Woe is Me & Kitty Tales

It's finally pretty cold here in Texas, and the joy (/sarcasm) of it is that our heater isn't working properly. It won't stay on if you put it on "auto"-- just clicks off right after it turns on. If you run it on "fan" which makes it go all the time, you have to crank the thermostat up to 90 to get it warm in the house at all. So it's fairly cold in the house, and that just sucks. Today's dissertation writing is going to be done on the couch in the room with the fireplace, cause that makes it a little warmer (it's just a small fireplace, so it doesn't get that toasty).

But we do have the fluffy down comforter on the bed, and sleeping in this morning (called "the re-rack" when you get up for a little while then go back to bed") the cat crawled under the blankets with me. It was very sweet, and I was thinking as I was dozing off about writing about it. Furry little bundle, purring softly, her whiskers tickling my belly where the pj top had pulled up a bit. (And, I have to admit, where it's poking out a bit more than it used to).

I was thinking of when we got her, so long ago. Andrew & I had been married about 6 months, and I wasn't able to get back in college yet cause the move made us show up in WA in the middle of a semester. So I was bored, bored, bored. I took a job as a salesgirl in the mall, at Lerner NY. While on break on night, I wandered down past the pet store and there were three kittens. Two stripey grey ones were fighting each other, and this cute black one with huge ears and green eyes and a little curly tail she flitted about like her personal banner. I poked my finger into the cage and she grabbed it-- gently-- claws out, but not sharpy poking. She purred so loudly I could hear her from the cage. I said "oh, aren't you cute. But you'd scratch up the leather couch, now wouldn't you". To that, she mouthed a squeeky "mew" which I, speaking fluent "cat," took to mean "No, I promise I won't if you just get me outta this dump." I said "okay, then, if you promise not to claw the couch, Andrew won't mind too much." And the funny thing is, she never once has clawed that couch. Of course, she rarely claws things, so it's not that big of a deal. Andrew, sitting on the couch when I got home and announced "We're home" heard her purring all the way from the door the second we came in. He definitely thought she was cute.

She's such a sweet, smart kitty. I know non-cat lovers say "there's no such thing, your cat is not smart, it's just like all other cats." Which of course is wrong. If you're not a cat lover, you don't know that like people, there is great variation in cats. I've known some very stupid cats. Some mean ones. Some that were the epitome of everything non-cat people hate about cats. But Tituba is quite smart-- she wakes us up in the morning at the correct time, even when that time changes. She has a little "schedule" that she likes to adhere to, and she "talks" to you when you talk to her. Lots of folks who aren't especially fond of cats have said about her "gee, she's really kind of cool." And she really is.

I'm pretty sure she won't be all that fond of our next new addition because babies & little kids freak her out. They move way too fast, and like to grab ears and stuff. She usually hides under a bed or something till they're gone. Hopefully she'll get used to him/her slowly, cause the baby won't be that noisy and that quick at first. Generally, just a little bundled up blob lying in a sleeper and getting all red-faced and grumpy when hungry or pooping. Just like Daddy :)

Tituba's still my "first baby" though, and will always receive a spot under the covers when she wants one.