The Amazing Zeus: Exploring Rochester, NY, With The Meezers!

What a whirlwind day it had been, feline friends and human pets!

Yesterday morning, Phil knocked on the door at 8:00. I let him inside, and he seemed to be slightly concerned as his eyes scanned the living room, kitchen, and dining room.

"Where is Marina?" he asked softly.

"She had to go to St. Thomas this morning to take her second final. She won't be back until much later," I answered.

Phil nodded. "It's just as well. We don't have to worry about her passing out on the floor now, do we?"

I completely agreed, and I have to admit that privately, I was more than a little relieved when the human pet told me that she had to leave.

Once again, Phil was gracious enough to take me to the airport. The flight out to beautiful Rochester, New York was delightful. The flight attendants saw to my every need, and they even gave me extra peanuts. I felt so special!

After I landed, I secured a taxi and rode out to meet The Meezers. The first thing I noticed, though, was the difference in temperature. It was so mild compared to Houston, Texas. I felt as if I had gone to heaven as there were no mosquitos nipping away at me either!

My driver and I found the house with ease. I walked up to the house and jumped high into the air to ring the doorbell. Ding dong! I could hear padded feet racing to the front door and heavier footsteps following. The door opened, and a wonderful human lady answered the ring.

"Zeus! Miles, Sammy, and Trixie, come here! He's here!"

The very nice human lady pet let me inside where I proceeded to rub against her legs to tell her thank you. Miles lunged at me in a playful manner while Sammy snickered from behind.

"Mommy got us a limo to ride in! We're so 'cited!" said Miles.

"Yep! We goin' to be travelin' in style!" said Sammy.

From around the corner, the wise and loving Trixie came forward. She had a twinkle in her eye and a smile upon her lips. "I'm looking forward to spending some time in the sunshine. I think it's going to be a blast to travel around the town," she said.

I nodded as I was very excited to be with the three of them finally.

There was a knock on the door, and all four of us turned to see who it was. The human lady pet opened the door again, and it was Phil!

"How is it that he knows when you get to houses, Zeus?" asked Sammy.

"Yeah, he knows emmediatly," said Miles.

"It's bizarre, let me tell you. It almost frightens me," I whispered.

Phil stared at all four of us with a seriousness that made our fur stand on end: "Miles, Sammy, Trixie, and Zeus. You have $300.00 for this leg of the race. Here is your first clue. Be sure to read it carefully, and be safe on your travels."

Miles accepted the clue from Phil, and as he opened it, we peeked over his shoulder so we could all read it:

Make your way to the Susan B. Anthony House. Once there, search for your next clue.

"I have never been there!" said Sammy.

"Neither have I!" screamed Miles.

"Well, as it is no surprise, I haven't either," said Trixie with a grin.

"Well, let's get going then!" I said smiling.

We started heading for the door when we heard The Meezers' nice human lady pet say, "Enjoy your day in the limo, you four!"

There in the driveway was the longest limo I had ever seen! It was also the biggest and not quite what I had expected. It had huge wheels, and it sort of resembled a tank. The windows were very dark so we couldn't see into it. The driver stepped out and smiled at us.

"Wow! I bet that's what Kukka-Maria travels in when she goes out and about," said Sammy. I nodded in agreement as did Miles and Trixie.

"Well, we're superstars for today!" said Trixie. We all chuckled, and as the driver opened the doors for us, we hopped inside.

The Susan B. Anthony house was not too far away. We got to walk around and learn a little bit about this famous American woman. Apparently, a long time ago, she was arrested for the "crime" of voting. Women used to not be able to vote like human men. (That's a bit unfair!) Thanks to Susan B. Anthony's courage, all people, whether they're male or female homo sapiens, can vote in America.

We found the clue outside of the house by this statue of Susan B. Anthony. The other man is Fredrick Douglas. He's famous for being what's called an abolitionist - someone who fought against slavery. Together, these two people helped make life more fair for homo sapiens living in America.

It was actually Trixie who spotted the clue. She opened it up, and we all read it together:

Make your way to the George Eastman House. Once there, search for your next clue.

"Who's George Eastman?" I asked. "Do any of you know?" Miles, Sammy, and Trixie all shook their head.

"I guess we'll find out when we get there!" said Miles. "Let's go back to that cool limo! I likes it in there!"

We went back to the limo and enjoyed the scenery as we made our way to the George Eastman House. As it turned out, this George Eastman was a very famous man. He was the founder of the Eastman Kodak Company. His house is the oldest photography museum in the entire world! All four of us were very impressed with the different photographs and pictures on display.

We found the clue tucked away between some old cameras as part of the Eastman's House latest exhibition: Machines of Memory. Strangely enough, it was right by this old Charlie Tuna camera! It read:

Make your way to Rock Ventures and enjoy showing off your climbing skills!

"Climbing?! I'm a gr-r-r-eat climber!" cheered Miles.

"This is going to be awesome!" shouted Sammy.

"How about I just watch when we get there?" asked Trixie.

"Bah! We need to all try it!" I said.

And so with that, we hopped into our Hummer limo and off we went to Rock Ventures. When we got there, there were lots of homo sapiens running around with different types of helmets and ropes around them. We didn't understand what all of the hubbub was about. Climbing is climbing, after all! However, we did freeze in our tracks when we saw who the greeter was:

A golden retriever named Kobe.

He sniffed us up and down while we stood there petrified. "Why do four cats want to go rock climbing? Haven't you got some litter you need to use?" He chuckled while we stood there shaking.

"It's a part of the Amazing Zeus!" said Miles. "Maybe you've heard of it?"

Kobe shook his head. "Can't say that I have. You're going to need to pay to get in here. I'm not letting you in so you can cause trouble, you know?"

We hung our heads and gave Kobe one hundred dollars. "Wow. Where did you get this kind of money?" asked the woofie.

"We told you: It's The Amazing Zeus!" said Sammy.

"I need to get involved then. If you make this kind of money, this is something I need to be doing too!" the woofie said.

We all looked at one another and rolled our eyes. Once we were inside though, we could see this was our kind of place. There were so many walls to choose from, but since homo sapiens typically went there, there were plenty of hand and foot holds so they could move up the walls easier. Being cats, we didn't need any of that! We had our claws as our climbing tools, and we definitely got a good work out!

Miles and Sammy raced one another up the walls while Trixie and I cheered them on. Those two are definitely athletic! I could never possibly keep up with their energy. Miles won the first few times, but Sammy came back with a vengence! "I just needed some practice is all. Once I figured out Miles' weak spots, I had no problems!" said Sammy. We all chuckled as it was a lot of fun for everyone.

When we were completely pooped out, we headed back to the Hummer limo. We drove back to The Meezers' home, and we said our goodbyes:

"I had a lot of fun today, Zeus!" said Trixie. "That wasn't at all what I had expected."

Sammy nodded. "I really enjoyed the climbing practice. It was too cool!"

Miles agreed. "I really thought I had you there, Sammy! Maybe next time, I'll win some more!"

I chuckled. "I have no doubt, Miles."

Thank you to Miles, Sammy, Trixie, and the Meezers' human lady pet for letting me visit you in beautiful Rochester, New York. I had such a wonderful time, and it was especially thoughtful of you Ms. Meezers' human lady pet to obtain a limo for us...especially a Hummer limo! I thought we were going to get lost in that big car!

Until we can see one another again,