.' The old lady looks around the room and then says 'Where's the budgie?'

Bed making Basil!

Ooops, where's the cat?