FEAR!

My cats like to go out into the garage and hang out. Why, I do not know.  But they do. Haiku really likes to lay on the hood of the car when it is warm, and that I understand. They all like to be in the garage when the dryer is running, even in the summer when it is mega hot.  I guess they like the moist heat. Sake likes to get on top of the Vue, and skis down the windshield.

When Taki was little, she followed Haiku to a top shelf, but fell off.  I could not catch or save her, but she seemed to be okay after she fell. For the longest time after that, I did not let her go into the garage. Now she can, but she does not climb in the garage.  Or, if she does, she gets down before I see her.

This morning, although I tried to prevent it, she went into the garage.  It took me several minutes of talking to her and chasing her around to get her back into the house. This has happened before, so I stop her "garage privileges" if I am quick enough to catch her before she goes into the garage.  When I do that for a while, then she seems to respond better when I call her back into the house.

I must have been distracted by Taki's escapade this morning, because I try to be sure the door between the kitchen and the garage is solidly closed before I leave the house. The latch does not always catch, and if that is the case, the cats can open the door to the garage.

So,when I got home from work tonight and drove into the garage, my heart was in my throat: the door was ajar.  I did not see a cat escape when the overhead garage door was opened, and I did not see a cat in the garage, but I was very worried.

I did not even close the overhead garage door. I raced into the house closing the adjoining kitchen to garage door behind me.   Whew!  All three cats were in the living room looking at me looking at them!

Wow!  Big sigh of relief!  I was grateful.  I do know that not one of the cats likes the noise of the overhead door, so if one was in the garage, I can guess she scampered back into the house instead of out of the garage. 

I will need to remind myself to be more careful with the door adjoining the kitchen and the garage. When I back out of the garage, I stop to do a mental checklist: doors locked, stove off, windows closed. I will have to add: door secured.  

Being compulsive sometimes is not so bad.