Kitty, I know...

[Eireann]

That you and I now share a room. I know that you used to have much more room available to you. I know that you're fascinated with the goings-on in the yard outside. I know that you'd love to run around and play and explore. I, too, would just love to own a house where we'd both have more than enough space. Really.

And I don't like the fact that, when I opened the window a crack last night, you pushed your way out of it and hopped onto the railing of the balcony next door. It was the middle of the night, and we are well above the level of the ground. Yes, I know you can see in the dark. I don't care. I'm not about to watch you discover the force of gravity for yourself.

Another thing I don't like? The fact that, when I called you, you just stared at me and didn't move until I poured food into your dish (which was already full). I'm very glad you came in to eat it, so I could close the window.

So, if we're stifling in the heat here, just remember why.

[Pixilated]

You definitely have my sympathy ... I once had an apartment with gorgeous HUGE windows but ... if I opened them enough that the bloody cats could get their heads between the window and the screen, that was enough for them to push the screens out! (Screens were, needless to say, not very securely installed ...) And of course once the screen fell into the yard, the cat followed ... Luckily in my case I was on the ground floor so having the cat discover the force of gravity wasn't an issue.

[auntiem]

I once had a cat that would regularly sneak out the window, manuver down the fire escape and jump from there. I started taking him for regular walks in the nearby park (he would follow me like a puppy) and he stopped jumping out the window. Maybe you could take your cat on walks with a leash?
Was it an outdoor / indoor cat previously? If so, in my experience, they usually don't adapt to being indoor only cats - they will "pull a runner" every chance they get.

[MoonCat]

We had a cat who pushed his way out of a screen on the second floor and somehow, only Bast knows how, lived through the fall (jump?) without a scratch and ended up picking a fight with a stray. I had to go out and pull him out from under a parked car. I was not happy.

I won't take a chance on that again, however. In this house we have better screens and I check them periodically to make sure they're secure.

[Eireann]

She's only been an indoor cat since I got her. She came from a shelter, but it had no outdoor run. Before that, she may well have been a stray; I don't know. I've never tried her with a leash. I'd only do it in the back yard.