Cats

There have been several cats in my life. I think we always had a cat around when I was a kid. The only time I didn't have a cat was while I was in college, and the first couple years we were married.

I know I have some pics somewhere... I'll have to find them.

When I was a toddler, we had a Manx cat, but I don't remember her name. About the time we moved to "the big house" on Orchard Street we got Wuming, a beautiful dark Siamese. Next was Romanoff, another Siamese, and with a loud voice! He moved with us to St. Helens.

Sometime later, Mittens followed Jeff home from school, the first of several animals that Jeff brought home. She was the prototypical house cat - lap friendly, playful, and a good mouser.

Big Red stayed with us for a short time, but it was clear very quickly that his territorial marking habits were not compatible with our household, and we returned him to our cousin.

Then came Frosty - he was the runt of a Siamese barn litter. He'd hear the refridgerator door open from the other end of the house, and he'd come running full speed. Not for food, mind you, but so that he could bash his head into the bottom of the 'fridge door.

When we moved into our first house, Vanessa and I noticed there was a rather sad and confused cat hanging around our door. Bengal was a beautiful long hair tortoise-shell cat, complete with torti attitude. The previous owners didn't want her, and had obviously mistreated her, so we took her in. After some time she settled down and was a wonderful lap cat.

A few years later, we got Muse, a young calico kitten from a feral litter. Her paws were slightly deformed, and front right leg slightly short. When her claws grew in they were curled back into her paws, so we had to have the claws removed. This was my first fully indoor cat. She is now a big pudge of a cat, and a bit of a bully. She can be affectionate when she chooses, but she's not much of a lap cat.

Brandy and Rascal were sister and brother, burmese, whom we got from our neighbor. These were your standard black and white indoor house cats, but they didn't get along with the other 17 big Maine Coons that she breeded. They never were very healthy, but friendlier than Muse. Both have since left this world.

Muse remains as our current house cat. Now that she has the house to herself, she's become more, um, well, perhaps tolerant is the right word. Oh, and she has discovered the delights of a good tummy rub.

---

back home
Last update: