Our little hometown has a spectacular fireworks display every year on the Saturday before the 4th. As I understand, they make a real party of it with food trunks and music long before dark. Mom and Dad don’t go over there. Old Fred would get upset from the noise so we just stayed home and watched the display from inside the house. Fred is gone now, but Dad worries about mosquitos, so they still stay home. This year I sat on Mom’s lap in the dark as she looked out the guest room window. I could see all of the bright colors and lights in the sky. I could hear the pops and booms, but they weren’t really that loud. Maybe I am just more brave than old Fred.

I told you before that Mom has dusted off her camera to get back into taking pictures with this weird photography group she has joined. I thought she was off to a good start when she submitted her picture of me, but then she took a picture of a spider at the swimming pool! Last week she found small tree branches that made a triangle. Turns out she was just one of a dozen who selected similar branches. Servers her right. She needs to find better things than that.

This week the topic was “spoon.” Seriously? Of course she decided to polish a collection of soup spoons with different handles. She placed them in all sorts of arrangement. I offered to help, but she didn’t let me. She seems to be torn between this group of those spoons and one of the ones with the ice cream. I just know I want the bowl of ice cream when she is done. She tells me that I shouldn’t eat the chocolate syrup on top, but I don’t care. It all tastes so good.

One of the reasons my sister (Mom’s description) Sophia and I love to go on our trips, is that we get to play outside when we stop for the night. I like to go out just before dark or just after dawn. Sophia likes to be out anytime. At home, we don’t get to go out as often. Mom says that on some mornings, it is already too hot for us to go out by 6 AM. She seems to forget that we are cats and like the heat. In the winter, we love to stretch out in front of the fireplace. She says that is different than having it 95 degrees in the shade. Whatever.

Yesterday she put both of us out on our leads. We wear our harnesses 24/7 so she just needs to get our leads that are attached to the clothesline (yes, she likes to hang out the sheets to dry) and then hook us up. The arrangement gives us a wide circle to explore. We both enjoy eating grass that we can throw up when we go back inside. Sophia is also fond of eating bugs. I prefer to just sniff everything I find. Yesterday was no different, but as it warmed up, we did decide to lay just under the edge of the back deck. That deck is only about 5 inches off the ground. That is perfect for us. Our leads don’t let us go too far under it. I was closer to the edge, and Mom pulled me out to take me inside. Sophia had moved to the very end of her lead. When Mom pulled on her lead, Sophia adjusted her body to slip out of her harness. Sophia stayed under the deck, and Mom got nothing but her harness. She got to stay out an extra 5 hours! Mom was not pleased. Just before dinner, Sophia moved to stretch out on top of the deck. She had to tell me all about it when she came in. Mom announced that she was ordering a new harness for Sophia. Serves her right. I can also wiggle out of my harness, but not when I know Mom would worry. All of this probably means we won’t get to go out until the new harness arrives. Until then Sophia will probably get to go around the house naked. I, in turn, will wear my harness with pride.