Sunday, August 16, 2009

Feline Oaths

Tonight, when I responded to Tyrone's hints that it was high time for some cat treats, I unzipped a fresh bag of Pounce. At once Tyrone gave out a high-pitched meow that sounded overjoyed and excited. It made me laugh.

As I fed a handful of Pounce to my cats, I tried to imitate Tyrone's squeal of pleasure. Then I tried to translate it. I discarded several early efforts, which ran along the lines of "It's about time!" and "All right!" I wasn't satisfied until I hit upon a translation that had just the right mixture of rebuke and ecstatic thanksgiving. Oddly, the meow sounded a lot like its translation - pictured at right on the label of a bottle of cinnamon-flavored liquor.

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