Episode Eleven:
Mr. T
I wasn’t sure if Boots’s idea would work.
Actually, I was pretty sure it would not. I had learned from trying to flood the house that sometimes ideas don’t work out exactly how you hope. Apparently, one kitchen sink has a really tough time filling up a house like a fish bowl.
But Boots was certain.
“Okay,” she said. “In order to find the ocean, we just ask somebody that would know… but sometimes my family doesn’t understand what I’m trying to say. So I was thinking…” She marched to the living room and I tentatively followed, assuring Lily I would relay back to her whatever Boots showed me.
“Mr. T,” Boots said proudly.
“I don’t understand.” I looked around the living room. Was there really another cat in the house? Who was this Mr. T? I couldn’t smell him…
“No, it’s not somebody…” Boots said. “At least not exactly…” She jumped gracefully from the floor to the foot rest near the couch, up onto a wooden shelf high above, on which sat a few speakers. Behind Boots was a massive TV.
“This is Mr. T.”
“Mr. T… V?”
“Uh, yeah, maybe V could be his last name. Sometimes I hear my family talking with him. There will be, like, a football game, and they’ll be giving Mr. T directions to relay to the players. And sometimes, they talk to this remote called Alexa and she talks to Mr. T. Anyway... we can ask Mr. T and he’ll probably be able to tell us where the ocean is. Then, we can take a trip and bring Lily so she can check it out!”
“Hmm… I…” Maybe the TV could help, but I wasn’t exactly sure of Boots’s plan. “Do you even know how to wake the TV up?” I said skeptically.
“Sure do.” Boots purred, and she pressed her paw against the lower left side of the TV. At once, the massive screen lit up and a big picture of a green field with a lot of men running around it with a ball showed up. The speakers boomed.
“And it looks like he’s going for it. He’s passed midfield… Look at him go!”
“See…” Boots said proudly, hopping lightly down to the ground.
“Wow… nice work, Boots. Mr. T, can you, uh, show Boots and me the ocean?” I said in my clearest voice.
“No, see, you have to talk to Alexa," Boots said. "I think she’s his girlfriend.”
She jumped up onto the couch. I followed and saw her set her paw against a small black remote.
“Alexa?” Boots asked. “Show me the ocean.”
Nothing happened.
The sports commentary on the TV still boomed. “And he’s down at the 30 yard line! What a run!”
“Maybe she can’t hear you?” I suggested. “Try again.”
“Maybe. Alexa, where is the ocean?”
A blue circle appeared on the TV, and then I felt my whiskers sag with disappointment when the text appeared. “No results for 'Bear me the though hen'”.
“Wait, that’s not what you said,” I complained. It didn’t even make any sense. “Here, let me try!” I pressed my paw down on the button. “Show me the ocean.”
The blue circle went around. This time the results looked better - at least some things showed up! Results for “Homes in the ocean”. There were some strange results - I had no idea how homes or oceans had to do with dogs, but some pictures of dogs showed up. There were also some more promising results, like a picture of a house half-underwater and a blue screen that looked like it was a picture of water!
I was just about to try to step on the remote to see if I could get the search results to move around when sweet Abigail called my name.
“What are you doing, Tiger?” she asked, sounding amused. Before I had time to ask the remote to click play or figure out which button to step on, Abigail had scooped me up in her big bear-hug hold under my belly and flopped onto the couch with me.
“And look!" she said. “You made friends with Boots! Hi Boots.”
“Hello,” Boots said, coming carefully over and allowing Abigail to scratch her head.
“Homes in the Ocean?” Abigail said, sounding out the words on the TV and looking confused. Then her face brightened. “Ooh, Lily should come join us too!” she exclaimed excitedly. “We can all watch a movie!”
Abigail pulled me up again so my legs were hanging down on either side of her arms as she jostled me over to the next room to find Mom and Dad. It was not the most comfortable, but I didn’t mind it.
“Mom, can you please bring Lily’s fishbowl into the living room?”
“Why would I bring Lily’s fishbowl into the living room, honey?”
“Because I want to watch a movie and I think Tiger wanted to watch a movie too. He turned on the TV.”
Mom smiled. “I’m not sure if Tiger turned on the TV, but okay. You can watch a movie for a little bit before bedtime. And I can bring Lily’s bowl into the living room as long as you promise to be careful around it.”
“Of course I’ll be careful,” Abigail said.
Abigail led the way into the kitchen, still holding me, and Mom followed us. Mom picked up Lily’s bowl and carried it into the living room. She set it down gently on the small coffee table in front of the TV.
“Alright,” Mom said. “Wow, that is loud.” She pulled the remote up from under Boots's paw. I caught a glimpse of the TV as Abigail sat down and pulled me close to her to snuggle. The TV currently said, “Show me in motion”
“I was so close, I just couldn’t get it to hear 'Ocean” right,' Boots said. She flicked her tail and then jumped up next to Abigail, curling up on her side and looking at the TV.
Mom turned the TV down and handed the remote to Abigail.
“Not too long; it’ll be bedtime soon," she warned.
“I don’t have too much left,” Abigail replied. “I’m just going to finish Finding Nemo. Last time I stopped on the part where they get stung by jellyfish. Soon he’ll be rescued by the sea turtles”
Stung by jellyfish? That doesn’t sound too cool, I thought.
“Alright honey, we’ll see. Go ahead and get started.”
“Okay, Tiger, Lily, Boots,” Abigail said. "It’s movie time now. Nemo is a fish, and his dad Marlin is trying to find him. Finding Nemo,” she said to the remote, who finally seemed to want to listen.
Lily swam in circles in her bowl, which reflected the light of the TV in the water and glass on the table in front of us.
A moment later, the TV screen turned blue and I saw two orange fish. One in the fishbowl in front of me on the table, and one swimming on the TV immersed in his adventure.
Actually, I was pretty sure it would not. I had learned from trying to flood the house that sometimes ideas don’t work out exactly how you hope. Apparently, one kitchen sink has a really tough time filling up a house like a fish bowl.
But Boots was certain.
“Okay,” she said. “In order to find the ocean, we just ask somebody that would know… but sometimes my family doesn’t understand what I’m trying to say. So I was thinking…” She marched to the living room and I tentatively followed, assuring Lily I would relay back to her whatever Boots showed me.
“Mr. T,” Boots said proudly.
“I don’t understand.” I looked around the living room. Was there really another cat in the house? Who was this Mr. T? I couldn’t smell him…
“No, it’s not somebody…” Boots said. “At least not exactly…” She jumped gracefully from the floor to the foot rest near the couch, up onto a wooden shelf high above, on which sat a few speakers. Behind Boots was a massive TV.
“This is Mr. T.”
“Mr. T… V?”
“Uh, yeah, maybe V could be his last name. Sometimes I hear my family talking with him. There will be, like, a football game, and they’ll be giving Mr. T directions to relay to the players. And sometimes, they talk to this remote called Alexa and she talks to Mr. T. Anyway... we can ask Mr. T and he’ll probably be able to tell us where the ocean is. Then, we can take a trip and bring Lily so she can check it out!”
“Hmm… I…” Maybe the TV could help, but I wasn’t exactly sure of Boots’s plan. “Do you even know how to wake the TV up?” I said skeptically.
“Sure do.” Boots purred, and she pressed her paw against the lower left side of the TV. At once, the massive screen lit up and a big picture of a green field with a lot of men running around it with a ball showed up. The speakers boomed.
“And it looks like he’s going for it. He’s passed midfield… Look at him go!”
“See…” Boots said proudly, hopping lightly down to the ground.
“Wow… nice work, Boots. Mr. T, can you, uh, show Boots and me the ocean?” I said in my clearest voice.
“No, see, you have to talk to Alexa," Boots said. "I think she’s his girlfriend.”
She jumped up onto the couch. I followed and saw her set her paw against a small black remote.
“Alexa?” Boots asked. “Show me the ocean.”
Nothing happened.
The sports commentary on the TV still boomed. “And he’s down at the 30 yard line! What a run!”
“Maybe she can’t hear you?” I suggested. “Try again.”
“Maybe. Alexa, where is the ocean?”
A blue circle appeared on the TV, and then I felt my whiskers sag with disappointment when the text appeared. “No results for 'Bear me the though hen'”.
“Wait, that’s not what you said,” I complained. It didn’t even make any sense. “Here, let me try!” I pressed my paw down on the button. “Show me the ocean.”
The blue circle went around. This time the results looked better - at least some things showed up! Results for “Homes in the ocean”. There were some strange results - I had no idea how homes or oceans had to do with dogs, but some pictures of dogs showed up. There were also some more promising results, like a picture of a house half-underwater and a blue screen that looked like it was a picture of water!
I was just about to try to step on the remote to see if I could get the search results to move around when sweet Abigail called my name.
“What are you doing, Tiger?” she asked, sounding amused. Before I had time to ask the remote to click play or figure out which button to step on, Abigail had scooped me up in her big bear-hug hold under my belly and flopped onto the couch with me.
“And look!" she said. “You made friends with Boots! Hi Boots.”
“Hello,” Boots said, coming carefully over and allowing Abigail to scratch her head.
“Homes in the Ocean?” Abigail said, sounding out the words on the TV and looking confused. Then her face brightened. “Ooh, Lily should come join us too!” she exclaimed excitedly. “We can all watch a movie!”
Abigail pulled me up again so my legs were hanging down on either side of her arms as she jostled me over to the next room to find Mom and Dad. It was not the most comfortable, but I didn’t mind it.
“Mom, can you please bring Lily’s fishbowl into the living room?”
“Why would I bring Lily’s fishbowl into the living room, honey?”
“Because I want to watch a movie and I think Tiger wanted to watch a movie too. He turned on the TV.”
Mom smiled. “I’m not sure if Tiger turned on the TV, but okay. You can watch a movie for a little bit before bedtime. And I can bring Lily’s bowl into the living room as long as you promise to be careful around it.”
“Of course I’ll be careful,” Abigail said.
Abigail led the way into the kitchen, still holding me, and Mom followed us. Mom picked up Lily’s bowl and carried it into the living room. She set it down gently on the small coffee table in front of the TV.
“Alright,” Mom said. “Wow, that is loud.” She pulled the remote up from under Boots's paw. I caught a glimpse of the TV as Abigail sat down and pulled me close to her to snuggle. The TV currently said, “Show me in motion”
“I was so close, I just couldn’t get it to hear 'Ocean” right,' Boots said. She flicked her tail and then jumped up next to Abigail, curling up on her side and looking at the TV.
Mom turned the TV down and handed the remote to Abigail.
“Not too long; it’ll be bedtime soon," she warned.
“I don’t have too much left,” Abigail replied. “I’m just going to finish Finding Nemo. Last time I stopped on the part where they get stung by jellyfish. Soon he’ll be rescued by the sea turtles”
Stung by jellyfish? That doesn’t sound too cool, I thought.
“Alright honey, we’ll see. Go ahead and get started.”
“Okay, Tiger, Lily, Boots,” Abigail said. "It’s movie time now. Nemo is a fish, and his dad Marlin is trying to find him. Finding Nemo,” she said to the remote, who finally seemed to want to listen.
Lily swam in circles in her bowl, which reflected the light of the TV in the water and glass on the table in front of us.
A moment later, the TV screen turned blue and I saw two orange fish. One in the fishbowl in front of me on the table, and one swimming on the TV immersed in his adventure.
