Bedtime-Story
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Pickles the Cat Finds a True Friend
It was early in the morning and Pickles, still not quite awake, was covering his eyes with his paws to block out the sunlight.
He could hear his Mom and Dad showering, dressing and eating breakfast as they were getting ready for work, but Pickles was not ready to get out of bed yet.
Pickles’ Dad stuck his head into the bedroom and said, “Don’t sleep all day, kiddo.” After that his Mom and Dad left the house and went to their jobs in the city.
This was the normal routine for a weekday, and Pickles stretched and yawned as he slowly moved from his warm bed.
Pickles went downstairs to have some breakfast.
His favorite cereal was Cat’n Crunch, so he poured
a big bowl and grabbed the milk from the refrigerator. His favorite part was
at the very end, when he could drink the milk from the bowl.
After breakfast he washed and dried the dishes - and put everything back in its proper place.
Then Pickles went upstairs to brush his teeth. Most cats don’t brush their teeth, but Pickles knew how important it was to keep his teeth and gums healthy.
While he was brushing he could hear some other cats talking outside, on the street below.
He ran to the window and looked down to see who they were.
It was the usual gang of 4 neighborhood cats; Jumbo, Lucky, Princess and Barbie. Pickles always saw them running around, having fun outside, and he wanted to be friends with them.
Pickles tapped on the glass and waved and shouted to the cats below. He forgot that he had a mouth full of toothpaste, and he coughed and splattered toothpaste all over the window. Splat.
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The cats on the street laughed and said, “Pickles brushes his teeth! What a goof!”
After Pickles cleaned the toothpaste from the window, he went back downstairs to watch some television. He liked to watch the news and he especially enjoyed shows about birds or fish. While he was watching the news he felt like someone was watching him so he looked around the room.
Sure enough, Jumbo, Lucky, Barbie, and Princess were sitting outside the living room window, staring at him and giggling. They laughed and said, “Pickles is a nerd who watches the news!”
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Pickles was embarrassed and turned the television off and walked over to the window. “I won’t brush my teeth anymore or watch the news, guys. Can I join your club?” asked Pickles.
“You’re too fat - and you’re a wimpy indoor cat”, said Jumbo.
“And you’re a nerd who watches the news!” sneered Lucky.
Princess and Barbie turned their heads and looked the other way as the group walked away laughing.
Pickles felt terrible, and decided that he was going to change, so maybe the other cats would like him.
He ran upstairs to get one of his Mom’s workout videos, then ran back downstairs and put it in the DVD player. “Maybe I am a bit fat, so let’s give this a try,” Pickles thought to himself, as he was jumping and dancing along with the video.
Before long he was very tired, and sweating like crazy.
After the workout Pickles was sore and hungry, so he went into the kitchen and had a glass of milk and made his favorite sandwich - tuna fish with sardines on wheat bread.
He brought his sandwich into the living room and decided that he would read a book and relax a bit.
He was reading A Tale of 2 Kitties when again he felt as if someone was watching him. Sure enough, the neighborhood cats were back at the window.
Pickles walked over to the window and they started to laugh again. “Now you’re reading a book? You’re even more of a nerd than we thought!” said Lucky. “And we watched you exercise, and you dance like a girl,” scolded Jumbo.
Princess and Barbie looked at Pickles and shook their heads disapprovingly. Then they all walked away laughing, and making fun of Pickles.
.
Pickles was very sad, and about to cry, as he watched them walk away. He knew he was not like other cats and wondered what he needed to do in order for them to like him. He sniffled as he began to clean up the living room and kitchen after his lunch.
“No matter what I do, they won’t like me,” Pickles thought to himself. He went back downstairs carefully, making certain to stay away from the front window.
He didn’t want to be laughed at anymore, so he lay down in front of the terrace doors that had a view of the back garden. While he was relaxing, he tried to forget about everything that had happened during the day.
Suddenly he saw another cat in the back garden. Pickles was relieved to see that it was not one of the cats that had been making fun of him all day. It was Jojo, his next door neighbor.
.
Pickles had never officially met Jojo, but he had seen him outside, playing with the small boy who lived next door. Jojo was a black cat with bright white ankles and feet. Pickles tried not to make eye contact with him for fear that Jojo would come over and make fun of him too.
But something else happened instead. Jojo walked over to the door where Pickles lay.
“I suppose you want to laugh at me too? Well, go ahead,” sighed Jojo, as he stretched out on the warm patio stones.
.
“Why would I make fun of you?” Pickles asked in confusion.
“Oh I don’t know - maybe it’s because I look like I always have socks on my feet. Or maybe it’s because I like to eat apples. You choose,” said Jojo.
Turns out that those other cats were making fun of Jojo too. Pickles thought it was different that Jojo liked to eat apples, but he wasn’t about to make fun of him for it. And it did look like Jojo was wearing socks, which Pickles thought was very nice.
“I won’t make fun of you for those things if you don’t make fun of me for brushing my teeth, watching the news, reading books or being fat,” said Pickles.
“I don’t think you’re fat,” said Jojo, and they both agreed to respect each other’s features, likes, and dislikes.
Jojo and Pickles talked for hours about all sorts of things, and had a great time. Pickles suddenly realized that it was getting late, and he said goodbye to Jojo. They agreed that they would pick up their conversation where they left off tomorrow.
It was almost time for Pickles’ Mom and Dad to arrive home from work, so Pickles ran through the house cleaning up, and making sure everything was in its proper place. He had just finished putting his toothbrush and book away, when he could hear keys jiggling in the front door.
He ran downstairs, jumped on the couch, and rolled over on his back, as his Mom and Dad came through the front door.
“Would you look at that? He’s been asleep all day I'll bet,” said Pickles’ Dad, as he put his briefcase on the floor. Pickles just smiled and purred.
Pickles’ Mom and Dad sat down on either side of him on the couch and began to rub him. He purred louder and louder and stretched his paws because it felt so good.
Then his Mom and Dad went upstairs to change clothes before they started making dinner. Pickles stood up and looked over at the front window and saw Jumbo, Lucky, Princess and Barbie staring back at him.
This time Pickles laughed and smiled as he thought about Jojo. He had made a friend and he could be himself - without changing anything.
He liked Jojo, even though he ate apples - and Jojo liked him, even though he brushed his teeth. Pickles realized that making fun of people is not nice at all - and that true friends accept you for who you are.
Pickles lay comfortably on the couch while he listened to his Mom and Dad cook dinner in the kitchen. “We’re out of milk again?” he heard his Dad say, “I think that cat drinks milk while we’re out of the house!”
“Don’t be silly, Dear. That’s impossible,” his Mom replied.
Pickles giggled to himself quietly. He was sleepy after his busy day, and he thought about his new friend, Jojo, and a tuna fish pizza, as he drifted off to sleep.
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Kayla fom New Jersey and her cat Ginger
are big fans of Pickles the Cat stories. |
About the Author:
Mike Andres has always had a passion for writing. He graduated with a degree
in Journalism from Texas A&M University in 1997. Mike is an American living
and working in Copenhagen, Denmark with his wife, Brena, and their cat. Sadly
his writing is usually limited to corporate emails or business cases, but when
he has spare time he still likes to let his imagination and fingers run wild
on the keyboard. He says that it keeps him young, and he hopes that others will
enjoy reading as much as he enjoys writing. This author has more stories online.
Check the Author page.
You may contact Mike at mikeandres007@hotmail.com.
Denmark, where the author lives, is located in Northern Europe, far across the ocean from America. The city of Copenhagen is the capital of the country of Denmark. Denmark is what's known as a sovereign state. A sovereign state is a place with borders where people live, and where a government makes laws and talks to other sovereign states. Like England, Denmark also has a queen. Her name is Queen Margrethe II. Here is a map showing you where Denmark is located. Denmark was also the home of Hans Christian Andersen, a famous author, fairy tale writer, and poet, who was very well known for his children's stories. The people of Denmark erected a statue of the title character in one of those stories, The Little Mermaid. That story was written way back in 1837. Maybe one day someone will erect a statue in the park of Pickles The Cat.
About the Illustrations: Interim illustrations Courtesy Bedtime-Story
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On Oct 4, 2012, at
5:08 PM, Mike Andres <mikeandres007@hotmail.com wrote:
I have read, understand, and agree to abide by the requirements for
inclusion as specified on the Bedtime-Story.com SUBMISSION INSTRUCTION page.
If my submission should be selected, I grant permission for its inclusion. I
hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed writing........
Contact details :
Mike R. Andres
Hollands Alle 15
Copenhagen, Denmark
2300 S
Phone - +45 24 63 42 59
email: mikeandres007@hotmail.com
From: "Mike Andres" Date: Tue, October 16, 2012 10:05 am "I have read, understand, and agree to abide by the requirements for inclusion as specified on the Bedtime-Story.com SUBMISSION INSTRUCTION page. If my submission should be selected, I grant permission for its inclusion." Hi guys - Pickles the Cat had another adventure and I hope it makes for good reading - and a great lesson for kids. Let me know what you think and hope you are having a great week. Mike Andres Pickles the Cat Finds a True Friend
