They Call Me Bosun--That's Weird

Hi. This is Rascal the Cat. (Please remember to capitalize the "C"). Well, my life has taken a turn. I was really happy at the Lake in Maine. Fall was coming; the chipmunks and red squirrels were entertaining; and evenings by the fire with Mom were sublime.

It was clear she was getting ready for the fall migration and I thought we were headed to Key West. Well, on Monday, we got in a plane and went west alright but not to Key West. Imagine my surprise when I got off the second plane and found myself in an airport named after Gerald Ford--who?. It surprised me even more when we got to baggage claim and there was Dad already loading Mom's bags onto a luggage cart. I thought we might have finally ditched my admittedly weak competition for Mom's attention.

Now I say Mom and Dad and told you I was Rascal. But what's really weird is we all seem to have new names out here in Holland, Michigan. Dad calls Mom, "Admiral". She calls him "Captain". And they both call me "Bosun". That last seems like a big demotion after being King of the Castle. If I were built a little different I don't think I'd mind being in charge of lines, anchors and chains but did you know that a bosun is also responsible for cleaning and maintenance? I don't think so. I have staff.

Anyway, when we arrived Monday night, Dad cooked hamburgers and fixed dinner and, perhaps most importantly, made Mom a gin and tonic. She said she really needed one after being in three airports and on two planes with me. Huh! They went to bed and I humored them by getting up there for a good night scratch or two but, as soon as they went to sleep, I went to explore our new digs. Do you know that we've traded a lovely 3000+ square foot home on the lake for a 500+ square foot boat that rocks back and forth and doesn't even seem to have foundations? Well, nonetheless, I found a delicious spot and it took the Admiral a bit to track me down in the morning. The guest berth is standing room at the head of the bed but most of it is under the salon deck above. I crawled way back in there to the very foot of the bed and claimed it as my spot. I don't really think they're eating cats in Springfield (we're stringy and tough and our diet makes us taste bad) but that's not too far from here and just in case.

Once she found me, fed me, and gave me a few hugs, boy did she get busy. She unpacked two suitcases; Dad, I mean the Captain, had left her all the good spaces--the big hanging locker, the top drawers on his side of the master berth; the lockers in the master head; the extra lockers in the guest stateroom--you get the picture. Boy, being Admiral has perks. Then, she got to work reorganizing everything that the Captain had spent the last week taking care of. And she gave the Captain lots of orders. Most of the time she had him doing five things at once and I expected some grumbling--maybe more than that. But, you know, there were a couple of grouchy words but they worked together remarkably well. I was pleased and take more than a little satisfaction in how well I've trained them.

Mom found a leak under her lavatory sink--in fact as it turned out--about a half a 10 gallon pail full of water type leak. Being the Admiral, she ordered the Captain to fix it. He dove on it so fast he cut his forehead badly on the hinges to the compartment door. The Admiral stopped the bleeding and applied bandaids though not the good kind with cartoon characters on them--the Captain isn't that important. The Captain found a leaking pipe connection and, after turning off all the water on the boat and practicing what he calls boat yoga (he really had to contort himself to get in under there), he carefully tightened it and 24 hours later, it's still dry. Sometimes I don't know how he does it.

I've heard them talking and I think we were supposed to do a big, 100 mile crossing to Chicago today. But, they think Lake Michigan will be too rough and that tomorrow will be a better window (1-2 foot waves tomorrow vs. 2-4 today. They say we have a marina reservation for the weekend in Chicago--right under the city's skyline whatever that means. I've never been to a big city so I'm kind of excited and a little worried. And who know's how my tummy will do on that trip across the lake? We'll see I guess.

You may here from me again but that's it for now.

Sincerely,

Bosun Rascal

PS: I really think I'm Commander-in-Chief