I made the horrendous mistake one day of getting this free app called Talking Tom on my phone. You can talk into it, and it repeats what you said back in a high pitched voice. You can also pet it, which gives you points; and buy all sorts of ridiculous stuff, like virtual food.
It’s the most annoying app in the world. Of course, my children adore it.
The kids decided that their own cat also talks in this voice, so they carry on long conversations with him, with the kids switching off the cat talking role, which always sounds like LOLcats captions. It usually goes something like this:
Kid: What do you want, kitty?
Cat: Oooh, I can haz treat? I loves me some treatz! Then gives me pettinsg. I droolz on ur handz.
Then all the kids start rolling on the floor in laughter.
The other day, Little Girl asked what we were having for dinner. “Salmon,” I said.
“I don’t like salmon,” she said.
“You do like salmon,” I reminded her.”You loved it last time.”
“I don’t,” she said.
“That’s because you call it chicken. But it’s always salmon.”
She ignored this. Little Girl was tired– it was right after the time change.
The cat was sitting on the couch between us, so I launched into Kitty Voice. “Oh, good! Then I will sitz on your seat at the table and eats it all gone. I loves salmon!”
Little Girl got her crazy-angry face on. She smacked her hand down on the couch in front of the cat, startling him. But he didn’t move.
“Why’d you do that?” I asked.
“Because he said he was going to eat my salmon!” she said indignantly.
“First of all, you said you don’t like it. Second, the cat can’t actually talk. I said it,” I said.
“Well, I didn’t like it,” she said.
“Well, then you can eat your dinner,” I said.
So at dinner, she tried her salmon. “Not bad, I kind of like it!” she said.
Her brother was picking at his dinner. “What’s wrong?” I asked him.
“I only like WILD salmon,” he said. “Not farmed.”
Oh, Lord.
MARGARET DILLOWAY 
