Dear Diane,

It was one of those lazy days, the kind in which you don't want to
leave the comfort of your hammie, AND you wish there was some fuzzit
there to wait on you paw and paw. So when I heard the sound of fuzzit
feet shuffling in the grass - which is sadly *still* in need of being
mowed - I thought my dreams had been answered and I would be treated to
a nice full cup of chilled Ferretone and a nice bowl of mixed raisins,
craisins and red licorice bits - now that's what *I* call Ferret Mix.

But it was only my grouchy brother Hobbes. I swear, I just don't get
him. When he was a kit he was grouchy, when he grew up he got grouchy,
and when he came here he still stayed grouchy. It's like his mission in
life is to be the fuzzit version of Oscar the Grouch - AND when that
thought popped into my head I quietly snorted with laughter, because I
could actually picture him as a Muppet. Then he actually scowled at
me!!!!! It's not like I pointed and laughed at him, but then again,
how many grouches do you know who have a sense of humor?

But there was something extremely nice thing about this particular
visit, because Hobbes had brought someone with him, or rather, he had
someone follow him to my cottage. At first the fuzzit was content with
hiding behind Hobbes, just waiting for the scroll to be passed over,
and as Hobbes did, the fuzzit jumped out and yelled "BOO-OOK". It was
GUS!!!!!

Hobbes just waved his paw at him like he was nuts and went on his
cranky way.

Gus had begun to war dance around my hammie and going on all about
Russ Russ and how happy he was to get to see him, and then he started
talking about other fuzzits we would absolutely need to pick up along
our way to go and see Russ Russ, and while I knew I had a greeting to
do, the only question on my mind was this ... "What's BOO-OOK?"

Gus just giggled and rolled on the grass and flipped and bumped off one
of the trees which holds my hammie and said - in a matter of fact way -
"Silly Pie, it's Boo and Dook combined!" and he went on to tell me that
his brothers and sisters LOVED to play hide and seek, and not just with
mom's things, but with each other, and when the fuzzit who was "it"
found someone they would yell "BOO-OOK"

So you have to imagine this. Gus tells me he is it, and in order for us
to get to the Bridge, we have to "seek" the others! This was a first
for me, and I have to admit, and so much fun too! Gus told me they
liked to play in the Cozy Spot, because,well ... it's cozy!!! It's this
place where furniture we loved is recreated all the way down to how
wonderful it smells and even our favorite stash places.

We turned over a three couch cushions before being nearly fuzzed out by
Jannie Edna, because she jumped right out at us and yelled "BOO-OOK",
and Gus just laughed and tackled her. I asked him why was she the one
saying BOO-OOK and not him, and he told me that in life she had always
been in charge, and that hadn't changed one bit since she got to the
Bridge. Then found Max and Todd, both such sweet, darling girls, but
not very good at hiding at all. We found them trying to stuff their
fuzzy little butts into a small picnic basket. It was so cute, because
you could see their tails hanging out, but even if they had managed to
get all the way in there, they would have given away their position by
all of the giggling they were doing. Delilah tried her best to blend in
with a dozen throw pillows, and Bella Rose was caught while trying to
displace Ross from a very noisy crinkly sack, and as I was trying to
detach Samson Michael from my legs, I found a fuzzit hiding in an old
pair of sweat pants, and when Gus and Ross shook him out and yelled
BOO-OOK, I saw that he was wearing a shirt that said "Spankygoat" - All
right, I asked, whats a Spankygoat?

Gus would later tell me about his love of all things made that soft,
warm, cotton-poly material.

Lastly we found this tall, large, carpeted ferret tube. As I crawled
into it, I was attacked from behind and I got bit on my poor, tender,
albino bum, which sent me shooting out the other end of the tube faster
then you can imagine, and all the time rubbing my backside and saying
OUCH at the top of my lungs. I think you know that it was your loveable
butt-biter that got me - Strider - but he was kind enough to rat out
where Perkin was hiding. Good thing too, because he was hiding so well
that even "Miss I'm In Charge" couldn't find him. Somehow he had
managed to rig up a hammie on one of the ceiling fans. It looked like
some sort of funky-fuzzy light bulb, that's how well it blended in and
it made for a great scene when Strider flew up and knocked Perkin out
of the "fake light bulb hammie", and the two of them took off and
looked like a pair of professional stunt flyers. It wasn't long before
everyone took to the air and in a perfect fuzzit formation we quickly
flew to the Bridge.

Most times I find the Bridge on solid ground, but this time I found
a cloud bank that had been made solid enough for us to land. We all
watched as the clouds moved and swirled and finally created a Bridge of
clouds. Making the Bridge even more magnificent were the hundreds of
Rainbow Breasted humming birds, and as they fluttered about the Bridge,
we saw Russ Russ come soaring across, and he landed right in the middle
of us. The very first to greet him was Gus (of course) and then
everyone else piled right on in. Because things for ferrets are always
best done in large piles, because that means there is more love to go
around, and more fuzzy bodies to cuddle up too when nap time comes
around.

Lastly, Jannie then had us all huddle together for something secret,
and something very, very special indeed. When we were all done, we each
took our place, and then we rolled out a very huge banner which said,
"WE LOVE YOU MOM AND WE MISS YOUR HUGS!!!!!"


I had such a great time being a part of this Greeting Diane, even a
better time playing hide and go seek with your kids, and I want you to
know that you have made such a wonderful impression, not just on your
fuzzy babies, but on everyone here at the Bridge!!!!!

In Love & In Comfort,
Pie O' Pah

[Posted in FML 7142]