Tag: Living with Cats

  • June 11, 2024

    We call it “litter time,” because it started when Genevieve and Ouli would run out of the apartment when we went to go put their shit down the chute. Now, it’s something they both look forward to every day. They cry for it.

    Eloise has yet to venture out but these two can’t get enough of it.

  • June 5, 2024

    We took Genevieve to the vet today. She did incredibly well, letting the technicians handle her and all.

    She’s overweight and needs to be on a diet, has a small laceration on her right thigh that’ll hopefully heal on its own, and she got the fur around her butt shaved to prevent shit from sticking to it.

    She ain’t no rabbit.

  • May 2, 2024

    This girl always makes her wishes known. I’ve never seen her sleep like this before. It when I see the cats like this that I feel that they are at peace.

  • February 15, 2024

    I don’t know what’s out there, but Ouli and Genevieve keep begging to “go for a walk” in the hallway. Ouli will jump up on the shoe rack and Genevieve will claw at the door while whining. I can’t figure out what’s out there.

  • February 4, 2024

    Sundays are good days to be lazy. Today was a Sunday.

  • January 22, 2024

    If you could make your pet understand one thing, what would it be?

    I would love for our cats to understand how we display love and affection. We, of course, being people. The hugging, kissing, petting, and snuggling. It’s all love.

    In their own way, our cats tell us they appreciate us. They are most affectionate around feeding times. A coincidence, no doubt. The bunting is cute. That little nudge to let us know they want our attention is endearing.

    One thing I love most about cats is that they remain true to their nature. We’ve put them in an artificial environment but they retain their primal instincts. They learn how to manage but they don’t reason. This leads to them feeling threatened when we’re trying to help them.

    Baths are tricky. Well, Ouli loves playing in the water so he’s fine but the girls are difficult. Genevieve has a poopy bottom that would be easiest to clean in the tub. She fights us when we try to clip her nails. Putting her in water to wash her is a guarantee of scratches. Deep ones, too. I’m sure they’ve found a pencil sharpener.

    At night, Eloise curls up at Hannah’s feet. It’s heartwarming to see. Hannah is locked in for the night, however. Any movement will disrupt Eloise who will then bite. When I go to bed, I try to lift Eloise up and place her in an empty spot. She goes right back. She has a bed on the floor next to the bed. All three of them do.

    I just want to explain to them that we have all of these wonderful things for them, that we’re trying to keep them clean and healthy, that we’d all sleep better if we stayed in our own beds. In our own way we do by buying new toys, suffering deep scratches, and contorting ourselves when sleeping.

  • January 15, 2024

    What is your favorite animal?

    We have three cats. Before getting my girls, I thought about getting a dog for about thirty seconds. I adopted sisters. Hannah had Ouli. Incidentally, all three cats were born on the very same day. They’re not related.

    My favourite animal, however, might just be the elephant. I think I like them most because they have good memories. Intelligence is attractive. I also like how gently they appear to walk across the savannah in nature documentaries. I love watching their feet compress under their own weight with each step.

    Apparently, they’re emotional creatures, too. They cry. They mourn and have gravesites. The littlest ones look so playful when running between the legs of the adults. They have family units. What wonderfully human traits for such a giants to have.

    I have a photograph of a girl resting her head against an elephants while they both stand in a river. The majesty of the image captures my imagination and gently unsettles my heart. There’s a contradiction between the imposition of the elephants sheer size and the soft place on which the girls rests her forehead. The elephants forehead likely knocked down a tree earlier in the day so the elephant could eat branch – raw wood.

    Cats are different. Our cats don’t really like to cuddle with me. Eloise will always sleep at Hannah’s feet, even if I move her in the middle of the night. Genevieve and Ouli find a spot on a cat bed or in a cat tunnel or in a hamper to rest for the evening. Ouli likes water and the girls could really use a bath. In my world, there is nothing more adorable than those three.

  • October 5, 2023

    It’s just going to be pictures of cats sleeping today, folks.

  • August 9, 2023

    August 9, 2023

    I woke up on the couch at 4:00 am and made my way to bed. At 7:00 the cats wanted breakfast. I tried going back to sleep. I almost started missing the days when I would sleep clean through the morning and into the middle of the afternoon.

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  • July 14, 2023

    July 14, 2023

    Is there a difference between a productive day and a busy day? I think I had a productive day today but it didn’t feel so busy. Yesterday, I felt busy but not productive. I think it all comes down to having a schedule.

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  • July 11, 2023

    July 11, 2023

    I thought that this would be the week that I finally started getting on with getting on with things. As happens every year, I have big plans for this summer. Over the last few days, I’ve been ordering stuff online trying to get things in so that I can start working on the things that I want to be getting on with.

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  • April 1, 2023

    April 1, 2023

    When I’m writing my morning pages, Eloise usually joins me. She gets in my way, nibbles gnaws at my hand, and swats at my pen. Sometimes, she’ll spill the coffee as I’m raising the mug to my mouth. Lately, Genevieve has been joining in. She, too, is looking for some attention. Honestly, there aren’t many better ways to start a day.

    Two tortoiseshell cats sitting on a desk looking directly at the camera. Low lighting.
    Eloise (left) and Genevieve (right) join me at my desk while I write my morning pages.