Goodbye To The Cardigan

Tomorrow is the big day.

Tomorrow Princess Kitty leaves The Cardigan forever. She is excited about her new adventure. But she is sad too. The Cardigan has been a special place for her. It has been her first home on her own. It has been the place where her love for Growly Bear has grown. It has seen tears and laughter. It has seen passion and pleasure. And it has been a place to think about the point of guinea pigs.

Growly Bear is at The Cardigan tonight ready to help Princess Kitty move tomorrow. He is feeling a bit sad too. He has grown to love The Cardigan. He has loved coming to visit. He has loved playing music and playing tricks there. And he has enjoyed making special honey with Princess Kitty.

Princess Kitty and Growly Bear cuddle up. They are ready for the next part of their adventure.

Feeling Lucky

Princess Kitty and Growly Bear are still together. What lucky little creatures they are.

Today they have both been to work. Growly Bear drove off early in his little Skoda. He read lots of things. He wrote some emails. He made some phone calls. He looked at his calender with pictures of guinea pigs.

And he went shopping. Shopping for clothes. Clothes for Princess Kitty. Brave little bear.

When he took the presents back to The Cardigan Princess Kitty was surprised. Very surprised indeed. Growly Bear had bought lovely things. Things that Princess Kitty likes. Clever little bear.

Princess Kitty felt very special. No-one has ever spoilt her like Growly Bear does. Lucky little cat.

He's A Secret Lemonade Drinker

Princess Kitty and Growly Bear woke up together today. Growly Bear stayed at The Cardigan for the night.

Usually Growly Bear sleeps well at The Cardigan. But last night he did not sleep so well. He woke up and felt thirsty. He crept out of bed to get a drink. And then he felt hungry. So he had a Cadbury's Cream egg. Then he crept back into bed next to Princess Kitty. As quietly as the quietest guinea pig.

When Growly Bear and Princess Kitty got up they got ready for work. Princess Kitty put Growly Bear's ribbon straight. Growly Bear kissed Princess Kitty goodbye.

When Princess Kitty came home she found something strange. Something mysterious. Someone had eaten her Cadbury's cream egg and had a drink from her fridge.

She wonders who it could have been. She wonders if it was Growly Bear. She wonders if he is a secret lemonade drinker.

Lucky Bear

Growly Bear and Princess Kitty gave themselves a surprise today.

They met up early after work. They met at one of their special places. It is a place by a lake. There were no guinea pigs there. But there were some swans.

Some of the swans took a fancy to Growly Bear. They kept coming over and sitting next to him. They pecked his feet. They wiped their wet bills on him.

One of the swans nibbled his ear. Growly Bear said "Growl".

Then Growly Bear and Princess Kitty decided to go back to The Cardigan. They decided on the spur of the moment. Growly Bear suggested it when Princess Kitty told him she had sore thighs. He started having an awake dream. He thought it would be a good idea to lie down.

So Princess Kitty and Growly Bear went back to The Cardigan. Growly Bear stopped Princess Kitty's thighs from hurting. And Princess Kitty made Growly Bear smile.

That lucky bear!

The Healing Taste Of Honey

Princess Kitty and Growly Bear have made up.

They met up on their skateboards today. They had lunch together which was lovely. There were a few tense moments but even so they loved every moment. They talked about things in the news. They told a few jokes. They discussed the point of guinea pigs.

Then they went back to The Cardigan. Growly Bear had come prepared. He had come prepared with the finest ingredients to make the finest honey. It was a special kind of honey. A kind Princess Kitty had never tasted before. A special healing honey.

Princess Kitty loved it. Every single drop of it. She had never tasted anything so wonderful.

She thought about how difficult things had been for them both over the last few days. She thought about how the hurt they had given each other had been healed in her. She hopes it was the same for Growly Bear too. She hopes he found some peace in their love.

She texted Growly Bear when he got back to his cave. She told him she loved him and hoped he had a nice day.

Growly Bear texted back. Growl!

The Sound Of Silence

Princess Kitty and Growly Bear have not had much time to talk to each other today. They have not had time to ponder the point of guinea pigs. They have both been busy at work.

Growly Bear is in his cave this evening. He is watching football. He is not having a very happy time. His team is not playing very well.

Princess Kitty is in The Cardigan. She is not watching the football. She is thinking. She is thinking about days like today when she and Growly Bear don't talk much. She thinks about how they have got used to being without each other even though it makes them sad. She wonders what life would be like if they spent more time together.

Maybe one day soon she will find out.

Is Flat Good Or Bad?

Princess Kitty had their last day together today before Growly Bear had to go home. They spent the morning making delicious honey and talking about the point of guinea pigs. Then they went to put some new tyres and exhaust on Growly Bear's car. Then Growly Bear took Princess Kitty shopping. Shopping for shoes.

Princess Kitty likes to wear shoes that have a heel. She likes to hear them clip clopping as she walks along, Growly Bear thinks needs to get some flat shoes. He says the shoes she usually wears are wearing her paws out. He says she has cloven hooves.

Princess Kitty is not really sure about flat shoes. Some of them are quite pretty. But Princess Kitty is not sure if they will suit her. And she is not sure they will go clip clop. Growly Bear says flat shoes are the best.

Growly Bear has gone home how. He rang Princess Kitty on his little Nokia. He told her he is feeling as flat as the flattest pair of shoes. The Cardigan feels flat too now Growly Bear has gone.

Maybe flat is not always best Growly Bear.

A Borrower Or Lender Be

Princess Kitty is a thief. She has stolen Growly Bear's ribbon.

Growly Bear said she could borrow it for a couple of days. That is not being a thief. That is borrowing. Except Princess Kitty plans to forget to give it back to Growly Bear. She is going to forget to take it with her when she goes to meet him. And she is going to hide it when he comes to The Cardigan. Naughty Princess Kitty. Poor Growly Bear. Everybody knows it is bad to tease bears. Teasing bears is not the point of guinea pigs.

Princess Kitty wonders what she could lend Growly Bear to distract him. Maybe he would like to borrow some of her clothes. Princess Kitty thinks it would be interesting to see Growly Bear in her Winnie The Pooh pyjamas. She thinks it might be funny if Growly Bear put on her running clothes. She wonders if they would fit over his little round tummy.

Meanwhile Growly Bear thinks about how kind he has been to lend Princess Kitty his ribbon. He doesn't mind her borrowing it for a couple of days. She is going to give it back to him when they meet tomorrow. He hopes she remembers.

A Dream Come True

Princess Kitty is getting ready. Growly Bear is coming over to stay for the night.

Princess Kitty is washing. Princess Kitty is combing her fur. Princess Kitty is putting on her makeup. She wonders what to wear.

Then she remembers. She remembers about Growly Bear's awake dreams. She remembers that he likes her to wear special clothes. She puts on a special outfit. With a frilly garter. Sexy little puss.

Growly Bear is driving to The Cardigan. He is thinking about the evening ahead. He is thinking how nice it will be to spend time with Princess Kitty. He thinks how nice it will be to talk to her and play music with her and make honey. He wonders if they will find out any more about the point of guinea pigs.

Little does that bear know what a treat he has in store.

Trust In Love

Growly Bear has been talking to his friend Willow. Growly Bear likes Willow. He likes her a lot.

Growly Bear and Willow are of a similar age. They are both slaves in the Fatty Flatfoot empire. They have shared an office together for the last five years or so. They have become close friends. They have confided their secrets to each other.

Willow knows all about Growly Bear and Princess Kitty. Princess Kitty knows Willow but not as well as Growly Bear. Willow is Growly Bear's friend. She wants Growly Bear to be safe and happy. She understands how hard things are for him.

Princess Kitty is glad Growly Bear has Willow as a friend. She knows friends are important. She knows how lovely it is to love and be loved as a friend.

Princess Kitty and Growly Bear are friends. They are lovers too. And soul mates. They talked about this when they met today. They talked about guinea pigs. They talked about the strangeness of their love. How they couldn't explain it with thinking. It is something you just feel and have to trust.

When their time together was over Growly Bear gave Princess Kitty a sweet kiss. Princess Kitty licked his neck. They waved goodbye. Growly Bear went back to his cave. Princess Kitty went back to The Cardigan.

Sweet dreams little creatures.

Get Back Growly Bear

Growly Bear has been visiting The Cardigan again. He has been visiting Princess Kitty.

He did not come on his skateboard today. He came in his little Skoda. He brought his guitar.

Princess Kitty was pleased. They have not played together for a while. The sang and played for a little while. Then they made honey. Growly Bear says Princess Kitty's honey making is coming along. He lets her be in charge sometimes now.

They made pancakes together. Growly Bear tried to be in charge but Princess Kitty slapped him gently with her spatula. Get back Growly Bear she said.

Then Growly Bear had to go home. It felt like just five minutes since he arrived. There was so much they had not had time for. Playing tricks. Telling stories. Discussing what they had found out about the point of guinea pigs since they last met.

Princess Kitty waved goodbye to Growly Bear. Come back soon Growly Bear she said.

I'm Gonna Be A Country Girl Again

"I'm gonna be a country girl again". This it the song Princess Kitty is learning. It is by Buffy St. Marie. Princess Kitty likes its simplicity. She likes it that it celebrates the small simple things in life. She likes it because she thinks it suits her voice. She might change the words a bit so that she keeps guinea pigs instead of rabbits in the pen.

Growly Bear has been visiting The Cardigan today. He listened to Princess Kitty singing the song for the first time. He says her voice is getting better and better every time he hears it. Princess Kitty purred with pleasure.

Growly Bear was quite tense when he arrived. He has had a difficult couple of weeks. He has been very busy at work. He misses Princess Kitty. Things are hard at the cave. And now his computer has broken. Poor Growly Bear.

Princess Kitty smiled at Growly Bear. Princess Kitty talked to Growly Bear. Princess Kitty touched Growly Bear gently. Princess Kitty kissed Growly Bear. Princess Kitty cuddled Growly Bear. Princess Kitty made honey with Growly Bear.

By the time he left Growly Bear had lost his worried look. He was smiling even though he was sad to leave. He hopes one day he and Princess Kitty will have an old brown dog, a big front porch and guinea pigs in the pen.

Cheese and Pickle

Princess Kitty is a bit of a pickle. Sometimes she can be very organised and efficient. Lots of people think that she is all of the time. But Growly Bear knows different. He knows that she can be chaotic and inefficient.

For example, Growly Bear always knows what time of the day it is. He regularly checks the time and can guess to within a few minutes what the time is. Princess Kitty on the other hand drifts along in her own little world and is always surprised how much time has passed.

Growly Bear knows how long tasks take. He knows how long it takes to wash his hair. He knows how long it takes to cook a meal. He knows how long it takes to feed a guinea pig. He knows how long it takes to make honey.

Princess Kitty always underestimates how long things take. She always overestimates what she can achieve. Then she runs out of time to do things. Then she gets in a pickle.

Today she had quite a few tasks to do. She did the first few well. One of them was to get some special goat's cheese. She went to a farm shop to get this. Well done Princess Kitty. Then she suddenly realised that Growly Bear was arriving at The Cardigan in an hour. And she was supposed to buy some other food but the shops had shut. And The Cardigan was still not very tidy. And she still had not powdered her little nose. What a pickle Princess Kitty.

By the time Growly Bear arrived Princess Kitty was buzzing like a little busy bee. It took him an hour to calm her down and help her to relax. He had to rescue the tea because half the ingredients were missing or were wrong. Luckily the cheese was delicious.

Growly Bear does sometimes wonder what he has got himself into though.

Slap and Trickle

Growly Bear has had a flat battery. His internal battery has been a bit low for a while. Today though it was the battery on his little skateboard. He couldn't get his skateboard to start again after he had been visiting Princess Kitty at The Cardigan. They had to borrow some jump leads from one of Princess Kitty's neighbours.

Growly Bear says when his battery is low you have to give it a good slap of volts to make it start. He says he has a special charger at home to put on it which should stop it happening again. He says it is called a Trickle Charger.

Princess Kitty and Growly Bear did have a lovely time together when he visited it though. They didn't have time to talk about the point of guinea pigs but it was in their thoughts. Princess Kitty made Growly Bear some lunch. She made grilled goats cheese on crumpets and a nice salad, followed by raspberries and mango sorbet, washed down by a mini bottle of Mateus Rose.

Growly Bear said the lunch tasted nice. He said he felt looked after. He asked Princess Kitty a lot of questions. Like what was in the sorbet. Where had she got the little bottle of wine. Had she thought about her carbon footprint when she bought the out of season raspberries.

Growly Bear and Princess Kitty agree that their time together today has set them up for the week. Princess Kitty thinks their love is a bit like Growly Bear's battery. It needs a trickle charge when they are apart to help keep the spark going. And it needs the occasional slap of volts to keep it going properly.

Getting The Stuffing Knocked Out Of You

Growly Bear says he feels as if his arm has been ripped off. He is feeling sad. The sadness you feel when you have lost something. Like your arm. Or your guinea pig.

Growly Bear had to leave The Cardigan today. He had to go to work and then back to his cave. He left The Cardigan after Princess Kitty had gone to work. She left in a rush and he tidied the flat so that it would be nice for her when she got home. He wrote her a note to tell her how much he loved her and had enjoyed his time with her. He left a message on her mirror with lipstick.

Now he feels sad that he had to leave her behind. Growly Bear is happiest when he is with Princess Kitty. He feels safe and loved. Princess Kitty and Growly Bear are soul mates.

Princess Kitty feels the same ache as Growly Bear. It is the same feeling she would have if she lost her new midget accordion or little amplifier. As if she has lost something very precious.

Princess Kitty thinks about Growly Bear and how he is feeling. She thinks about his arm. She hopes it hasn't really been ripped off. His stuffing might fall out.

Sleeping Beauty

Happy Birthday Princess Kitty. What a lovely day she has had. She has had lots of lovely cards and presents. She has been taken out to lunch by work colleagues. But absolutely best of all she had Growly Bear staying at The Cardigan.

Princess Kitty and Growly Bear have had an unusual evening though. Princess Kitty's brother came to visit. He was troubled. He spent a long time talking to Princess Kitty and Growly Bear. After he left it was quite late. Growly Bear and Princess Kitty were tired. They decided to go to bed and cuddle up. They did not even make any honey which was most unlike them.

Princess Kitty has been playing some tricks on Growly Bear when he was sleeping. As Growly Bear goes to sleep he starts to breathe quickly, then makes some funny noises as if he can't breath very easily then makes some gentle growling noises. Eventually he falls into a quiet, still sleep. Princess Kitty has been giving him a little poke when he starts to growl so that he wakes up a little bit and has to start all over again. Naughty Princess Kitty. Everyone knows it is wrong to tease bears.

As she watches him sleep Princess Kitty wishes she could keep Growly Bear for ever. She knows she can't though. He is not like a guinea pig. He is not a tame pet. He is a fearsome wild animal - well a little bit at least. If Princess Kitty told Growly Bear she was thinking this she knows what he would say. He would say "Growl!"

The Cat Jumped Over The Moon

Growly Bear is staying at The Cardigan for a few days. He is staying for 3 nights and he will he there for Princess Kitty's birthday.

Princess Kitty is loving having Growly Bear at The Cardigan. She loves it that he is the last person she speaks to at night and that she can cuddle up to him when he is asleep. She loves going off to work knowing that he will be there when she goes home. She can really see the point of guinea pigs. She finds that she is in good spirits all day thinking about loving him up again in the evening.

When Princess Kitty and Growly Bear got to The Cardigan they had some tea. Then Growly Bear gave Pincess Kitty her birthday presents. He said he was giving them to her early so that she could enjoy them for longer. Princess Kitty thought maybe Growly Bear couldn't wait to see her open his presents for her.

Princess Kitty cried when she opened her presents. She didn't cry because she was sad. She cried because she was happy. Very happy indeed. Growly Bear had bought her the best presents ever. He bought her a little kitty-size amplifier to plug her new guitar into. And he bought her a beautiful midget accordion. It is pink - Princess Kitty's favourite colour.

Princess Kitty did not know what to say. She can't believe how well Growly Bear has got to know and understand. He really is a clever bear. And he loves me thought Princess Kitty. She smiles to herself. Princess Kitty is over the moon.

Renegade Den

Growly Bear has had a busy day . He had some chores to do. He had to clean the floors at his cave. In between he played his guitar and watched football.

Princess Kitty has been busy too. She has started house hunting. She is looking for a home of her own to replace The Cardigan, which is only borrowed. She has s0me pictures of houses for sale and some writing about them. Today she has been driving around in her little Yaris finding out where they are and seeing if she would like to find out more.

Princess Kitty feels a bit strange looking for a home. She has never done such a thing before. She knows that she is choosing a special place for her and Growly Bear. It feels like a big responsibility. Princess Kitty reminds herself that responsibility is a part of growing up. She reminds herself that responsibility comes with guinea pigs.

Princess Kitty hopes she can find the right place. Somewhere she can call home and Growly Bear will like. It will be their renegade den.

Beacon Of Hope

Growly Bear and Princess Kitty are excited. Very excited indeed. Princess Kitty and Growly Bear are going to have their renegade Christmas tomorrow. They know that for a few hours they will be in their own special world. They know too that they must return to reality and their search for the point of guinea pigs afterwards. For now though they are just looking forward to their time together.

Growly Bear will get up early and jump in his car. He has a borrowed car because his own little Skoda is not working. His borrowed car is orange. Growly Bear does not like it very much. Princess Kitty thinks he will look like a beacon coming out of the darkness to her. She thinks that will be a very welcome sight.

Princess Kitty will get up early and get The Cardigan ready. She will trim her fur and choose some nice clothes to wear. Then she will wait for Growly Bear. Waiting always seems such a long time. When Growly Bear arrives she will give him the most special cuddle in all the world.

Countdown to Christmas

Princess Kitty has had a difficult day. It is nearly Christmas. She will be spending Christmas on her own. She knows this will not be easy but understands why it has to be this way. She knows she must be brave and believe there is a point to guinea pigs, even if she does not know what that is.

Princess Kitty's kittens will be spending Christmas with their dad. They live with him at the big house Princess Kitty left behind. They love Princess Kitty but they don't understand her new life. Princess Kitty knows it will take time for them to heal and forgive her for leaving.

Growly Bear is finding things difficult too. He will be spending Christmas with his family. He is looking forward to this but misses Princess Kitty. He wishes he could have the best of both worlds but knows he can't.

Growly Bear is going to visit Princess Kitty at the Cardigan after Christmas. They are going to have a renegade Christmas. Princess Kitty has made a special advent calender. One which counts down to their renegade Christmas. Only 86 hours left to go.