-Tron's Big Adventure

I lost my cat for a day yesterday.  My giant, always hungry, way too fluffy, ‘I’m going to eat your scone dough’ orange cat wandered out of an open door here in New Orleans and, just like giant orange cats do…. he disappeared into thin air.

I was in the thick of preparing for the Kentucky Derby Party I’ve been talking about here for a week.  Elbow deep in Mac and Cheese, two Derby Pies (that wouldn’t set in the oven because I eyeballed the addition of too much bourbon), baking biscuits, two hours away from guests arriving, and…. a missing cat.    I’ll tell you now that I 100% freaked out, and then I 100% continued to make Mac and Cheese because I didn’t want to burn the dang béchamel.    I also cried on a few of the biscuits.

A few friends diligently searched the neighborhood.  Hearing them call for my giant orange boy cat in their dainty coaxing voices was calming.  When I searched the neighborhood myself, with flour all over my shirt and my eyes starting to puff and fatigue, I think I was offered just about every cat consolation in the book.

‘Just go outside and call for him.’  Thank you, antique shop neighbor.  I hadn’t thought of that.

‘He’ll find another good home.’  Um… I make cat treats from scratch. It doesn’t get better than my home!

‘I moved to a new neighborhood, lost my cat and it came back after four months.  You’ll be fine.” Nope.  Now I’m really not fine, but cool I’m happy for you.

‘I recently lost my cat in a tragic dryer accident so I know what you’re feeling.”  And I run screaming away from this neighbor as fast as I can.

‘He’s wearing a collar, right?’  No… get away from me.

‘Calm down.  Cats come back.’  Thank you but this doesn’t feel entirely helpful right now!

It turns out that, ok…. cats do come home.  At least Tron-cat did come home.  Early this morning, mud all over his belly, dirt crusted in his fancy tail, paws blackened with dust and dirt.  He was HUNGRY.  I mean… he missed AN ENTIRE MEAL.  I also think he was scared and happy to see me.  I told him about all the fried chicken and biscuits he missed and the Derby Party.  He told me about all the flies he ate hiding in the bushes.  I told him about the lady with the cat in the dryer and he made the sign of the cross with his paw.  Not really… that last part only happened in my imagination.

So.

That happened.

•  Also this week, I became re-obsessed with this James Blake song, Retrograde.  It hypnotizes me.  Some songs just dig deep inside your heart.

•  I have a new coffee table book:  Unfathomable City:  New Orleans.  It has the strangest maps and the coolest essays about my new city.  The San Francisco edition also seems fantastic.

•  Emily from Cupcakes and Cashmere has a new capsule collection with Club Monaco, but you already knew that.  I’m excited for the collection and I think it’s really cool to see bloggers do what they do!  Totally inspiring.

•  Tomorrow is Cinco de Mayo!  Let there be Breakfast Nachos.  High priorities.  A lunch time margarita might also treat us right!  I like Gaby’s Strawberry Jalapeño margarita jimmyjam.

• Can someone come over and teach me to make crepes?  I’ll provide the jam and Nutella.

•  My goals for May include making some sort of falafel or veggie burger recipe.  This Sweet Green Pea and Herb Falafel is super inspiring.

I’m off to strap on my hawk-holding gloves and give my cat a bath.  The mud bath it appears he took late last night doesn’t sit well with either of us. It’s also the last day of Jazz Fest here in New Orleans.  Find me swaying in the Blues Tent until sunset.

I love you.  Happy Sunday!