Lofty Aspirations!

Often, catball brothers will gaze out the window into the treetops to look at birds.  "Fascinating creatures," they think, "and cheerful, too.  There are little brown guys and bright red guys and hooting guys and guys that chirp.  They are very different from catballs, but also very pleasant."

 One particular catball brother thought, "I am very pleasant too; perhaps I can be a bird!  I will try it and see."

Catball went outside into the backyard and thought, "What do I need to be a bird?  Feathers?  A beak, maybe?"  He looked around and listened very carefully; all the cheeps and chirps were high overhead.  "I know!  First I need to be in a tree!  Birds are always singing and being interesting in treetops."  There were lots of tall trees to pick from; it was almost overwhelming how many choices there were.  "Should I be in a maple tree?  Or would there be too much sap?  What about an oak tree?  But maybe I'd get plonked by an acorn.  Pine tree...mmm...nah, too piney." 

"Aha!  That's a good one.  Let's give it a try."

Catball climbed up as high as he dared to, and luckily he found a good spot to sample.

"This is a not bad spot, but it might be a little tight.  I would not be able to fit many of my things, and it would be tough to have company over for dinner, and my belly might get a little chilly like this.  I should be a good consumer and not settle for the first one I find..."

"Yes, this is much better!  There's a place for my ping-pong table and my brothers to visit and there's even room for me to settle in.  I'll take it!"

Catball was very satisfied in his new spot.  "I think that next, to be a good bird, I need a good bird nest.  Birds always look happiest when they're in their nests, and I think I would be happiest in a nest too."  Catball thought about the prospect of building a home of his own in his fine tree spot.  "Sticks!  Sticks and more sticks and other stuff!  That will make a fine fine nest for me to nestle into!  Here's one, and there's one, and we could try this thingy over here, and..."

And on and on and on Catball went finding stuff and crud and such to build a nest out of.  The sun arced high up in the sky and back down again.  "I had better hurry," Catball thought, "it will get dark soon and I will not be very warm or happy in my tree without a good nest to nestle into."

He looked to and fro, hither and yon, in the neighbor's yard and by the shed and underneath the car, and soon Catball had a good pile of stuff to build with.

"This is an adequate-to-pretty-good pile of crud," Catball thought.  "There are sticks, and there is string, and weirdo bean pods, and fuzzy nice-smelling lint which will be pleasant to curl up in.  With a little work, I bet I could build a pretty stately estate with all this."

Catball tried his hardest to weave the sticks and string and pods together.  He undid and redid and contacted contractors and considered attending a free event at the Home Depot for guidance on how to grout tile properly.

"This nest is...hmm."

Catball contemplated his new home as he looked toward the skies.  Clouds started to spread over the yard and as it grew darker, the treetops started to sway more and more.  "I forgot to check the weather report, but if the fuzz standing up on the back of my neck is right, I would bet it will be rainy and miserable tonight.  I should have budgeted for a roof for this thing!"

Catball looked at other bird nests in nearby trees and saw that they did not have roofs either.  "That is crazy!  They get all wet and probably smelly and their basements must flood!  And bird feathers have bird oil and are insulated to keep their bodies dry.  I am just a catball," Catball thought, "and out in the wind and rain is no place for a catball to be."

Catball took a long look into the highest treetops and sighed.  "Birds are tough, and bird lives are tough, I guess, now that I think about it.  Though they seem pretty and cheery from the windowsill, they have to worry about rain and larger angrier birds and eating worms and bugs and things that do not appeal to the catball palate.  I still like the idea of a nice nest to nestle into, but a bird nest might not be the right kind of nest."

"Now THIS is the right kind of nest for a catball," Catball thought, "with brothers and fuzz and Whale Shark to keep us company, this is just right.  Different things need different homes to be happy, and this home is the catballiest home I have ever found."

All the brothers were excited to see Catball come back inside, and welcomed him into their fuzzy nest on the couch.  "You are fascinating and cheerful and pleasant right here," Oblong said, "you do not have to be a bird to be all these things.  Welcome home."