The Jellicle Diaries:
Kashmir
Day 1
Misto has been teaching all the Jellicles how to read and
write. I've got plenty to think about, so I though I may as
well be wild and crazy and write it, too. Yup, that's
Kashmir all right. I can just hear the other Jellicles now:
That Kashmir, she's a real maniac. Laaaaaaaaugh.
My current predicament isn't so funny. If you get right
down to it, I'm a homeless kitten. I've been staying with
Uncle Skimble for about three months now, and the station
master's daughters are very kind, but I can sense that the
situation is only temporary.
If I told this to anyone else, they would laugh. Even
Vicki. Me and my Irish songs. Well, they're the ones that
tell me to sing them. Anyway, I found this little song among
some papers in a trash can. I thought it fit my problem.
I know who I am.
I know where I am.
I've been told of my place in the world.
But I'm not where I want to be.
Ireland holds no future for me.
My spirit mind and heart long to be free!
I know who I am, I know where I am,
But it's not where I live in my dreams.
Day 2
I feel very alone. Vicki giggles about something and doesn't
pay attention when I try to talk to her. Etcetera and
Electra are off chasing Tugger. Uncle Skimble's at the
station, Munkustrap is too formidable, and Demeter and Bomb
are too "mature" (hah) for my "childish" (they should hear
themselves) humor. And Tumblebrutus and Pouncival keep
teasing me about my eyes. Vicki says it's attention and I
should enjoy it, but I don't know. I've never had attention
before, besides from Miss Saoirse, but that doesn't count.
Now I don't feel comfortable in the junkyard, either.
Day 3
Hid in the drain pipe today. Not much to say.
Day 4
A man tried to catch me today, but he looked scary, so I ran
away. Smacked straight into Tumble. He asked me if there
were any Irish songs about broken hearts. I turned and fled
in the other direction. Managed to avoid Electra and
Cassandra, who were talking with Vicki and all looked pretty
mad. I decided to go back to the station and hid under the
train ticket booth for the rest of the day.
Day 5
Today I avoided the junkyard entirely and amused myself by
playing with the people trying to work the change machine. I
ran out, swiped at a leg, and ran back behind the machine
before I could be caught. Plan backfired when a little boy
decided to try and drag me out. I have officially decided
not to take up the sport.
Day 6
I was going to stay out of the junkyard today, too, but
Vicki found me and dragged me back. Quaxo asked me if I
would take him to see Conquistador, the horse down the
street, so I did and then tried to run away again, but Misto
caught me. Said there was a lady next door to him who was
looking for a kitten and thinks I fit the bill. Honestly, I
think he can read minds or something. Wait a second. Never
mind.
Day 7
Went to see that lady Misto was talking about. Victoria
introduced me to her because the lady often comes into feed
her on vacations. Her name is Annie and she said I was cute
and all that kind of junk that humans use to describe
kittens. Then it turned out she has another cat, some sort
of long-haired, Siamese cross named Sherpalot. Little older
than me, rather rotund. Looks menacing. I'm sleeping under
the bed tonight.
Day 8
Vicki, Misto, and Tumble all visited me today, which
delighted Annie no end. Misto told me that Skimble said that
the station master's daughters miss me. I'm at loss at what
to do.
Day 9
I was visited again today. I told them there's another cat
in the house, and if they wanted to, they were welcome to
seek him out. Unfortunately, they did. Tumble and Sherpalot
almost got into a fight, but Misto stopped them. Oh, what a
world, what a world.
I wonder if the station master's daughters still miss me.
Probably not.
Day 10
I left Annie's today. Didn't feel at home there either. On
the way to the junkyard, I noticed Exotica, perched
precariously on a weather vane, watching me. I cautiously
approached her, and we talked for a little while. Exotica is
even more of an outsider than I am it seems. No one really
notices her or pays attention, which suits her just fine. I
asked why, but she just shook her head. Then I asked where
she lives, and she shrugged again and said, "Here and
there." And she asked where I live.
I shrugged. "Here and there."
I dunno. Maybe we're too particular.
Day 11
Managed to keep Vicki in one place for ten minutes today. A
crowning achievement! We played cat and mouse for a while,
and I had to be the mouse because I was smaller. Then Misto,
Tumble and Pouncival started to stalk us, so we played
along, and eventually got chased down the street. A
fulfilling day.
Day 12
Misto is now helping me hone my telepathic powers. They
could be useful one day. I asked him if he'd teach me to
swing a Peke by the tail, but he just grinned and said no
because it was his trademark trick. I said okay, I promise
that I'll only swing Poms by the tail, but he still said no.
Oh well.
I practiced levitation today in a very satisfying way. I
dug through the stuff in a the junkyard and found and old,
gigantic clay flower pot with a huge crack in it, a scrap of
an old quilt, and a sheet of clear plastic. I lifted it all
with my (limited) magic till I found a good spot in between
Annie's and Vicki's houses, tucked in the middle of two
bushes. I turned the flower pot upside-down, so that the
crack was like a door, and then pushed the bit of quilt
inside. Then I covered it all with the sheet of plastic,
making the whole thing water proof. This is now my home.
Day 13
Tumble came to see my flower pot home, and the plastic bit
was a good idea because it began to storm soon after he
arrived. We were very warm inside, and I knew I won't get
hungry because I can just drop in an Annie from time to
time. Now if I can only find my place in the junkyard...
Day 14
Saw Exotica again today and voiced my troubles to her. She
says she has similar problems. Neither of us, whether we
have friends or no, feel accepted in the junkyard. At any
rate, this is the last page of my notebook, and who knows
how long it will be before I find another one. Maybe my fate
lies in the hands of another Jellicle.
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