Fuzzy Monster

When researching a move to a new place, there are two small words that are more important than any others, "roach infestation."  Just kidding...they are "cat friendly."  There are no two words that can make or break a moving decision as easily as these.  I've had a cat for as long as I can remember. 

GEORGIE
The first one Georgie (originally called George until we found out she was missing required parts), came home from work one day with my mom.  I can't remember how old I was, but I could never forget that it was the same day that I found my first four leaf clover.  As a result, I've spent many hours searching for other four leaf clovers because it doesn't get much better than 4 leaf clover = kitten.  What a disappointment the few others have been!  Nonetheless, I still catch myself searching for one if I happen to come across a bunch of them. 

CUDDLES
Unfortunately Georgie was hit by a car and buried in an unmarked kitty grave. That led to my second kitty: Cuddles.  His personality should be pretty well summed up by his name, however it should be noted that he was named by a 4th grade girl.  Cuddles was everything but cuddly in the first 5 years of his kitty life.  He used to hide on the stairs and whenever any of the kids walked by the stairwell he'd pounce on our ankles and bite & scratch us.  Needless to say he wasn't very popular around the house.  My brothers used to joke that he was angry about his name, that he felt emasculated.  They probably didn't use that smart of a word, but the intention was there.  Cuddles was my catpanion for many years but had to stay behind with the parents when I went to college.  After graduation I intended to take Cuddles with me to my new place, but my parents argued that he'd react poorly to the change in scenery and lack of greenspace.  They imagined he would mope around and be depressed that he was no longer an outdoor cat! 

 Poor Cuddles!  I remember getting my own place and a new cat and feeling like I had cheated on him.  According to my mom Cuddles died of a broken heart while laying on the floor in his favorite sunbeam.  Thankfully, I do not believe myself to be the cause of his broken heart, rather the early death of his favorite playmate: my mom's cat Sasha. 

EMMA
I had some awesome cats in my 20's, before I got the two that I have now.  Emma, was my first kitten out of college.  She was so sweet, but she had this bad habit of dragging items and leaving them in her water bowl. Mostly jewelry, occasionally toys, and at one point..a tampon!  And of course the tampon was the night that a guy I was dating had stopped by my place with me before dinner.  OOPS! 

LUV
Then there was Luv.  I catsat him for a friend who had too many pets. He was the best cat ever..well almost.  He was big, fat, orange, and fat.  I would not be exaggerating if I was to place his weight at 28 lbs.  He used to have weird habits like OCD licking of my arm, and trying to sleep on my head at night.  While I realize that some crazy cat people may find his habits endearing, I must say that it was hard enough to move in the morning with 28 pounds of fat cat sprawled out over my legs, and was nearly deadly to have him on my head.

I had to get rid of Luv and I hated it.  He got to a point where he became so fat that he was unable to lick his own butt!  We tried diet and exercise indoors, but neither was working.  He earned a new nickname, Dingleberry, as you can probably visualize why, and it became difficult because he had always slept on the bed.  The problem was that I didn't want a cat with poop hanging from his butt fur climbing on my bed and trying to sleep on my face...or legs or arms.  I began to feel really sad because I knew that Luv was probably feeling rejected because I kicked him off my bed every night, so I did what every self respecting cat owner would do (I KNOW, I ALREADY TRIED THE DIET), I took him to the groomer to have his butt shaved.  However, that was just a temporary fix.  A woman that I worked with lived on a farm and had a little girl that wanted an affectionate and fat cat.  We decided that it might be perfect for Luv.  If he could live where he was free to roam outside, he might just get some good exercise.  Reluctantly, but with pushes from my ex and barn owning friend, I gave up Luv.

The last update I had on him was typical.  He is still as fat and affectionate as ever, because he is afraid of grass.  Yup, the whole idea of outdoors = freedom to exercise, didn't quite workout as planned.

AFRO - or APHRODITE
The cutest and most affectionate cat ever.  Not quirky or funny...just absolutely lovable.  I had to give her up in order to teach abroad in France.  At times I question my sanity cuz I gave up the sweetest cat in the world.  I found her a home with a sweet retired woman, who had recently lost her cat of 23 years.  Her poor husband and son!  They came over to pick up the cat and were greeted with a sobbing mess.

MR KITTY
He's small and white, 5 yrs old, and weighs under 1 pound.  He travels frequently and loves hiking.  Usually I bungee tie him to my backpack or camelbak.  PLEASE, don't scream animal cruelty...he's just a stuffed animal.  He is the consolation kitty that my husband gave to me Christmas 2006 when I was depressed that I had given up the awesomest (I'm choosing for that to be a word...so deal) cat in the entire world.  Mr kitty is an easy travel companion and loves dancing during long car rides.  He's been to NY, France, WI, DC, Yellowstone, The Olympic Peninsula, and now resides in Falls Church, VA.  If he's good he'll probably travel with me to London and Italy in October

That brings me to the fuzzy monsters that have been in my life for the past 3 years:  Ellicus and Minette.  But this is a long post and they are a story for another writing session!