Response Blog to "House Arrest"

My friend has this cat. His name is Briar. She has a lot of trouble keeping track of him. Way more trouble than I have of keeping track of my own children, usually.

She frequently texts me asking, "has anyone seen Briar today?" Briar used to hang out at Vinny's school, but he's moved on to bigger and better things.

For example, one time when he didn't come home all night, he turned up the next day at a wedding! I wonder what he brought as a gift for the bride and groom? Silly me, he brought himself, as anyone who has been graced by Briar's presence knows he truly is a gift from God. Or maybe he just is God. Remember that song, "What If God Was One Of Us?"

Then when my friend was picking Briar up from the wedding, she was stopped by a guest, "is that you're cat?" This is the very same question she gets whenever she is out and about with Briar.

"Yep," she replies.

"That cat came in my room last night and slept under the bed!" the guest informs her. And we aren't talking about the Holiday Inn here folks. No. We're talking about an upscale place in a posh tourist town where Clint Eastwood was once the mayor.

When I was starting my blog I told my friend, "you could totally start a blog for Briar. You could give him a GPS tracking device and then people could go online and see where Briar is any time of the day." I really meant then she could see where he was anytime of the day, instead of waiting for someone to find him on one of his nature walks or stowaway car adventures.

It's always shocking when people do listen to me, especially when they say, "OMG you were so right!"

Anyways, now Briar has his own blog. If only she would update it everyday. Hmmmmmm. Where did that random thought come from? But the best thing about Briar's blog is reading about how kind, helpful and full of love people are. People who come across Briar are always calling my friend to return him home safely. In today's world, Briar is living proof that people still care and go way out of their way to give a helping hand.

When people see my friend and Briar walking at the beach they ask her, "is that the famous cat?" Doesn't he have his own website?"

"Yes, it's briarkitty.com" she responds.

I am still hoping one day she will get Briar his own GPS tracking device, for her own sake. Hint. Hint. Hint.

When she meets people on the street they frequently offer her unsolicited parenting advice about how she should keep him inside where he can be safe from the dangerous world.

Somehow I don't think Briar would be very happy locked up inside all day, even if it would keep him safer. I had an indoor cat who I tried to keep safe and eventually he ate something he shouldn't have and choked to death. Sorry that was sad, but sometimes we have to let our children venture out into the world and let them live their lives. This may be one of the hardest parts of parenting.

The other night Briar came home after being out who knows where, and my friend thought he was hurt because he was having a difficult time jumping up to his perch and he growled when she touched him.

"I'm going to have to keep him in for a few days," she texted me.

Anyways, I was thinking for his house arrest, I would offer her some unsolicited parenting advice.

"Get Briar a Roomba. The cat in this video really likes riding it. I believe it will make his days locked up inside much more enjoyable. Plus, you won't have to vacuum."