cats

She would do this thing where she would jump straight up at my chest when I got home from somewhere.

She expected me to catch her, midair, at chest level, so I could hold her like a baby. Well I'd gotten so used to it, just catching her everytime. Then I came home one day with 7 bags of groceries in both hands. I walk through the door. My plan was to go over to the dinning room table, put the bags on the table, and THEN do cat greetings.

She had other ideas. She trusted me so much not to hurt her, and trusted the routine so much that she ignored my full hands. She jumps up, my hands are full, and it happens so fast you don't have time to think. Just time to react.

I ended up closing my forearms around her, and essentially catching her on top of the groceries. She just looks at me like "C'mon dude. We've practiced this. What are you doing???". And I just asked her "Are you comfy now? Laying on my bread, and what looks like a box of stuffing? Couldn't wait for me to put down the groceries?"

Not in a mean way. In text form it looks so much harsher than it is. I was using playful loving voice....but I was also a tad annoyed.

I learned that with groceries to just put the groceries on the porch. Come in empty handed. Do cat greetings, and THEN go back to the porch and bring in groceries.

So much so, that she's been passed away for over 15 years at this point, and occasionally out of habbit I leave the groceries on the porch, come in, and realize "oh, right...." and then bring in my groceries.