Catnap (Encore)

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Speaker 1 Welcome to bedtime stories for everyone,

Speaker 1 in which

Speaker 1 nothing much happens.

Speaker 1 You feel good,

Speaker 1 and then

Speaker 1 you fall asleep.

Speaker 1 I'm Catherine Nikolai.

Speaker 1 I write and read

Speaker 1 all the stories you hear on Nothing Much Happens.

Speaker 1 Audio Engineering is by Bob Wittersheim.

Speaker 1 We are bringing you an encore episode tonight, meaning that this story originally aired at some point in the past. It could have been recorded with different equipment in a different location.

Speaker 1 And since I'm a person and not a computer, I sometimes sound just slightly different.

Speaker 1 But the stories are always soothing and family-friendly. And our wishes for you are always deep rest and sweet dreams

Speaker 1 especially at night your mind can spin

Speaker 1 and spiral with thoughts

Speaker 1 and you need a way to lift the needle off the record

Speaker 1 to find some stillness and peace

Speaker 1 and that's what this story is for

Speaker 1 I'll read it twice and I'll go a little slower the second time through.

Speaker 1 Just follow along with the sound of my voice and the simple shape of the tail.

Speaker 1 And before you know it, you'll be waking up tomorrow, feeling rested and refreshed.

Speaker 1 Our story tonight is called Cat Nap.

Speaker 1 And it's a story about Marmalade the cat. and Crumb the dog

Speaker 1 as they find ways to play through the winter.

Speaker 1 It's also about the spark of something sweet that begins to grow between friends.

Speaker 1 A pup cup enjoyed on a heated patio

Speaker 1 and a suitcase ready to be packed.

Speaker 1 Now,

Speaker 1 switch off your light.

Speaker 1 Set down anything you've been looking at.

Speaker 1 Snuggle down into your sheets

Speaker 1 and pull your comforter up over your shoulder.

Speaker 1 You are safe.

Speaker 1 There's nothing you need to remember or stay on top of.

Speaker 1 You can let everything go.

Speaker 1 Take a slow, deep breath in through the nose

Speaker 1 and out through the mouth.

Speaker 1 Again, bring it in.

Speaker 1 Out with sound.

Speaker 1 Good.

Speaker 1 Cat nap

Speaker 1 Marmalade was dozing in her spot by the window.

Speaker 1 She'd been too small to climb up to it that first winter when I found her,

Speaker 1 a tiny orange kitten out in the snow.

Speaker 1 But the following autumn, the first day the boiler had kicked on

Speaker 1 and the radiators began to circulate warmth, she'd discovered it.

Speaker 1 A broad, flat shelf built over the radiator and right beside a big picture window.

Speaker 1 She could lay her soft belly against the wood and feel the heat rising up

Speaker 1 as she looked out at the birds and the branches.

Speaker 1 Pure

Speaker 1 kitty heaven.

Speaker 1 Plus,

Speaker 1 and I think this was a big plus. Crumb couldn't reach her there.

Speaker 1 Crumb, my little brown dog, with a snaggle tooth

Speaker 1 and a lion's mane of delightfully disheveled fur,

Speaker 1 adored marmalade.

Speaker 1 He brought her his toys

Speaker 1 and waited for her at dinner time,

Speaker 1 shifting excitedly from paw to paw

Speaker 1 as her plate was set down beside his.

Speaker 1 While Marmie frequently pretended not to notice any of this,

Speaker 1 I saw that they snuggled together under the blanket at night,

Speaker 1 and that she cleaned his face and ears each day.

Speaker 1 We were a little family, the three of us, and I loved our life.

Speaker 1 Crumb and I took walks most days,

Speaker 1 though lately the icy sidewalks had made them less fun.

Speaker 1 I'd bought him booties to protect his paws, which

Speaker 1 went about as well as you might imagine. He'd stood at the door, alternating between shaking out each leg and freezing in place

Speaker 1 as if we were playing red light, green light.

Speaker 1 We'd made it about twenty feet down the sidewalk

Speaker 1 before we'd abandoned the whole idea

Speaker 1 and since then waited for dry days to go on walks.

Speaker 1 Instead,

Speaker 1 I found some other ways to entertain all of us over the winter.

Speaker 1 I'd grown a potful of catnip on the windowsill in the kitchen.

Speaker 1 And in the afternoons, when we all needed a pick-me-up,

Speaker 1 I'd rub a leaf along Marmalade's scratching post

Speaker 1 and over her tiny toy mice, and Crumb and I would watch her go from

Speaker 1 sleepy and disinterested to wild attack cat in a flash.

Speaker 1 I found out Crumb enjoyed car rides, and once a week or so,

Speaker 1 we'd head out to do some errands together.

Speaker 1 He quickly became a favorite customer at several of our stops.

Speaker 1 He was such a natural ham that he made everyone laugh and fall in love with him.

Speaker 1 In fact, if I showed up at the hardware store without him,

Speaker 1 the clerks would peer over the counter and listen for the scrabble of his paws on the linoleum, asking, Where's Crumb?

Speaker 1 They kept biscuits by the register for him,

Speaker 1 and those days out had become a long buffet of treats for Crumb.

Speaker 1 We'd often end at our favorite coffee shop, which had a covered patio with heaters

Speaker 1 and a walk-up, walk-up dog-friendly window.

Speaker 1 I'd get my matcha with soy.

Speaker 1 Crumb would get his pop cup with biscuit garnish

Speaker 1 and we'd find a table in the sun.

Speaker 1 He'd scramble up onto my lap and we'd enjoy our quiet time together.

Speaker 1 Whenever we got home from those days out,

Speaker 1 Marmalade would meet us at the door, thoroughly sniff crumb,

Speaker 1 as if to assure herself

Speaker 1 he hadn't been anywhere he shouldn't have,

Speaker 1 then turn her tail

Speaker 1 and head back to her spot in the window.

Speaker 1 We'd also had more play dates with Birdie,

Speaker 1 the sweet, giant greyhound, whom Marmalade had known since she was a kitten.

Speaker 1 Bertie's favorite thing to do was sleep.

Speaker 1 So when he and his dad came over,

Speaker 1 it was often for a quiet day inside together.

Speaker 1 In fact,

Speaker 1 those days together had grown more frequent in the last couple of months.

Speaker 1 We'd started,

Speaker 1 without even noticing,

Speaker 1 to spend every Friday night, all five of us,

Speaker 1 watching movies on the giant sofa in my living room,

Speaker 1 waiting for takeout to be delivered, or cooking together in the kitchen.

Speaker 1 It had grown slowly,

Speaker 1 organically,

Speaker 1 this feeling of

Speaker 1 being together being more natural, more comfortable than being apart.

Speaker 1 And now, Birdie had his own bed beside the others, and his own bowl in the kitchen.

Speaker 1 He ate different kibble than crum, and I'd bought a big bag of it from the pet store to keep in my pantry.

Speaker 1 Talk about commitment.

Speaker 1 I went to pet Marmalade in her spot at the window,

Speaker 1 and she woke as I laid a hand in her fur.

Speaker 1 She snuggled her head up into my palm

Speaker 1 as I rubbed her ears

Speaker 1 and scratched down her back.

Speaker 1 I started to tell her about something we had planned.

Speaker 1 I think Crum already knew,

Speaker 1 since he'd found my suitcase open

Speaker 1 in the middle of the bedroom, and had sat in it and frowned for a while.

Speaker 1 Now, Marmie, I said,

Speaker 1 leaning down to talk quietly to her.

Speaker 1 You've got to be a big girl,

Speaker 1 a good, big sister.

Speaker 1 you know how crumb looks up to you

Speaker 1 her tail flicked and she began to purr

Speaker 1 you and crum and birdie

Speaker 1 you're gonna spend a few days with a friend

Speaker 1 you know her

Speaker 1 the nice lady at the inn

Speaker 1 She's going to take care of you all and you're going to have fun there.

Speaker 1 Bertie's dad and I will only be gone a few days,

Speaker 1 and we'll bring you back something nice.

Speaker 1 She turned and looked at me shrewdly,

Speaker 1 then faced back to the window,

Speaker 1 where a bright yellow bird, with a swath of black across his wings, and bold yellow eyebrows sat.

Speaker 1 An evening grosbeak,

Speaker 1 a rare, pretty bird.

Speaker 1 It seemed auspicious.

Speaker 1 Crum pranced over, and I scooped him up so he could look out as well.

Speaker 1 I was excited for our trip.

Speaker 1 We were headed somewhere sunny where we could walk on the beach

Speaker 1 and see how this little spark we'd started might grow.

Speaker 1 And I was also nervous to leave the animals.

Speaker 1 The innkeeper had jumped at the chance to host them

Speaker 1 as they were still closed for the season.

Speaker 1 And she'd mentioned she'd been thinking about getting an animal friend.

Speaker 1 So

Speaker 1 we'd all of us be testing things this next week or so.

Speaker 1 I'd pack up my own bag with sandals and sundresses

Speaker 1 and books to read on the beach.

Speaker 1 And then I'd pack up their little bags with their favorite blankies and toys and kibble.

Speaker 1 and tomorrow we'd drop them off at the inn.

Speaker 1 I imagined them running through the halls, Crum chasing a toy down the length of the ballroom,

Speaker 1 and marmalade preening among the houseplants in the library.

Speaker 1 I was excited to go,

Speaker 1 and already excited to come back home again.

Speaker 1 Catnap

Speaker 1 Marmalade was dozing in her spot by the window.

Speaker 1 She'd been too small to climb up to it

Speaker 1 that first winter when I found her

Speaker 1 a tiny orange kitten out in the snow.

Speaker 1 But the following autumn,

Speaker 1 the first day the boiler had kicked on

Speaker 1 and the radiators began to circulate warmth,

Speaker 1 she discovered it.

Speaker 1 A broad, flat shelf

Speaker 1 built over the radiator

Speaker 1 and right beside a big picture window.

Speaker 1 She could lay her soft belly against the wood

Speaker 1 and feel the heat rising up

Speaker 1 as she looked out at the birds in the branches.

Speaker 1 Pure kitty heaven.

Speaker 1 Plus,

Speaker 1 and and I think this was a big plus

Speaker 1 Crumb couldn't reach her there.

Speaker 1 Crumb, my little brown dog,

Speaker 1 with a snaggle tooth and a lion's mane

Speaker 1 of delightfully disheveled fur

Speaker 1 adored marmalade.

Speaker 1 He brought her his toys

Speaker 1 and waited for her at dinner time,

Speaker 1 shifting excitedly from paw to paw

Speaker 1 as her plate was set down beside his.

Speaker 1 While Marmie frequently pretended not to notice any of this,

Speaker 1 I saw them snuggled together under the blanket at night,

Speaker 1 her cleaning his face and ears each day.

Speaker 1 We were a little family, the three of us,

Speaker 1 and I loved our life.

Speaker 1 Crumb and I took walks most days,

Speaker 1 though lately the icy sidewalks had made them less fun.

Speaker 1 I'd bought him little booties to protect his paws,

Speaker 1 which

Speaker 1 went about as well as you might imagine.

Speaker 1 He'd stood at the door,

Speaker 1 alternating between shaking out each leg and freezing in place

Speaker 1 as if we were playing red light, green light.

Speaker 1 We'd made it about 20 feet down the sidewalk

Speaker 1 before we'd abandoned the whole idea.

Speaker 1 And since then,

Speaker 1 waited for dry days to go for walks.

Speaker 1 Instead,

Speaker 1 I found some other ways to entertain

Speaker 1 all of us over the winter.

Speaker 1 I'd grown a pot full of catnip on the windowsill in the kitchen.

Speaker 1 And in the afternoons, when we all needed a pick-me-up,

Speaker 1 I'd rub a leaf along Marmalade's scratching post

Speaker 1 and over her tiny toy mice.

Speaker 1 And Chrome and I would watch her go from sleepy and disinterested

Speaker 1 to

Speaker 1 wild attack cat in a flash.

Speaker 1 I found out Crum enjoyed car rides

Speaker 1 and once a week or so

Speaker 1 we'd head out to do some errands together.

Speaker 1 He quickly became a favorite customer at several of our stops.

Speaker 1 He was such a natural ham that he made everyone laugh and fall in love with him.

Speaker 1 In fact, if I showed up at the hardware store without him,

Speaker 1 the clerks would peer over the counter and listen for the scrabble of his paws on the linoleum,

Speaker 1 asking,

Speaker 1 Where's Crumb?

Speaker 1 They kept biscuits by the register for him,

Speaker 1 and those days had become a long buffet of treats for Crum.

Speaker 1 We'd often end at our favorite coffee shop,

Speaker 1 which had a covered patio with heaters

Speaker 1 and a walk-up, dog-friendly window.

Speaker 1 I'd get my matcha with soy.

Speaker 1 Crumb would get his pup cup with biscuit garnish,

Speaker 1 and we'd find a table in the sun.

Speaker 1 He'd scramble up onto my lap,

Speaker 1 and we'd enjoy our quiet time together.

Speaker 1 When we got home from those days out,

Speaker 1 Marmalade would meet us at the door,

Speaker 1 thoroughly sniff Crumb,

Speaker 1 as if

Speaker 1 to assure herself

Speaker 1 he hadn't been anywhere he shouldn't have,

Speaker 1 then

Speaker 1 turn her tail

Speaker 1 and head back to her spot in the window.

Speaker 1 We'd also had more play dates

Speaker 1 with Birdie,

Speaker 1 the sweet, giant greyhound,

Speaker 1 whom Marmalade had known since she was a kitten.

Speaker 1 Birdie's favorite thing to do was sleep.

Speaker 1 So when he and his dad came over,

Speaker 1 it was often for a quiet day inside together.

Speaker 1 In fact,

Speaker 1 those days together had grown more frequent

Speaker 1 in the last couple of months.

Speaker 1 We'd started

Speaker 1 without even noticing

Speaker 1 to spend every Friday night,

Speaker 1 all five of us watching movies

Speaker 1 on the giant sofa in my living room,

Speaker 1 waiting for takeout to be delivered,

Speaker 1 or cooking together in the kitchen.

Speaker 1 It had grown slowly,

Speaker 1 organically,

Speaker 1 this

Speaker 1 feeling of

Speaker 1 being together,

Speaker 1 being more natural,

Speaker 1 more comfortable than being apart.

Speaker 1 And now, Birdie had his own bed beside the others,

Speaker 1 and his own bowl in the kitchen.

Speaker 1 He ate different kibble than crumb.

Speaker 1 And I'd bought a big bag of it from the pet store to keep in my pantry.

Speaker 1 Talk about commitment.

Speaker 1 I went to pet Marmalade

Speaker 1 in her spot at the window

Speaker 1 And she woke as I laid a hand in her fur.

Speaker 1 She snuggled her head up into my palm.

Speaker 1 As I rubbed her ears and scratched down her back

Speaker 1 I started to tell her about something we had planned.

Speaker 1 I think Crum

Speaker 1 already knew,

Speaker 1 since he'd found my suitcase open in the middle of the bedroom

Speaker 1 and had sat in it and frowned for a while.

Speaker 1 Now, Marmie, I said,

Speaker 1 leaning down to talk quietly to her.

Speaker 1 You've got to be a big girl,

Speaker 1 a good big sister.

Speaker 1 You know how Crum looks up to you.

Speaker 1 Her tail flicked,

Speaker 1 and she began to purr.

Speaker 1 You and Crum and Bertie

Speaker 1 are going to spend a few days with a friend.

Speaker 1 You know her.

Speaker 1 The nice lady at the inn.

Speaker 1 She's going to take care of you all

Speaker 1 and you're going to have fun there.

Speaker 1 Bertie's dad and I will only be gone for a few days

Speaker 1 and will bring you back something nice.

Speaker 1 She turned

Speaker 1 and looked at me shrewdly,

Speaker 1 then faced back to the window,

Speaker 1 where a bright yellow bird,

Speaker 1 with a swath of black across his wings,

Speaker 1 and bold yellow eyebrows sat

Speaker 1 an evening grouse beak,

Speaker 1 a rare, pretty bird.

Speaker 1 It seemed auspicious.

Speaker 1 Crumb pranced over

Speaker 1 and I scooped him up

Speaker 1 so he could look out as well.

Speaker 1 I was excited for our trip.

Speaker 1 We were headed somewhere sunny,

Speaker 1 where we could walk on the beach

Speaker 1 and see how this little spark we'd started might grow.

Speaker 1 And I was also

Speaker 1 a little nervous to leave the animals.

Speaker 1 The innkeeper had jumped at the chance to host them

Speaker 1 as they were still closed for the season.

Speaker 1 And she'd mentioned she'd been thinking about getting an animal friend.

Speaker 1 So

Speaker 1 we'd all of us

Speaker 1 be testing things this next week or so.

Speaker 1 I'd pack up my own bag

Speaker 1 with sandals and sundresses

Speaker 1 and books to read on the beach,

Speaker 1 and then I'd pack up their little bags

Speaker 1 with their favorite blankies and toys

Speaker 1 and kibble.

Speaker 1 And tomorrow we'd drop them off at the inn.

Speaker 1 I imagined them running through the halls,

Speaker 1 Crum

Speaker 1 chasing a toy down the length of the ballroom,

Speaker 1 and Marmalade preening among the houseplants in the library.

Speaker 1 I was excited to go,

Speaker 1 and already excited

Speaker 1 to come back home again.

Speaker 1 Sweet dreams.