So, we get into the building, and wait about ten minutes or so to get to speak with an officer. The grouchy old guy that was in the booth we pulled up to came into the office, because we assume that it was nearly shift change time. Finally, this younger guy calls us up, and I hand him the orange paper, and our ID. I'm not sure about this, but I think I heard him sigh audibly when he read what was written on the form (though I couldn't read it... looked like doctor's writing).
So, I think Sasha was completely rattled by this point, but I was okay, 'cause I knew we had nothing to hide, and Dominic is "border savvy" as well.
"How do you know each other" (back to statements not questions again!)
"This is my boyfriend, and this is my friend."
"How did you meet each other?" (referring to Sasha and me). "On the Internet," I said. (I could tell he wanted to roll his eyes, but he couldn't.)
"And where are you going?" (to Sasha).
"I'm going to Fairbanks, Alaska," she said.
"What's the purpose of your trip?"
"I'm bringing a cat to his forever home" (Italics to bring your attention to the phrase. Please note that "forever home" is not a phrase that normal people would use, it's a cat lover's/forum phrase.)
"How in the heck is this cat going all the way to Alaska?" (The dumbfounded look starts to creep onto his face... he's doing his best to hide it!)
I pipe up again, because I feel Sasha's nervousness beside me. "We both are on an online forum for cats. This cat was rescued from the street; the lady from Alaska heard his story, fell in love with the cat, and is paying to have him brought to Alaska." (I didn't get into major details — we did have a plane to catch after all!)
The dumbfounded look gets a little easier to see.
"Why should I believe a lick of this story?" (Back to questions again folks!)
I kinda shrugged, looked him right in the eye, and said, "Because it's true. If you have the Internet I can prove it to you." By this point, the dumbfounded expression is clear as day.
So, he told the three of us to sit down and wait for a few minutes. I told Sasha that he was probably looking at our criminal records, and told her not to worry because we had nothing to hide.
Sasha piped up and said, "Well, I was in jail once."
I got struck by another wave of "UH OH!" and said, "You're joking right?"
She said yes — I nearly bopped her one for that!
Finally, the guy came back out, and called Sasha up to the desk. Apparently he was satisfied that there weren't any warrants out on any of us, and that Sasha wasn't fleeing the country for some unpaid parking tickets, and he let us go with a "Don't forgot your documents next time."
I think he chalked it up to one of those times where the truth is stranger than fiction! LOL
So, we get back in the car, and onto the freeway toward the airport.
- Francine
The Project Orange story made international news, both in Canada and in Alaska, and I'm pleased to say that Orange is living a grand life with Catherine and his adopted sibling cats in Anchorage. You can visit them all on the About Cats Forum.
Franny
