Janie recreates her escape for the camera.

Our cat Janie turned 16 yesterday. Sixteen!! To celebrate she decided to scare the hell out of us and escape the apartment.Since we arrived in Rome, Janie has shown a great deal of interest in the world outside the apartment door. She always runs to greet us when we come home, and peers into the hallway. So a week and a half ago, Ric let her out under his supervision to explore our little landing. (Libby got a turn too, but she wasn’t nearly as brave as Janie.) We repeated the excursion once since. Nothing wrong with a little stimulation right? Yesterday she took advantage of an opening and escaped. By our reckoning she was gone at least an hour! Here’s how it happened.We went shopping in the Parioli neighborhood, with our cute little rolling cart, and came home with wine, pasta, vegies, laundry products, etc.  I unlocked the door, said “hi” to Jane, the greeter cat, and Ric rolled the cart into the kitchen, leaving the door open as he came in behind me. Seriously, it was just for a few seconds! Apparently Janie seized the opening and made a dash for it.By the time I turned to close the door she was gone, but we didn’t know….

Fast forward an hour or so and it is apparent Janie is nowhere to be found. She’s not one to hide, preferring to be on the bed or couch where she can keep track of activity. After a thorough search of the 840 square feet we call home (with minimal furniture as we await our sea shipment, there aren’t many places to look), I traipsed up three flights of stairs to the top floor looking for her, calling

Our vintage turn-of-the-20th-century elevator. Close the gate, close the sliding wooden doors, hit your floor button. Try doing that with a frightened cat in your arms.

quietly so as to not confirm the suspicions of our neighbors: that we are crazy and noisy. I then went down 3 flights to the piano terra and even down some very dark stairs (couldn’t find a light switch) that lead to the basement. There was only a small landing there, with two closed doors I groped for in the dark. No Jane.

So I circled the building outside, by now frantic that our birthday girl had fled. Coming back in the front door, I heard the jingle of a cat bell coming from the dark and scary basement stairs. Janie peeked around the corner coming up the stairs! It was so dark down there I didn’t see her grey smudgy self. Lucky Jane was treated to a ride in our vintage elevator. Not something she cares to repeat based on the scratches she gave me.

So everyone is safely at home this evening. Libby is too scared to go out, and we are ever-watchful with Janie. Guess she just wanted a birthday adventure.

This handy little cart makes it possible to haul water, wine, and other essentials home. The nearest stores are a 10 minute walk away.