The kitten is mental...(updated)

I would just like to say the kitten is mental. Our new baby is like a slippery, fully inflated but unsecured balloon. She gets comfy, snoozes and then POW she's off like a rubber rocket, whizzing around and EVERYTHING is a potential toy. Our last cat had been a stray and while very beautiful and elegant, as a kitten was timid, nervous and neurotic. Uneous by comparison is full-on, unrestrained, nuts. Its fun to watch and i have to say its hard not to write a picture book based around her. I totally get why cats force people to write picture books about them. They are the embodiment of an entertaining plot. However, as so many people have gone before me, I will try to resist (but I can't promise I will be successful!).

BTW the dog is no longer compelled to eat the kitten but feels obliged to give chase whenever possible. The Cat/Dog book says not to let this happen but Uneous just eggs the poor dog on and he's stupid enough to fall in with her cunning plans. Suffice to say Robbie gets a lot more exercise than he used to and like a greyhound at the races never catches his quarry. In an interesting plot twist, Robbie upended Uneous's food bowl this morning. Apparently food trumps all as both stood quietly side by side hoovering up as many kitten biccies as they could manage.

As regular readers will know last year had more than its fair share of disappointments but so far 2009 is doing its best to be a year of surprises. I don't mind surprises as long as they are not nasty ones. I've had the surprise of sitting down and writing 5 new short stories in quick succession after a short story drought of more than a year (maybe more than 2). I had the very pleasant surprise of having The Were-Nana picked for broadcast on the radio. I was surprised to find The Were-Nana turning up on the shelves of Australian libraries. And i think one of my new short stories might have been accepted for publication - fingers crossed. Colour me pleased.

Squeeeeee - another surprise! An enormous thank you to the Storytime team at Radio New Zealand. A CD with the broadcast reading of my book has just arrived in the post. Yaay!! I love it.