Meet my two cats Milo (orange tabby, 3 yrs) and Sophie (tabico, 4 yrs). Don't let this image of seemingly cozy cameraderie fool you - this is merely a lucky photo op milli-second while they were playing. Mind you, Milo's version of "playing" seems to involve simply attacking Sophie, establishing that he's in charge by pinning her down, and then literally rubbing her face in his behind. Despite the fact that he's the younger and more recent addition to the family, she allows this and merely offers a continuous low-growl, sing-song whine as protest.
As my sister put it during her last visit, both of my cats just have a lot to say and neither has any qualms about saying any of it. You go, kitties; I understand completely. In fact, due to both of them being so verbose, I'm convinced that despite all evolutionary proclamations, they are related to me on some deeply genetic level. Anyway, Sophie is squat and sedentary but is one of the most amazing (and fastest) bug-trappers I've ever seen. This is probably due to her unfortunate feral beginnings, when catching bugs meant staying alive for her. She doesn't make many swats, but when she does, she swats to kill and does so! She usually acts needy but also has a quiet strength about her sometimes that surprises me.
Back in grade school it seemed like there was always a really mean redheaded bully who messed with everybody for no good reason but couldn't take what he dished. For those of you who have seen it, think of the bully in "A Christmas Story".(*Author's Note: Those of you redheads out there, please don't be offended by this reference. If you read any Tom Robbins you will quickly learn that it's quite possible redheads contain special, supernatural powers. Here's a link to distract you: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_hair#Mythological_traditions).
OK, back to the mean redheaded bully - that sums up Milo. He's the biggest mama's boy you ever saw and more afraid of the outdoors and our outer hallway than even timid Sophie is. But he bullies her like no one's business. If she settles down on a cat-scratcher box, he will come tackle her and uproot her. If she's lying on the bed, he'll jump up and literally edge her off the bed. If she's playing with a toy (even if we have duplicates of it) he has to steal it away from her. He whines like a toddler when he wakes up from a nap, and he announces his awakening with a cranky and lengthy meow as if to say, "I'm awake, pay attention to me!" He'll keep doing this until you acknowledge his presence by saying hello to him. In short, and pardon my French, he's a bit of an asshole.
But they're both hilarious and I've been told by a few people that my cats act more like dogs than some dogs do. I figure this is good since we're only allowed two pets in our building and we ("we" meaning my fiance Bryon and I) are both craving a dog. So far the cats don't respond well to the leash but at least we've taught them to speak!
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