A Little Whine .....

After all this time (nearly 2½ years) I still can't understand one aspect of Austin's behaviour - actually there's more than one, as detailed elsewhere, but this one really causes me a bit of a flummox!  First of all we need to remember the somewhat confusing layout of the house: 

"There are three doors to the outside and the downstairs is upstairs and the upstairs is downstairs and the back garden is upstairs and the front garden is downstairs. The back door is at the side, the conservatory is upstairs behind the kitchen and the front door is, rather surprisingly, at the front"  

When I let "his nibs" in from the garden downstairs through the back door (which is at the side), he will not, I repeat NOT, leave my side to go upstairs on his own!  This amazes me as "upstairs" is where his food and all his other catly requirements are!  Nope, instead he attaches himself like velcro to my leg, meowing in a most petulant and whiny manner, until I head for the stairs. 

Being a tad contrary and a bit of a tease, sometimes I'll make for the stairs as if intent on ascending, but then veer off at the last minute humming distractedly and detour to the study or front door (which is at the front).  By the time he's cottoned on, he's more-or-less at the top and looking a bit foolish with his head stuck between the bannisters and front near-side paw poised, ready for the ritual "thwacking of the innocent passer-by".  He can hear me sniggering around the corner and comes down again to have another moan. 

Meanwhile I've made it to the bathroom and am mixing the cement and preparing the creams and powders necessary to carry out running repairs in the form of rendering and grouting on my phiz.  Austin sits on my foot and apes me. 

In this fashion we continue for some time in companionable silence, which is only broken by the sound of a cat abluting and a human being plastered!  When finally we both make it upstairs, I have to make amends by standing very close to him while he eats his fishy bits, keeping a sharp look out for thieves, marauders and Tiggers.