Life with Marty

2008-11-24 17:08:08.000 – Mike Carmon,  Summit Intern

Marty taking a load off

When I came to the Observatory in August, I was expecting many new experiences. High winds, lots of snow and freezing cold temperatures, and long weeks living in close quarters. But I was not expecting the antics of the resident feline at the Observatory, Marty.

Many times my wake up call in the morning is Marty scratching at my door. I’ll walk to the door, open it, and all I see are two eyes staring up at me, because the living area is completely dark at 6 a.m. and Marty blends in nicely. Nine times out of ten, as soon as I step outside the door, he’ll make a mad dash into the darkness. And I wonder—why is he giving me a wake up call and then running away?

If I don’t meet Marty in the morning, he might already be up in the weather room. In fact, an experience I had a few mornings ago was particularly memorable. I had been in the weather room for most of the morning and had not seen him yet that day. I went out to do and observation, came back to complete and submit it, then went to sit back down in my usual seat to resume other work. Low and behold, there was Marty sprawled out on the chair, relaxing. He seems to like this area because the drawer with all of his treats is just to my left. But every once in a while, when I get up to do something, I’ll return to find him either sitting in the chair or hovering over his treat drawer, looking up every so often as if to plead with one of us to open the drawer.

Occasionally, on warmer and calmer days, Marty will trail me or one of the observers outside during an observation. I’ll open the door to the tower, and he’ll come scurrying along and often run ahead of me up the stairs. I’ll ask him if he wants to come outside, and he’ll let out a “meow” and follow me outside when I open the door to the deck. He’ll walk around, take in the view, and usually follow me back inside. We haven’t trained him to sling or get the precipitation can for us yet, but I think that’s a few hundred years down the road. The truth is, a large part of his time is spent lounging around the living quarters, the weather room, or the observer office. He definitely has it made.

Mike Carmon,  Summit Intern