I'm a tight spaces addict - and a closet connoisseur.  Not everypawdy wants to admit to this indiscreet kind of love affair - it can be quite embarrassing fur some.  But one cat's weakness is most certainly another cat's strength - and most especially when it comes to a passion fur all things hidden  and tucked away.  After all, if one day the giant d.o.g. bomb goes off, I'll know all of the best places to wait it out in safety.  

Back in the day of Haku's endless chasing, before meowma  helped to fix things fur me, those little hiding spots were often my saving grace. (Haku's behavior modification, and mine, really have worked out fur us  - you can find out more here and here.)  Haku's bad old habits may be why I love closets and hidden corners so much.  Or purrhaps, as meowma often says, it's just in my purrticular kitty nature.   ​Even now, I often find the exploration of quiet spaces to be quite helpful to my meowditations.   As an added benefit, whenever meowma has lost a little something, I can almost always find it fur her under the bed, or tucked into a furgotten corner of the armoire.  (Of course, this special bit of helpfulness on my part may stem from close acquaintance with our resident ghost kitty...)

And speaking of that ghost kitty, she has been most active of late!  While we've never quite managed to meet face-to-face, she has become quite the inspiration to myself and Haku.  Just past the stoke of midnight, nearly every night, she ventures out from her secret castle under the bed to look fur special bits of mischief.  She adores hiding away all kinds of special little items while out on her adventures, and always leaves them in the most interesting of places.  Thanks to that fun-loving kitty, I've been able to help meowma to 'rediscover' all kinds of little treasures just this week alone - hairbands, bottle caps, and even her favorite lipstick (I looked like quite the heroine on that splendid morning fishing that out from under the sink, let me tell you!) 

Miss Ghost Kitty's nightly adventures lead me to discover all kinds of new and wonderful hiding spots around our house.  Sometimes we play tag and I follow just behind her noisy paw steps, listening fur the clanks and bangs so that I can try to see her once and fur all.    Of course, meowma thinks that it's just me racing through the house at night, but that only proves that she has no imagination at all!  Just the other night, I learned about a charming little corner behind the china cupboard that I had somehow missed before.  It was purractically a treasure nest, filled to the brim with furgotten toys that my ghost kitty must have placed there (who else could have done it?!)

I've been thinking lately - what if there are many, many ghost kitties in the world?  Not just the one who is living under my meowma's bed...  Would that mean that every kitty's house has a treasure stash of toys, just waiting to be discovered by a fearless explorer of tight spaces?  Those toys I found were the BEST surprise - even Haku was impressed.  If there is any pawsibility of a ghost kitty living in your own house, I highly recommend befriending him or her - the side benefits are simply ameowzing!

It was the week before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring - except fur the Catnip Mouse.   I had just nestled, all snug under the Tree, when a vision of salmon treats came flying to me.  The smell drew me in, my tum gave a growl, and before I knew it my paws were on the prowl.  

They led to the kitchen, unerring in their aim, and crept toward the cupboard as I called out by name.  'Now Chicken, now Tuna, now Turkey and Beef.  On Salmon and Crackers and thin slices of Cheese!'  I drew back my paw, was turning around, when pouncing toward me came ShiShi with a bound.  Her furr was all fluffed, from her tail to her cheeks, and she stepped right between me and the treats!

After laying a paw on the top of my beef, she ​pushed it back in the cupboard and hissed at me 'Thief!'   Her eyes how they twinkled, but they weren't very merry - no one would ever mistake her fur a fairy.  Or rather, a Santa Paws elf, if you please - I just couldn't figure out how to appease - My sisfur can be such a tattletale kitty.  I was filled with remorse - and a bit of self-pity.

My thoughts how they flew, simply churning around.   If only I'd snuck better and hadn't been found.  'Purrlease don't tell Santa about my fell slip - twas only a dream  - I was caught in its grip!'  The treats in my dream had led me astray - if only I could think of something better to say.  Imagine my wondering eyes when they saw, my sweet sisfur ShiShi lower her paw.  She mewed at me softly, then winked with one eye.  'I was just teasing you silly!' She turned with a sigh.  

And I heard her exclaim as she vanished from sight, 'Don't eat too much now, it's Christmas Eve night!'

The Christmas Season is such a busy time fur me -so much to be done in preparation, so much to oversee.  I hardly know where to start most days!  With such a big family, there is always something going on around here:  tree decorating pawties, house decorating pawties, and even more pawties to make all those delightful decorations.  Plus, I purrsuaded my family this year that homemade gifts are much more fun fur me to help with, so there has been quite the workshop set up on our dining room table that (of course) also is in need of my expert supervision.   

Truly, there are so many things to rearrange so that Santa will love them best, so many gifts to add the delicate touch of my paw to complete - I hardly know how to get the time fur a catnap these days.  I've been kept up late many nights -busy with my re-arranging, then up again at the crack of dawn.  It's good that things tend to be a little more calm around here in the afternoons, because it's nearly the only time that I've been sleeping!  Now, in case you wonder, meowma has frequently told me that I should put off my Christmas readying efforts until morning, but I'm so worried that we won't be all ready fur Santa to visit.  And that would just be a tragic disaster!

My biggest work of seasonal art this year is, of course, our Christmas Tree.  Or, I should say, My Christmas Tree.  You simply wouldn't believe the time and effort that I have been putting into making sure that My Tree will be up to Santa Paws' exacting standards come Christmas Eve.  I mean, I do deeply appreciate all the toys that my family hung so carefully on the tree fur me to play with, but I'm really looking forward to seeing Santa Paws (and conversing with his reindeer while they are on break at our house).   The things those reindeer have seen while traveling all over the world - you wouldn't believe the pawsome, interesting conversations we have each year while they nibble on their carrots!

Not to be furgotten in the Christmas effort, of course, is all of the necessary baking fur pawties, and the treats made to give to furriends and family far away.  I rarely supervise this pawt myself - that is normally Chef Haku's job.  However, this year Haku was somewhat indisposed after eating his way through a bag of rice that had been tucked away in the pantry fur safekeeping, and I was forced to take over a portion of his duties.   While I do enjoy watching over the creation of some of the finer Christmas pastries (such as meowma's special recipe fur Bonito Flake Pinwheels), having to keep track of all the hooman treats as well can be very wearing.  My advice to any of your who find yourself in such a situation is to sniff only - those hooman cookies just don't have the same fabulous flavoring as the Kitty Only ones...

Haku here ~  So much has happened in the time since I last chatted with you that I hardly know where to begin... Meowma got some crazy idea in her head that ShiShi was unhappy being chased to other purrfectly pleasant parts of our house (by me), and started to change our bedroom all around to make her more comfortable in there.  Unbelievable results have come about thanks to that craziness, too!

Back in the day, our charming bedroom had one lovely cat tree, which I ate all of my meals on and was quite capable of defending properly.  Now my cat tree has moved to the dining room, and there's no more eating in my very own bedroom! Even though ShiShi still eats in there! Then meowma and pawpa built a very interesting cat wall in our bedroom instead,  and made some perches mounted on the big glass door as well.  Now, normally I would be telling you that I was in favor of all these pawsome new places to hang out, but read on to learn the tragic horror of it all...

I actually had to give up on keeping all this prime real estate to myself!  There's just so much of it that I can't keep that vast number of perches claimed all by my lonesome furry self.  Or, purrhaps more accurately, there are now so many perching and napping spots in our bedroom that I simply can't keep up with chasing ShiShi out of each and every one of them.   She's taken to claiming and napping in them constantly.  And, as a quite unexpected result, that formerly-timid sisfur of mine has undergone a complete change in her furry attitude toward me! 

Who knew that all she needed was a little boost in safety and confidence? ShiShi seems determined now to make up fur lost time and has actually started playing with me.  And she's actually turned the tables and chased ME a few times!  Sacrilege!  Has she no sense of the proper order of things?  I'm the older sibling, so I'm the one who's supposed to do the chasing...  On the other hand, there is a lot less screeching involved with our new chase games (ShiShi can be such a crying meowma's gurl sometimes!) so I guess that's a benefit.  You won't catch ME hiding under the armoire and screeching fur help (I prefer running to the dining room table, thank you very much!)

On the other paw, it was actually quite enjoyable this last weekend when ShiShi decided to play-fight with my sleepy self.  Not to chase me.  Not to steal my spot.  Just to play fur fun!  Who knew that a little paw batting could actually be rather gentle and relaxing?  There I was, busy trying to claim one of the bedroom perches, when she came sauntering up and invited me to play.  Can't remember the last time that we tried doing something quite like that.  Maybe never.  We hang out together all the time, but playing?  Huh!

A very strange not-benefit is that ShiShi still, after almost a month, thinks that she should come check out MY food when we are fed, and ignores her own at first!  What is that all about, I ask you?!  I, of course, tuck right into my breakfast or dinner with my usual growling gusto, and just do my best to ignore her fur the minute or so that I am gulping down my food.  Good thing that meowma and pawpa have taken to carrying Miss Picky to her own food.  Although, realistically I'd be happy if they carried ME to her food instead.  I'm fairly certain that she gets fed more than me...

All in all, I can't say that I am necessarily unhappy with all these new changes that first meowma, and now ShiShi, have been making.  It certainly does take some getting used to, though!  I've heard tell of kitties who clean each other just to be sweet (not to establish dominance), and even cuddle together when they are sleeping!  Will this be us eventually?  Who could say...  Even a week ago I wouldn't have said that my sisfur would ever be comfortable enough to try playing with me fur fun!  So far - I like it!

What is it like to have a big brofur like Haku?  Well - sometimes I find it very confusing!   Unless I am in hiding fur my peaceful afternoon naptime, we are usually close by to each other.  

When I was younger, he even used to stand guard fur me while I was at the litterbox, which really was very kind, if rather uncomfortable as well.  (Privacy please!)  He is even the one who taught me how to hunt lizards.  It's hard to believe now, but I didn't have the faintest idea about what to do with those crazy things until he showed me his hunting skills.  And he truly has a one-of-a-kind talent fur finding the most delicious snacks to eat - hanging out around my brofur is almost like having a magic treat finding genie fur a pal. 

That said - why oh why does he insist on chasing me under the armoire??  At least once a week!  I simply do not consider that durned chasing game to be necessary to my happiness!  Honestly, lately I've been taking to warning him off before he can even get started, but only with limited success.  First it starts with a sweet nose boop, then a nuzzle to the neck, and before I know it I'm cramming myself into some tight space that Mr Fluffy Pants can't fit into.   But never fear - the school of hard paw knocks has taught me many evasive tricks - and a teensy bit of revenge, too...

Well, I'd just like to say, before anything else, that no matter what ShiShi may have said - I didn't do it!

But with that out of the way, mostly I think that having a sisfur like ShiShi is pretty pawsome.  She's a super slow and picky eater, so there is often a bit of extra treats that find their way toward my ever-so-hungry self.  I mean, seriously, how does she manage to draw out her eating time sooooo long, when those tasty morsels always seem to disappear so fast fur me.  Except fur the bonito flakes - then Miss Finicky is fast like lightening (Durn!)

Also, she is just incredible at finding playmates to entertain us out on the lanai.   And even indoors she always has something interesting at paw.  A bead, a string, a cap from a pencil - with ShiShi around, there is never a dull moment to be had because she can turn anything into a game.  And, if boredom is pokes it's ugly head in my direction, all I need to do is give her a little lovebite-lick, and then there's another enervating game of chase (under the armoire) to brighten the day.   Well, unless she's putting me in my place again...