world according to cat

I came downstairs this morning to find Tybalt pacing across the kitchen counter with cries of frustration. There was a spider on the ceiling, five feet above him, and he couldn't figure out how to get at it.

Eventually the spider crawled over to the side of the ceiling, above the cupboard cabinets. Now Tybalt was looking to see if it was possible to leap up the four feet from the counter that would put him on top of the cabinets, only a foot below the ceiling. But while I have no doubt that the mighty Pandora could in her youth have leaped that high, it was beyond the scope of a no-longer-young Tybalt, and I foresaw a giant crash even if he did. So it's as well that he didn't try.

Eventually he figured out that he could get to the top of the cabinets by using the top of the refrigerator, which he has visited before, as an intermediate step. He prowled along the top of the cabinets, fortunately not knocking over any of the bricabrac we keep up there, until he reached the spider's lair.

He stuck out a paw and knocked the spider down to the top of the cabinet. At which point it apparently stopped moving, because Tybalt lost interest and returned whence he had come.