NOTE -- this is a long-winded Theo post. You have now been warned. ;)
Where should you take your Schmoopie for your 3rd anniversary? Where else but a cat house?
The Historic Anderson House Hotel in Wabasha, Minnesota accepts the unavoidable joke, but there's no hidden meaning here: Their resident cats are the real, literal sort.
We arrived a little late, but well before sundown, and were promptly taken to dinner. It was well presented, generously portioned, and they certainly kept the wines (plural!) coming. The setting on the sun porch was idyllic; it was completely private, with crystal and candles and flowers and A/C and a very nice view of traditional river-town Americana. (Wabasha is "the oldest city in MN" so we're talking about the real thing here.) Our hostess struggled valiantly with an uncooperative CD player to provide background music, which was actually kind of funny; and really, Jaye & I were in a quibble-proof mood, which the wine maaay have enhanced. All in all, it was a lovely dinner.
Our room was a cozy B&B-style haven. We had a very peaceful sitting area, with large windows and all-enveloping wing chairs, where we could sink in and soak up Main Street and Mighty Mississip'. For a while, in fact, there were a couple of twentysomethings a block down with a motorcycle. We couldn't help spying a little. They smooched, they fiddled with their saddlebags, they snogged; they wandered around making expansive arm gestures ("Just LOOK at all of this!"), wandered back, played a little tonsil hockey, groped, and sucked face. Finally they hopped on the bike and rode off parallel to the sunset. Kids.
(You're hearing about these two junior schmoopers 'cause some things Daddy keeps to hisself. You'll make do.)
Our suite was not one of the "cat-approved" rooms, sadly. To their credit, Anderson House doesn't declaw their kitters, and claws aren't compatible with antique furniture and wallpaper. To help balance out this lack of feline companionship, the sitting room came equipped with a large whirlpool tub in the back corner, which came equipped with a little squirty duck, who in turn came equipped with a snorkel. The duckie we named Pervert. Possibly Jaye was going to call him Herbert, and I misheard, but then it just seemed to fit.
We checked to make sure the tub worked. It did. It worked quite well. Naughty, naughty duckie.
Champagne was waiting for us when we returned from dinner. We packed it up for a future occasion, because there was just no freakin' way.
Breakfast the next morning was hearty country omelets, which were excellent. I'd recommend Anderson House's breakfast to anyone. Plus, they have gnomes. Actually, gnomes can get downright unsettling.
OK OK OK... yes, before we left, we did get to meet the cats. We almost left the roses behind, but we weren't about to leave without saying hi to the furbs. After all, protocols must be observed, or the terrorists win. And I'm pleased to report that all five of Anderson House's felines are fine, fit & friendly. They'd have to be, as Jaye pointed out, but it impressed me to meet 5 personable cats sharing cubby quarters in harmony.
That's Morris, on the far left. Morris is, of course, Anderson House's tiger tabbie, without which no cat house would be complete. Note the characteristic lip freckles.
Next to him is Arnold, caught in a yawn, and a sink. This pic just cries for captions, doesn't it? Hmm...
What you don't see here (near right) is that Ginger is a SHOULDER KITTY. How cool is that? "No, that's OK, really, you don't need to put me down. I'm all kinds o' good. Purr. Purr." She didn't even dig her claws in for purchase, like some OTHER cats [ahem]. And while Aloysius (al-oh-ISH-us, their grey-and-white "rookie" cat) was camera-shy, Goblin wasn't. Fuh-LOOF.
<-- Pervert was a total camera slut and stowed away home in the weeds.
Interesting note: I don't know if it was the gnome magics, the river air, the swirly tub, the innate healing powers of felis domesticus... or just drinking a couple of glasses of water with dessert... but by rights we should've had hammer-head hangovers the next morning. And? Not a twinge. We coulda bounced right back into our offices and been sunny & brilliant, if needed. That's worth a Yay -- or two, since it wasn't needed.
FYI, Anderson House is currently celebrating their 150th anniversary, which trumped ours by a factor of 50. In honor of their one-five-oh (and our three-point-oh), we had a chance to draw the "free room" key-fob out of a jar (missed it, alas) and drop our name into a lottery to win an ornately-embroidered kimono. In return, I hipped them to a blog that I thought they might enjoy. (Hi folks! Thanks again!)
Now, I did splurge a bit, with the suite and the "romantic package." It was nice to be taken care of, though. Bottom line, it was a most satisfactory stay, and we left happy and revived. And if you're feeling jealous at all, remember they've got 5 admirable cats, 36 perfectly good rooms & presumably 150 more years. The numbers are in your favor.
(Posting from work? Moi??)
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