Keeping the cat off the kitchen counter? Rasalhague is an obstinate cat, yell at him and he will just cock his head and seem to say “Who Me?” Extremely cute, but not effective.
The problem, as usual, is the kitchen counter. Ras seems to think bedtime is just the time to explore what interesting things might be in the sink. Go to bed, just to hear the clinking of dishes along with his distinctive collar bell.
I could build some sophisticated cat alert, an IR beam with a loud alarm perhaps? It may come to that. In the meantime I thought of something considerably more low-tech… A stack of empty soda cans.
The cans work. The mere brush of a kitty tail brings them down with a substantial clatter that sends Ras running. The cans have the advantages of being readily available, easy to stack, make a kitty terrifying racket, and don’t hurt anything when they come crashing down.
More importantly it has worked. No cat on the counter for a week now. The cans have been tossed in the recycle bin… Until next time.