I didn't know you had a cat

"I didn't know you had a cat."

People said that to us all the time.  But we did.



He wasn't much for parties.  He was more of a hang out on the pillow watching Netflix kind of guy.

If we needed the carpet systematically shredded at every doorway to expose fiendishly sharp nails to bare feet in the night, he had us covered. Likewise if our laptops were somehow devoid of cat hair and the keyboard required some random paw strokes to complete that Powerpoint presentation? Fiki to the rescue.

God forbid you should actually want to read a book.

It was futile to think he would use a scratching post when there was upholstery available in all kinds of expensive fabrics and formats.



When we first brought him home, almost seventeen years ago, he made a beeline for my overstuffed office and disappeared for three days. We found him hidden behind my CFA notebooks, skinny and scared.  Later, it would still sometimes take us hours to locate him, purring in a nest of cables and wires behind the television, or daintily tucked into a basket of bills that was seemingly far to small to hold him.



He was wild for the scent of strawberries.

"Ra-FI-ki!" I would yell into the darkened yard, after he madly made a break through the side door we'd foolishly left cracked open.  All I could hear was the tinkle of the bell around his collar as he headed out for all the adventure freedom could bring. Most of the time, he wound up howling at the door to our bedroom, grumpy and damp, a few hours later.  Once, though, I found a raw notch in his ear from a knock-down, drag-out ear-splitting* battle he had on the lawn at 2 am.

He rocked that notch.



He was wary of strangers, but not unfriendly. Regulars earned a stroll-by and pause for a rub down the back. My niece earned a special gift** placed under her bed in exchange for all the Pounce and bedtime stories when she visited.

He was not fond of closed doors.

But he could be extremely "helpful" with Christmas wrapping.

After years of avoiding my daughter because of her childhood tendency to either grab him and carry him everywhere or run up to him and yell, they finally reached a truce as one of them matured.

He was completely devoted to my son, as they both made the same lifestyle choices of remaining prone in comfortable places with entertaining things to watch.

He tolerated and then taunted Blackjack, sauntering through the kitchen and claiming the couch as soon as the dog retired to the porch, one eye open to watch the cat preening contentedly in his just-vacated spot on the rug. It was almost as though they took shifts being the family pet, and Rafiki had nights.



Night was really our time, his and mine.  He'd walk over my husband's legs to sit on me and watch TV, and then wait patiently as I sat at the kitchen counter and answered email or drafted blog posts after everyone else had gone to bed.

Mostly he was nearby, in companionable silence.  More recently, with the puppy refusing to politely excuse herself from the kitchen like her predecessor, I'd head down the hall and hear the bell following me as he emerged from a chair or under the bed. Teeth brushed, I'd carefully climb under the covers only to find a solid form taking up all the foot room. Inevitably, he would migrate and nestle down right on top of my head, kneading blissfully away with his claws, snarling my hair and purring so loudly I was sure he'd wake the rest of the family.

Then, we would sleep.

Yes, we had a cat.



I wish with all my heart we still did.

Rest in peace, Rafiki

1998-2015

* Literally, he split his ear.
** Dead mouse. He was also an ace lizard tail remover.

The Little Mouse and the Medium Sized Loaf of Pumpkin Bread

Many of my kids' favorite bedtime picture books featured adorable furry mice.

  

With all the changes around here, I'm feeling quite nostalgic for those simple cuddly times, so today's blog post will also feature a story with an adorable furry mouse.

Nibble, nibble little mouse.

On all the stuff outside my house.

But if you touch this pumpkin bread

I'll feed you to this monster head.

The End.

Too dark? Not bleak enough for today's jaded three year olds?

I can't decide.  At least not without therapy.

I do know that this moist, sweet and spicy pumpkin bread is just right for everyone.  

The difference between cats and dogs

DOG

CAT

The best 20 minute meal you'll ever make

 Step 1:  Go to Trader Joe's and buy four things*.

1. Salmon
2. Trader Joe's Island Soyaki Sauce
3. Trader Joe's Frozen Organic Jasmine Rice
4. Asparagus

Step 2:  Put the salmon into a dish and pour about 1/2 the bottle of sauce over it.  Cover and put into the fridge for at least 15 minutes and up to an hour or so.   Read your mail, yell at the kids, feed the dog, etc. Whatever the normal evening walk-in-the door routine may be at your house.  When you've just about had it with everyone, come back and start dinner.

Step 3:  Set your oven to broil, and move an oven rack into the top position.  Cover a baking sheet with foil, set a metal cooling rack on top of it, and coat rack with non-stick cooking spray.   Take salmon out of the fridge and place on top of the prepared pan.   It is more than OK if some of the sauce is still on it.  Put the salmon under the broiler and set the timer for 12 minutes.  Keep an eye on it, but you actually want it to get pretty brown.

Step 4:  Rinse the asparagus and trim the ends.   Coat lightly with olive oil and a healthy sprinkling of kosher salt.   Get out a large frying pan, add a couple more tablespoons of olive oil to the pan, and heat over medium high heat.

Step 5:  Take out a bag or two of the frozen rice.  Read the directions if you want, but I can tell you it's pretty much open the microwave, put the bag in, cook for three minutes, take the bag out.  The rice will then be fluffy and perfectly cooked.  It's like a miracle.

Step 6:  While the rice is cooking, add the asparagus to the hot pan and stir fry for 4-6 minutes, depending on how thick the stalks are, or until crisp-tender.   Ideally you'll get some nice char on parts of it, almost like grilling.   The rice will be ready right in the middle of this, but don't worry.  You can just leave it in the microwave until you're done with the asparagus.

Step 7:  About two minutes before the salmon comes out, heat up some more of the Soyaki sauce in a small sauce pan.    Add about 1 Tbs. of butter and a handful of minced green onions, if you like.   Stir until the butter is melted.  It's done.  You can easily do this while the asparagus is cooking.   Trust me, I do it all the time.

Step 8:  Take salmon out of the oven.  It should be caramelized and nicely browned all over.  Check to see if it's done to your liking.  If it needs more time, place it on a lower rack in the oven for a couple more minutes.

Step 9:  Serve this delectable salmon, rice and asparagus to your stunned and delighted family.   Tell the cat to get down from the table.  Pass sauce alongside.

Step 10: Say a prayer of thanks to that most holy and blessed patron saint of harried mothers everywhere:  Trader Joe's.



BONUS TIPS:

1. This exact same plan works great with almost any kind of firm-fleshed fish.  It's awesome with swordfish, for example. 
2. You can sub in a salad or Trader Joe's yummy "steam-in-bag" sugar snap peas for the asparagus if you don't want to deal with a frying pan.
3. You can cook rice from scratch if you're so inclined.  Just start that cooking before the salmon so the timing comes out right. 

*This will cost you less than $20.