Spoken Cat

Numerous ailurophiles wrote:

> >>_mi:au_
> >>"Where the hell have you been, come over here and scratch my ear"
> >"Where the hell have you been, I'm hungry.
> Down this way it's wi:au; the former is wau.
Ours often use this vocalization for "Hello again. Yes, I know I've been off
gallivanting for 18 hours, but I'm back and I want attention and/or food
NOW."

> >>_mrau_
> >>"Feed me, dammit"
> >
> >[no change]
> >
>
> That's mau.
Same here.

>
> >
> >>_r:_ (trill)
> >>"I'm the center of the universe and don't you forget it!"
> >"I'm the center of the universe, so feed me."
"I'm the center of the universe, and I want something. It's probably not
food, but it could be any one of a number of things and you'll just have to
keep trying until I shut up." I normally shorten this in transcriptions to
"Requirement!", as my view of Spoken Cat has always been that there is no
sentence structure, but rather that single utterances imply concepts.

I can have "conversations" with Clover (the talkative one), just as I used
to with the late Tigger. If she says something and I "say" something back,
she will respond and the dialogue can continue for a dozen exchanges or so.
She normally gives up dejectedly when it's plain that I don't really
understand. No doubt you do the same.

I also get:
_ra'a'_ (2 syllables)
...which is just a conversational device, "I'm me, and you're you",
probably.

This is disturbingly close to "Rahha", my Mark III conlang, and I sometimes
find myself speaking Rahha in a Cat tone of voice. A worrying trend; perhaps
someone could enlighten me as the the same of the tone/voice. Creaky?

James

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james@zolid.com  James Campbell  Zeugma--Our Life Is Design  www.zolid.com
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