The cat who drank coconut milk and other humorous anecdotes

I cook dinner at my parents' house on Thursday evenings. Most nights, my seventeen-year-old cat, Hazle, meows at me incessantly and tries to get me to feed him whatever I'm dicing, stirring, or frying. Sometimes, I admit, I tease him by offering him such aromatic delicacies as raw onions and garlic. Sometimes I let him sniff at a small piece of whatever I'm working with to prove that it's not something he wants to ingest.

Tonight I was cooking Thai, a new hobby of mine. The dishes called for coconut milk, and I used almost a full can. I put the rest on the floor to convince the cat that he wouldn't like it. Imagine my surprise when he proceeded to sniff the coconut milk and then immediately start lapping up the contents of the bowl! I suppose I shouldn't be surprised- this is the cat that eats olives, any number of cooked vegetables, and peanut butter. We can now add coconut milk to the list.

I also spent some time this evening with my youngest brother, Misha, who is twelve years my junior and a great friend. He's a very witty young man, often coming up with clever expressions. We were engaging in an exchange of friendly banter this evening that made me chuckle. I was going to record a couple of his clever puns, but they have unfortunately escaped me. Instead, I will take the occasion to relate my favorite Misha pun.

Last fall, Misha and I took a trip to the library. We do this usually at least once a month, but this time Misha was in a rather silly mood, prompting me to tell him, "You behave yourself in the library. I'm going to watch you like a hawk!"

Imagine my delight when he promptly threw back at me this priceless line: "Oh yeah? Well, I'm going to hock you like a watch!"

I tell you what, I love my family.

Update on Saturday: I remembered Misha's pun. We were watching Disney's Robin Hood, and Misha said that he thought that Little John and Lady Cluck should have gotten together. I teasingly pointed out that Little John was a bear and Cluck was a chicken. Misha thought for a moment and then replied, "so, their kid would be a chair."

Think about it for a moment.