Not just attitude...Priori2ude!

« Ode to My Cats Part 2 | Main | Ode to My Cat Part 4 »

November 06, 2007

Ode to My Cats Part 3

This is Gabriel. (Christy, yes, looks like Comet, ne? I think we're cat-stalking each other since all 3 of our cats are identical! heh.) Obviously, by the normal-sounding name, you know he started out as my cat, not Don's. I got Gabriel in 1994 when I was in grad school, when he was just 4 months old. I'd always adored cats and wanted one, but Mom and Dad never allowed it (just wait till Fielding would show up in their house!) So when I moved into my own apartment for the first time, I vowed I would have a cat of my own. So I went to the Michigan Humane Society branch in Lansing. I was thinking of getting a white cat because I liked the cat I'd seen in "The Crow" and was going to name it the same. (Yes, I'm that much of a dork!) But they didn't have any white kittens. But I thought I'd take a look at what they had, just to see. The first cage I came to was this cute little grey striped kitten. I open up the door and pick him up and he went straight to my neck, nuzzling and purring and meowing with love, "Take me home! Take me home! I love you!" Of course, I couldn't resist--it was love at first sight!

When I got him home, I quickly realized he'd conned me into it. He became known as "Crack Kitty" because he was so energetic. He would zip back and forth from one wall of my apartment to the opposite, occasionally jumping up the support pole in the middle. But I still loved him. And when I would try to sleep through the early mornings, he would wake me up by licking my nose and ears while standing on my chest purring. I had to pick him up and toss him to the end of the bed several times before he got the hint I wanted to sleep. But I still loved him. And when he would puke all over my floor, making me clean it all up, I still loved him. (I soon realized he was lactose intolerant and could no longer feed him milk.)

He went through MANY nicknames as well. Gabriel begat Goober; Goober begat Goober Boo; Goober Boo begat Booger; Booger begat Booger Boo; Booger Boo begat Boober; Boober begat Boo Boo; Boo Boo begat Boo.

He was very very playful as a young cat. I could get him to chase a string all over the apartment, even in circles, till he could run no more. Sometimes he would even chase it in the air doing back flips. Or we would take turns chasing each other back and forth. I think now, he's gotten too old to be running around like that. Or maybe just too fat. And I wouldn't say he's the most cuddly cat, though when I lived alone, he'd sleep on my chest, curled in the crook of my arm.

Speaking of fat, at one point, a year ago, he got so fat he got even bigger than Hideous (who's about 14-15 pounds). I weighed him and he was about 18 pounds! For a while, I chalked it off to him and Hideous competing for food since they both were pigs. But I found out later from the vet that he had a condition with his thyroid and it needed to be removed. So he had surgery and had to stay in the vet's for about 3 or 4 days. He hates going to the vet anyway and gets extremely anxious and scared--I have to hold him in my lap as I drive there or else he goes nuts. So having to stay there overnight for 3-4 nights was terrifying to him. I'd go and visit him every day and he'd get so happy to see me, he'd fall over with joy. I'm sure he thought I was going to leave him there because when we got him home, he was more cuddly and lovey than he'd ever been.

Like Hideous, he's very controlled by his taste buds. He always has time to beg whenever I'm at the table eating. Occasionally he'll get a couple pieces of chicken, if he's lucky. But his mischievous side will mostly prevail. Once, when Pammie made a loaf of poppy seed bread for us, he found it on the table and decided to graze the top of it. Guess he thought he should try it out to make sure it was safe for me and Don. He even left us a note saying he was sorry! (Though Pam had to write it for him.) That's why I try never to leave any food (or flowers) out, else I risk coming home to a mess of half-chewed food all over the floor.

Usually, he's a cranky grump. You pat him on the butt by the tail and he complains...loudly. You try to brush him and he complains...loudly. You try to pick him up and he complains...loudly. (He has to be pet only on his terms.) Sometimes, I can't tell if he likes to hear himself sing or if he's just being loud for its own sake. Because many mornings VERY early, he'll wake me up caterwauling. (Don's too heavy of a sleeper to even hear it.) I have to get up and turn his attention so he forgets what he was caterwauling about.

But even as grumpy as he can be, he still loves me and usually will find the love in his heart to give me kitty kisses. And even as fat as he is, I think he's a very handsome guy. And I'm not just saying that because he's my baby.

Posted by Amy at November 6, 2007 11:21 PM

Comments

Post a comment