Average Like Us

I am a cat lover. When I am old and frail, I will be one of those old people who is surrounded by more cats than they can count. My dad recognized my love for cats at an early age and by the time I was about ten years old, he gave me my very own cat to love. I named him Pepsi and I adored him. From then on, I have never been without a cat in my life.

For several years now I have wanted a Maine Coon kitten. Those cats? They are amazing. They are huge and fluffy and have some interesting characteristics that liken them to a dog. For instance, they play fetch and they aren't territorial like most cats. But after searching for several weeks, I couldn't find any kittens locally that are less than $1000.

One. Thousand. Dollars.

That's funny.

And so, I told Jace that getting a kitten is out of the picture because I am simply not paying that kind of money for a cat--specialty or not. Well, Jace happens to be an animal lover. That boy...the sun rises and sets in animals. He wants everything he sees. Recently he told me he wanted a ferret. I told him that's just fine with me ... as long as he doesn't live at home.

When Jace was about ten years old he was desperate for a hamster--one of those dwarf hamsters that is fuzzy and cute. And so, we bought all of the stuff and set the cage up in his room. I taught him how to clean the cage and how to play with the hamster because it was not too friendly and liked to bite. But of course, Jace was scared of it--and rightfully so--and so I was the one who worked with the hamster day after day...and then Jace was none too fond of cleaning that cage and so his room would stink...and hamsters are fragile creatures and so unfortunately we went through a couple of them...

So by the time the third hamster came around and Jace's room stunk and getting him to clean the cage was an act of congress, I finally said...

ENOUGH.

We gave the cute little fuzzy hamster and all of his toys and food and cage to one of Jace's little friends whose mom happened to be a sucker as well...and that was the end of our hamster run or any other pets outside of the dog or cat realm for forever.

Anyway, as I talked about a Maine Coon far too much and Jace's heart was set on a kitten, we began the kitten search. Now let me say, I am picky. I like long haired, fluffy male cats that grow up to be rather large. And those kinds of kittens aren't easy to find. But Jace? He just likes a kitten...that is the only requirement.

And so, we are the proud owners of a six week old female, orange tabby kitten. She doesn't have a particularly pretty face and I seriously doubt she will be large or fluffy. But she is ours and she is precious. She's a lover and can't seem to get enough attention. We are all fans...well, most of us.

Our other cat Sparti doesn't seem to share the love.

But for now this little girl is the star of the show. We all gather around and watch her drink her milk as she is so small she doesn't care much for anything else. We play with her for hours with a feather, and we sit, immobilized, while she naps on our laps.

Despite the fact she is glaringly average (kind of like the rest of us--so she fits right in...), we love her.

Welcome to the family, Sadie.