I Come Bearing Cats

One of the things I looked forward to most going home was seeing my siblings again. My parents have three delightful cats. So, of course, I had to whip out the camera and catch them in moments of catastrophic cute.


The biggest shock was seeing Jimmy, who's become the Famous Shrinking Cat. When I left Arizona in 2007, Jimmy was not just Garfield's color, but roughly his size. He looked like he'd swallowed a big round watermelon. My wicked stepmother had told me Jimmy had lost weight due to the new kitten keeping him busy, but she hadn't let on that Jimmy's about 1/3 the cat he used to be. That lean, mean playing machine you see in the photo above batting at Spook bears little resemblance to the enormous sleeping machine of yore.

I even saw him running through the house. Jimmy. Running. And leaping. And acting like he'd lost five years. Note to people with obese felines: try the Hyperactive Kitten Diet, and watch the pounds just melt away!




Max and I are old buds. When she was a little girl, I allowed her to spend a night in the Forbidden Room with me, and she's adored me ever since. This time, the Forbidden Room was filled with model airplanes, so she and I sacked out on the couch. She seemed to think that having the sheets from the Forbidden Room was sinful pleasure enough.


Me baby brudder is growing up, but he's still a wee little thing, and seriously is the cutest kitten I've ever seen in my life. Even Misha never attained this pinnacle of unadulterated adorable. He fetches mice, but instead of bringing them back and dropping them at your feet, he takes an extra moment to hide them in your shoes. He makes a great game out of getting scared. And he likes to climb my knees at night as if they're Everest. He woke me up Sunday morning by licking my eyebrows. I almost sneaked him into my luggage. He makes me wish Misha were more amenable to the idea of having a sibling, but she's already made her views on that crystal clear.



And, really, what more do I need? Just my little girl, snoring like a bulldog in the bed behind me. Yes, snoring. Something about the humidity up here, I think, because she never snored in Arizona. We've had a good time lazing around together as I catch up on the gargantuan amount of sleep I missed. Now that she's managed to get her scent back all over my stuff, sticking it to those other three who had the termity to believe they could establish ownership, she's a happy cat indeed.

And, with so many cats in my life, I'm a happy human. Awwww....