My Cats Rule The Roost
They have me well trained
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Cats? Absolutely not! They scratch and bite! And dogs have big teeth!
This was my instinctive reaction to cats and dogs. Walking along the street I always made sure to give a wide berth to all cats and dogs. Until I went to visit my son. Knowing me so well, he sent me a picture. “Mom, this is our first-born”.
I am sure Zizi considered me to be the strangest human she had ever seen. There she was, this beautiful Birman cat, purring and rolling around my feet as soon I walked out of the bedroom, and there I was, stepping gingerly over her — until she took matters into her own paws! She plopped down on my lap and stole my heart.
And now I simply cannot imagine my life without Max, Luke, Leia (my grandson is a Star Wars fan), and Emi.
“In ancient times cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this.” Terry Pratchett
My cats absolutely subscribe to this belief. As soon as their internal clocks tell them it is time for breakfast, they wake me up even though it is barely light outside. One plops down on me and begins to knead while the others meow. LOUDLY! Lazy mornings snuggled in bed are now a thing of the past.
My cats consider me their own personal doorman. Luke must go out into the garden first thing in the morning. I feel he is partly dog — or maybe he simply acts that way so I don’t miss having a dog. He returns to sit at the kitchen window and meows loudly to inform me he has completed his business outside.
No sooner has he returned, Max decides it is his turn to go out to visit the neighbors. Once the cats have been fed and let in and out and in and out, I am wide awake and in a good mood because they make it impossible to remain grumpy.
My cats are especially quirky when it comes to home-cooked food at dinnertime. One by one each will sniff suspiciously at the bowls. Finally, one begins to eat and the others follow. But they will only eat from one bowl.
They seem to have some sort of selective blindness that prevents them from seeing the other bowls of food. This does not happen with dry food … only home-cooked. That means stopping whatever I am doing to replenish the bowl — which I must since they either meow or sit and stare at me till I get up. Or jump up on my laptop.
Since I do not speak ‘cat’ it is a constant puzzle to figure out what any one of them is meowing about. It could be Leia, who only likes to drink fresh running water, letting me know she wants the tap turned on. And of course, I need to remember to turn it off once Her Highness is done.
Once again Leia has to be let out … till she decides to come in again: to eat or drink; to curl up on my bed for a nap or ‘talk’ to my guests and check them out. Once she’s satisfied there are no nefarious visitors she stands at the door and gives me the look!
I have barely settled down when I hear Max. I go to the door to fulfill my duty. That devious cat rubs his head against my feet and then rolls over on his tummy. It’s time to sit on the floor and give him a tummy rub and a cuddle. How can I remain annoyed after that?
I must get one of those apps that keeps track of the steps I take in a day!
I never know where I will find them: on top of the kitchen cabinets; shut inside a kitchen cabinet where Max sneaked in while my back was turned; stuck overnight behind the kitchen drawers — I had to get the carpenter to pull out the drawer to free Luke!
What I do know is, when I come home they are all sitting at the door waiting for me. They come running at bedtime when I stand at the kitchen door and call out their names.
And when I get into bed, one by one they curl up in their favorite spots: Max on my pillow, snoring like the old man he is; Luke on my shoulder, rumbling like a motor, and Emi snuggled on my feet or in the crook of my knees.
One thing is certain: cats make the most wonderful companions. They follow me into the bathroom, even in the middle of the night so I’m never alone. They are great fun and there’s nothing quite like a warm cat curled up on my lap gently purring away. They have me completely wrapped around those chubby paws!
