The narrator is adjusting to life in a quieter place after being used to the noise of the city, the scratching of a cat under her porch unsettling her.
The narrator and her roommate Emmy, with whom she had recently moved to the valley, experienced a scare with mysterious night sounds; it turned out to be cats living under their house.
Emmy, having lived in the wild and served in the Peace Corps, is used to the unfamiliar and rather enjoys the idea of living above a 'cat brothel'.
The two considered installing cinder blocks to keep out the animals, though they never ended up doing it.
The narrator often dreams of bigger creatures living under their house and remains a bit wary of the wilderness, especially after a fellow teacher mentioned seeing a bear.
Despite expecting to enjoy the charm and calm of their new rural home, the narrator has days when she misses her city life and the excitement of her journalism career.