Curious Cat...

Last night while giving Robby his bath, Scott noticed water dripping through the ceiling. He called for me and I immediately took off running down stairs. I have learned that when a leak is spotted, the dry wall will be hastily removed. By the time I arrived, he was already ripping down pieces of our ceiling.

After looking at the pipes--courtesy of the newly created hole in the ceiling--we were left perplexed. At this point Scott remembered that the bathtub has an access panel so we went upstairs and removed the panel. We immediately diagnosed the location of the leak. We reasoned that the drain in the tub became unsealed, allowing water to seep through when the tub was filled. Thankfully it will be an easy fix!

Scott and Robby settled into bed to watch hockey, and I was working on the computer. I was trying to put the leak out of my mind. After about 30 minutes I heard a meow. Scott heard it as well, and we began to search for the cats.

Sophie was easy to locate. She is old, pudgy and sedentary. She was asleep on Robby's race car bed. We knew that we were looking for Charlie.

Meow... meow... meow. The cries were loud but the location was difficult to locate. We went downstairs and it became louder. Meow... meow... meow. Standing under the newly formed hole the sound became even more pronounced. Scott and I exchanged looks and immediately knew that we had a problem.

The access panel was still off of the bathtub and Charlie took the opportunity to explore. The poor little kitten was imprisoned in our ceiling. He was scared, and Robby became frantic about his little companion being trapped.

Since I became an amputee, I have learned to hate ladders. I avoid climbing at all costs, but rescuing the kitten was worthy of trying. Despite my efforts, I couldn't keep my footing secure enough to grab Robby's furry little friend.

Scott took over and climbed to the rescue. Using a can of cat food we were able to lure Charlie within reach. Scott grabbed him. I heard the cat squeal, and then I heard Scott scream. In a flash, I saw the ladder get kicked out.

Dangling from the ceiling, I could only see Scott's torso and legs kicking wildly in the air. Drywall began to crumble. Between Robby crying, the cat squealing and Scott screaming a few choice expletives, it was quite a scene. I grabbed the ladder and tried to direct his feet onto the rungs.

Unfortunately he lost his grip on the cat. Robby continued to fret and was nearly inconsolable. He also took the opportunity to repeat every choice word he had just heard muttered.

After nearly an hour of cajoling and failed attempts, Scott managed to get another grip on Charlie. He screeched and fought but he was finally removed from the ceiling. Robby was delighted to have his little friend back. He smothered him with hugs and kisses before reprimanding the "damn cat" for getting caught in the ceiling. Charlie began to purr and seemed to immediately forget the drama. Meanwhile I lathered Scott in Neosporin to treat his scratches and cuts.

We immediately put the access panel back on the bathtub. Today I will to go Lowes to buy a new seal for the drain. The hole in the ceiling, which became shaped like a semi-circle when Scott's stomach became wedged, at some point will need to be repaired. In the meantime we have a Christmas quilt jammed into the hole, just in case the curious little kitty decides to go exploring again. And I thought we were going to have a calm night!