My Furry Friendly Neighbor

First Contact with a Friendly Neighbor

Watercolor reproduction  2010

My first contact with another living being in Chicago was with a neighborly cat and his owner in the early summer of 2001. He was a beautiful, large grey brown tabby with black paws. He belonged to our next door neighbors, an interesting couple. I never got to meet the man, I could hear his music at times. While going out, I would occasionally see the lady of the apartment lounging in her bikini in the front lawn catching the mid-afternoon sun in June. Our apartments were both on ground floors with french windows that opened onto a small front grassy lawn. We shared a common wall and I frequently used the french windows to gain access to the lawn, leaving the screen closed . It was fairly reasonable to keep the windows open for an ease of access throughout the day. I would find the window screen slightly open on several occasion but did not think much of it.

I met my neighbor the first time when she came looking for her tabby. She thought she had seen him going towards our apartment. I looked around and did not see a feline. I invited my neighbor in and allowed her to look around the apartment. We eventually found the uninvited intruder hiding underneath our bed. He had to be coaxed out from his dark comfortable spot with endearing words from his owner. She picked him up and apologized for his not so neighborly behavior. She then went on to introduce herself, and welcomed me to the neighborhood. She informed me that she was a hairdresser and that her partner was into music. They had recently purchased a deluxe double story house with all the bells and whistles including indoor heating for their cat. This was an interesting news for me and I was fascinated that the cat needed so much upkeep. Meanwhile, the subject of interest and I locked eyes, there was an instant understanding and he allowed me to pet him and turned his purr engine on. That would be the first of many such neighborly trips. I would find him curled up under my bed and occasionally outside the french windows waiting to be invited in. I loved having him over and receiving the unconditional love and warmth. For the first time, I felt welcomed in the suburban neighborhood of Chicago and I have never forgotten my first friend.