The patter of (four) tiny feet and the occasional thud that follows
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Our house has a new occupant. In the grand scheme of things it has several. It is, after all, a new house and we've only just moved in. But specifically it has a new occupant called Steve. Steve is about nine inches tall when standing up normally, but can reach much higher if he's so inclined, especially if it will help him obtain food. He's covered in fur, which is mostly black, but for his feet and a few patches on his chest and belly, which are white. He's also a cat.
As he's only a few months old, Steve is technically still a kitten. For the uninitiated, kittens are a lot like cats, but smaller, quicker and with sharper claws. While cats generally take the world in their stride, and are quite laid back about it even then, kittens are more inclined to run around at speed. Sometimes they run because they're chasing things. Sometimes they run because they think they're being chased. Sometimes they run because it seems like the right thing to do at the time. In short, where there is a kitten, at some point there is likely to be running.
Steve likes running. He does it a lot. He regularly runs from one room to another, often none stop for several minutes. We've yet to work out why. Sometimes he jumps over things that are in the way. Sometimes he ducks under things that are in the way. Sometimes he runs through things that are in the way. And sometimes he just runs into things that are in the way. I assume the latter is an attempt to stop said things from being in the way next time, but since the things he's run into so far have included sofas, tables, doors and people, his success rate there has been fairly modest.
Climbing seems to be the latest trick. As a kitten, Steve is still quite small and there are some places that are too high to jump onto even if he takes a run up first. He can make it onto the back of the sofa if he uses the seat as an interim step, but sometimes (presumably) there just isn't the time. On occasions like this, he's found it's best to jump as high up as he can in one go, then latch on with his claws and pull himself up the rest of the way. It would be endearing if the sofas weren't new. We're still trying to convince him that similar tricks on the curtains aren't winning him any friends.
I'll forgive most of Steve's quirks because he's young and still has much to learn. I'll let him off for not yet understanding that when you're on the edge of something and you roll over, you tend not to be on said thing anymore. I'll overlook the fact that optimism will only get you so far across a gap between two items of furniture. I'll even forgive the sound of the sofa protesting its new occupant's approach to finding a comfy spot. I just hope he'll forgive me for posting pictures of his more entertaining quirks on Twitter.