Carolyn Holm

Cher Madame,
The Poppy says she has only One Job. 
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
That’s what I tell her.
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
Why do you need her to announce dogs passing by? 
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
That’s not her One Job! That just freelancing.
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame
What’s her One Job? 
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
To take me for a walk every day.
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame
I thought Madame did that for the Poppy. 
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
It works both ways – we both benefit! That’s why it’s a great job!
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
The Poppy has other jobs. Like sitting under the dining table. 
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
Only when we’re seated there for a meal. Someone has to be under the table. So that’s more of a part-time volunteer position.
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
And the Postman and Delivery Announcements? 
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
Freelancing.
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
She is very busy. It’s astonishing that a dog brain can assemble all that responsibility.
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
There’s one more job I wish she’d do, but she doesn’t know how. I wish she would howl at fire truck sirens. 
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
Madame is so very, how does one say, unconventional.
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
Remember Molly? She learned to howl from our German Shepherd, Bruno. When they heard a siren, he would sit down, throw back his head, and let out a mournful howl. Molly would run up to him and stand with one paw on his shoulder, throw back her head, and howl with him. And Terriers don’t generally howl! But, because she was a Terrier, hers sounded more like a yippy coyote howl. We loved their weird duets. 
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
One must point out, how would one keep that to a schedule? One never knows when the fire trucks will come roaring by. 
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
That wouldn’t bother Poppy. The schedule is your responsibility.
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
My One Job. To keep this household on schedule. Meals, games, bedtime, daily grooming, treats from Monsieur. So many things to keep track of.
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
And you do it so well. But you do have another job. To pile on me at night. 
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
Madame is making fun of the sleeping arrangements.
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
No, I love it. I love to have at least one cat piled on me at night. I sleep better with a Lap Cat. But lately the two of you have been MIA.
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
Mia died years ago.
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
Not that Mia. Missing In Action. You two have not been showing up. I got up during the night and discovered both of you asleep in the living room.
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
Ah, the living room she is close to the kitchen, where the feeders reside. This petit cat must listen for the breakfast delivery.
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
That automatic feeder is a wonderful thing. But I want a cat to curl up on me. 
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
The Winston should be doing that. He says he loves having so many jobs. He has been bragging that he is a Jobs Cat.
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
He only has two. To sleep with me and to entertain us with his wild pillow games and zoomies. But soon he’ll have a third job! He’s learning to be a Chest Cat. To sit on my chest, thoughtfully lick my chin, purr and blink his eyes. Mia did that so well! But he’s still just a Chest Cat In Training, because he tends to lose his focus, and forget what he’s doing.
Love, Carolyn

Cher Madame,
Not many cats have my high level of Executive Function and Emotional Regulation.
Regards, M. Le Poufin

Dear Puffin,
This is why we leave it to you to keep us on schedule.
Love, Carolyn

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A note to our readers…

Poppy, Winston, and Puffin are looking forward to sharing their weekly correspondence with you! Each week one of them is featured here, all based upon actual conversations. And yes, you can get the week’s post conveniently in your email every Friday by subscribing in the subscriber box at the top of this page. (If you are reading this in an email, go to blog.carolynholm.com to subscribe.) If you have already subscribed, multiple paws are raised to salute you!