(click to enlarge any photos)

A Valentine love story, played out in photos, with a pane of glass separating the two potential lovers...
It was a frigid Saturday morning when Juliet first spotted Romeo sitting on the balcony outside her window.

It didn't take long for him to come closer, unable to resist her feminine feline charms.

It didn't take long for him to come closer, unable to resist her feminine feline charms.

Baby... I mean Juliet, tried prying open the door.

Not having any luck, she called in reinforcements to help...

..unaware that I had already bribed Mr. J with a dog biscuit to act as a chaperone, keeping the ill-fated lovers apart.

After hours (and I do mean HOURS), Romeow finally gave up and sought greener pastures (good luck with that in this New England winter, Romeow)... In reality, I only thought Romeo had gone. But about an hour later when I opened the slider to let Mr. J outside to do his business, Romeo appeared out of nowhere and ran lickety-split into our house! Now Romeo is no stranger to our yard. I think he spends more time here than he does at his own home. We have an abundance of little chipmunks, squirrels and birds because we feed them, and unfortunately Romeo and his brother, who are outdoor kitties, find our yard very enticing (grrrrrr). Because it was so bitter cold and because Romeo did run into our house (which he has never done before), I put on my jacket and carried him home to his rightful owners, where hopefully he will stay and live happily ever after.
I have been flat on my back for 9+ days with the nastiest case of bronchitis ever, therefore I haven't been posting or visiting anyone, I'm sorry to say. Back when I was a smoker (I quit on July 4, 1994, my Independence day), I would get bronchitis and/or pneumonia quite regularly. Happily, since quitting, I've rarely gotten either.
Wishing you all a wonderful week. I, for one, am hoping to feel good enough to get out and take Mr. J for a walk later this week as it is going to hit FIFTY DEGREES here in New England - a true heat wave after our bitter cold winter!
Enjoy the week, everyone!
ROMEO CLARIFICATION: I just wanted to clarify some Romeo facts. Romeo lives a few doors down from us and is a well fed kitty. He is not forced to be an "outdoor only" kitty (that would be too cruel, especially in our area during wintertime). Rather he is a kitty who is allowed to roam free whenever his little heart desires (which happens to be a LOT, with one of his favorite places being our yard). I just didn't want anyone to think he was being forced to live outside. His owners were there when I brought him home, so clearly he could have headed home whenever he wanted. And Sharon, we have talked about how we would love to keep him for our own, too. He is a gorgeous, affectionate kitty and we'd love to have him join our indoor only gang, but I'm afraid we would be charged with cat-napping :(
Donna