Dogs simply eat.
    Cats, on the other hand, dine.
    That was a basic premise behind storyteller Linda Batlin’s presentation, “The Nature of Cats,” a lighthearted look at felines past, present and personal.

    Appearing in the Fort Lupton Public and School Library for their monthly 3 For Lunch series Nov. 16, Batlin regaled the brown-bag crowd with cat tales from the height of Egyptian civilization to today’s common housecat.
    Pulling from her props, Batlin drew laughs with pictures of cats superimposed in art classics, like the Mona Lisa, Whistler’s Mother and Van Gogh’s self portrait. She launched into a historically correct and
engaging version of Puss-N-Boots, the 1697 French fairy tale that bore little resemblance to the modern Dream Works character.
    Working her way through a string of stories, quotes and anecdotes, Batlin pulled the crowd at each step, going into characters, playing maracas and animating puppets.
    Batlin saved tales of her own feline friend, Quandary, for the end of the program. Quandary is a Birman. Also known as the sacred cat of Burma, it’s not to be confused with a Burmese, as Batlin will tell you,
    “A dog in a cat’s body,” Batlin said. “He has so much personality, I started imagining a whole world around Quandary.”
    Batlin wound her way through a fictional second life for Quandary, full of adventure, a run for president (he eventually threw his support behind Barack Obama)  a trip to the Serengeti and a hunt with his peers, a pride of lions. Feasting on a zebra carcass, Quandary reflects on life as only a cat that has found and truly fulfilled himself.
    Batlin’s stories are typical of the lunchtime fun at the library the third Wednesday of each month. In December, Mrs. Claus will visit from the North Pole with Christmas stories, just in time for the holidays. Attendance is free from noon to 1, Dec. 21, in the great room.

Contact Staff Writer Gene Sears at gsears@metrowestnewspapers.com or 303-659-2522 ext. 217.