DATELINE FRIDAY: Danger Kitten, Danger!

So yesterday, after lunch, a few of us were sitting around outside the office, talking and smoking. After a while we were all sure that we had heard a kitten somewhere in the vicinity. We looked and couldn't find it...decided it was an echo and went about our business.

This morning the mysterious meowing was heard yet again. This time, after proper investigation it was determined that the cat was in fact stuck in a drainage pipe that is embedded in concrete and runs from the side of out building, under the parking lot, and into an embankment to the north of the lot.

Now this tube in about 3 feet under ground with PVC pipes sticking up vertically on either end. Somehow the cat must have crawled onto the pipe and fallen in. Unable to get out it just sat in there crying.

So, we started trying to get it out. At one point we thought we had it near the building end and it was decided to that someone with long arms should put their arm in the pipe and see if they could snatch the cat.

So, of course, they came to find me. I now have a spectacular bruise on the inside of my arm from scraping my arm in and out of that damn PVC pipe.

Of course, every time the cat saw my hand it scurried further back down the pipe.

Eventually, after lunch, we mananged to secure the help of both animal control and the fire department. After several failed attempts at rescuing the cat, the fire department finally just dug up the end of the pipe furthest from our office and cut off the vertical portion of the pipe.

Now the woman from animal control is sitting patiently by the hole in the ground, waiting for el gato to come out the other end.

And guess exactly how much work we actually got done this morning? Yeah...not a lot was accomplished.