Cats And Their Ways

      Cats are quirky creatures.  I have been fortunate to have shared my life with many who wanted to be with me.  Huck will nearly always come to snooze on my shins when I lay down to sleep; Rannie Wu came to prefer sleeping next to me or even cradled in my arms.  Years ago, I had a cat named Janie (sister to Charlotte and Emily.  Tommy was their brother) who would come rushing from wherever she was to lay on me whenever I went to bed, singing happy burbles as she scurried.

      Holden Wu burbles, too, and he likes to spend time with me.  While he sleeps in my bed some nights, he prefers to snooze with Tamara.  But during the day, he has a favorite spot with me whenever I'm on the desktop computer: the right-side typewriter shelf of my desk.

      Holden normally makes happy sounds as he gathers himself to leap.  That's good, because for many years, I have put my breakfast plate on that shelf.  A few seconds of warning is nearly always sufficient for me to get my plate clear.  He lands with amazing lightness for a fifteen-pound cat, and settles himself quite happily.  If he gets bored, he'll try to gnaw on my wrist, though he is learning it is Not A Good Idea.

      Occasionally, he doesn't make a sound beforehand.  This morning, I had settled down with eggs poached in chili* when he tootled and leaped so quickly that I barely had time to get the bowl out of the way!

      I've made a new spot to the left of my keyboard for breakfast.  A lap full of chili and a surprised cat might be a bit much.
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* This is remarkably good, a Tex-Mex take on eggs pomodoro.  This morning I used canned chili instead of leftover home-made and had to go with the organic stuff after discovering the last can of mild Hormel chili had lost its seal.  Still pretty good, despite the tofu -- and  more evidence of the value of keeping a well-stocked pantry.