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Blogs by Laura Davis
I Am the Cat Lady 5/15/2008 1:20:49 PM
Okay, so once again the word is out and cats from all over London (it seems) are flocking to my house. I'm not just getting strays, but the neighbour's cats too. I think these critters have a secret network of some kind that they pass to every cat they meet. "Psst! You know that lady in the house on the corner? She'll give you food. Oh, don't worry if there isn't any, if she sees you she'll give you some." The crazy thing is, there are different cats coming every year and they always come BEFORE I start setting out food! How do they know I'm a sucker for hard luck cases?
I think it must be that way with all animals, they know who their protectors are. For instance, last year I was sitting on my deck, when a pigeon flew up and landed right beside me. At the time, I had a cat carrier out that I would leave for cats seeking shelter from storms or cold. I didn't do anything but say hi to the pigeon, who looked at me and walked into the cat carrier and went to sleep! Curled up like he'd been there before. I had the distinct impression he was just resting from a long journey. I continued to read my book and he slept for awhile, then had a drink from the bowl of water that was out for the cats and then he was on his way. Weird!
Last summer I answered a knock at my front door to find five kids with one of them holding a kitten in her arms. "Are you the Cat Lady?" one of them asked. I laughed to myself, because I've heard people call me that before. I don't mind it, as long as everyone realizes I'm not like the crazy cat lady on The Simpsons who throws her cats at everyone she meets, while muttering insanely under her breath. For the record, I don't throw cats at people, but I do tend to mutter under my breath from time to time.
Anyway, the kids heard about me and thought I could find a home for the cat. So, I phoned a place and the cat found a new home. Today, I have five cats that visit every day. One is blind in one eye, another sounds like my recently deceased cat Jinx and I have my mind on adopting him (if he'll trust me), another is black and white and very thin, he needs a home desperately and the two others belong to my neighbours who apparently don't realize that it is a $75 fine in London to let your cats wander.
Drawbacks to being the Cat Lady? The cats like to mark their territory to let the other cats know they should stop coming around, so they spray my windows. Advantages? My daughter is out everyday cleaning the windows. Ah...ain't life grand!
