A Visitor (Reposted from 3/23/2006)
The Ranger
Very early.
And dark.
The birds that coo and caw in the pre-dawn pitch are still
tucked down and nestled on the swaying power lines. It's that
time of morning where even the coffee maker is still asleep and
groaning for that extra 15 minutes.
Spawn sleep journeyed -- again -- and is currently burrowed
beneath my heating blanket and comforters, a gopher in its
family burrow, love-snuffling like a 1939 two-stroke hog
without a muffler. The moment I realized she was standing near
my face, I knew sleep would evasively dodge my non-drugged
grasp.
I want to get up and read newsgroups anyway so we swap
positions.
I walk into the kitchen and prod the coffee maker awake.
The tile floor groans slowly over by the microwave as if
someone is standing there. My night blindness prevents me from
seeing anyone. Tiger mews from the water dish four feet away. I
turn back to the coffee maker and feel Stripes brush against my
leg, purring like an H1 Hummer. "That explains the noise," I
mutter and kneel down. My knees sound like Rice Krispies as I
bend down to pet Stripes. "Tiger was eating when I disturbed
him," I shrug and scratch behind his ears.
Something moves. Movement from the doorway. I quickly stand and
stare.
"What?!" I bellow and fall back into the garbage can. I
excitedly swat at the dual light switches. Six 40W fluorescent
tubes flicker to life competing with twelve 250W halogen bulbs;
the kitchen is flooded with spotlight intensity.
I glance at the spot where I saw something. I scan the kitchen
slowly.
My heart -- and ears -- is hammering an adrenaline-induced
200/122. I take a deep breath and force myself to walk about
the kitchen, tile floor creaking with each of my steps
reminding me of an earlier noise. I round the wall and enter
the great room, looking for the little girl I'd seen staring at
me from the entryway.
I click on each light switch watching my hands twitter and
twitch from a lack of control. "I'm not finding this the least
damned bit funny," I mutter low enough to be heard in close but
not beyond to my bedroom. "I find someone playing at this
prank, I'm not going to be very amused."
"What -- or who -- are you **growling** at?" SWMBO emerged from
the bedroom.
"A girl!" I hissed. "Someone's playin' pranks I'm not finding
very funny."
SWMBO looked at me like I was the one "playin' pranks" and
sighed, "Well... The only one that fits that bill is still on
your side of the bed; right where you left her."
Unconvinced, I grumbled, "I saw her."
"Listen! You can hear her snuffling..." SWMBO reasoned.
Sure enough, as if on cue, the exaggerated snuffle of a little
girl trumpeted from the recesses of our room. "Come back to
bed. You need your rest just as much as we do. More so. 'Groups
can wait till later."
I close my eyes. "No. I'm fully awake now. I might as well go
up and read like I'd planned. 'Sides, just an overactive
imagination. No one's here," I added.
"Fine. Whatever. Just don' wake up the girls from your typing!
Otherwise you _will_ be seeing things -- and they won't be
pleasant."
"Yes, ma'am," I laughed.
I click off all the lights and hear SWMBO shuffle back to our
bedroom.
"What was I thinking?" I dim the halogens back and walk around
the kitchen one more time. Both cats are crouched by their food
dishes watching me, probably clicking their tongues at
yet-another of their Hyoo-mahn owner's eccentricities.
Satisfied that there is indeed no one hiding, I click off the
lights again and waited for the coffee maker to gurgle-hiss its
signature finish. I pour a cup and quietly head upstairs to the
computer room to read. Stripes proceeds me up the stairs since
he likes sitting in my lap while I read. Our simple routine is:
He allows me to read, I get to comb his coat. Today is no
different.
I pull back the chair to my desk and start to log in.
"Humph. Did you bring up OE for me?" I ask the tabby stretched
out across my legs.
The answering "Meow..." is drawled.
"I could've sworn I logged out last night..." I mumbled. "Oh
well. It's going so that'll save me ten minutes."
I click and clack at the keyboard. An icy breeze cuts across my
spine, raising goose pimples along my arms. "Gahd darnit!" I
spin about in my chair. Stripes drops down to the carpet and
stares at the doorway. The door has swung shut. "This is
getting out of hand..."
I stand up. Hackles compete with goose bumps for space.
I open the door. SWMBO is standing there, also reaching for the
handle.
"Did you just run down the hallway?"
"Uh..."
"Someone just ran up and down the hallway!"
"Not me! I just pulled my chair over to the desk. The door
closed, though."
"I'm going to check on the other two..."
"Think I'll join you."
We quickly check in on Daughter-unit Beta and Daughter-unit
Alpha. They're fine, likewise burrowed under mounds of army
surplus wool and
nylon. "This is just too weird," SWMBO volunteers.
"Yeah. Just what we need. Another girl in the house."
The Ranger
haunter
HA! Cats....gotta luv em.
I really enjoyed the story, Ranger.
My long gone kitty, Isis, used to to point to unusual activities
around me, much as a Pointer-pooch would point out quail. Cats are
certainly atuned to vibations we don't perceive normally and should be
watched for such subtle indicators.
Thanks very much for the post, Ranger; very much enjoyed, on many
layers.
Haunter
The Ranger
news:7qad84hu39sfl0ltv...@4ax.com...
Thank you kindly. I was once warned that pubescent teenangsters
also trigger paranormal activities and -- I gotta tell you --
that person's advice ain't far off the mark!
If I weren't so jumpy, I'd sit for a spell and type 'em out.
But I'm well-beyond jumpy...
The Ranger
haunter
<cuhula...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>haunter <zi...@somewhere.com> wrote in message
>news:7qad84hu39sfl0ltv...@4ax.com...
>> On Tue, 22 Jul 2008 12:11:30 -0700, "The Ranger"
>> <cuhula...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>>
>>>It's early.
>>>Very early.
>>>
>>>And dark.
>>>
snipped for brevity
>>>
>>>We quickly check in on Daughter-unit Beta and Daughter-unit
>>>Alpha. They're fine, likewise burrowed under mounds of army
>>>surplus wool and
>>>nylon. "This is just too weird," SWMBO volunteers.
>>>
>>>"Yeah. Just what we need. Another girl in the house."
>>>
>>>The Ranger
>>>
>> HA! Cats....gotta luv em.
>> I really enjoyed the story, Ranger.
>> My long gone kitty, Isis, used to to point to unusual
>> activities
>> around me, much as a Pointer-pooch would point out quail.
>> Cats are
>> certainly atuned to vibations we don't perceive normally and
>> should be
>> watched for such subtle indicators.
>> Thanks very much for the post, Ranger; very much enjoyed, on
>> many
>> layers.
>
>Thank you kindly. I was once warned that pubescent teenangsters
>also trigger paranormal activities and -- I gotta tell you --
>that person's advice ain't far off the mark!
>
>If I weren't so jumpy, I'd sit for a spell and type 'em out.
>But I'm well-beyond jumpy...
>
>The Ranger
>
Heheh, I can relate.
No, really :p
H