1. I haven’t ironed a single piece of clothing for work. But I do show up with cat hair on everything.
The first part is definitely true. I used to iron my clothes the night before work, or if I forgot, then in the morning, even if it would make me late. Maybe, when I gained weight during The Breakup/depression, the new clothes I bought were less wrinkle-prone, but coincidentally, that was also when I adopted Clea and Oreo. The truth is out there, but I’m not sure which came first—the chicken or the egg.
As for cat hair, well, I actually try NOT to show up at work with it on my clothes, but sometimes, no matter how hard and often you use a lint brush (and I have THE BEST one), there is always a stray or four to be seen.
2. When something is on the floor, instead of picking it up, I just walk around it.
This happened the other day, which is what prompted me to make this list. Why pick it up when it will just end up on the floor again? How many times have I had to pick up the garbage strewn on my kitchen floor only to have to pick it up again because Coal loves to get in the plastic temporary garbage bag and tear it apart? Just for fun. Because he can.
3. I keep the toilet paper under the sink.
It is a common practice among cat lovers to take photos or videos of their cats unrolling or chewing up the toilet paper instead of rushing to grab the roll to salvage what’s left. (And in fact, it is an acceptable/good practice to take photos of anything bad rather than stopping the behaviour, because we love our cat photos.) In my house, Coal is the only one who has ever targeted the toilet paper. He stopped doing it when he got older in my old apartment. But when we moved into our condo five years ago, he acquired a renewed sense of TP madness. I once got creative and bought a toilet paper guard (yes, there really is such a thing. It’s apparently a baby safety item!). That worked for a good few months. Of course, my visitors were annoyed (it’s not hard to open, people), but my cats take priority. And then Coal outsmarted me and figured out how to unlock the guard. And so, now, the toilet paper is in the cupboard under the bathroom sink. Thankfully, I can reach for it from the toilet seat.
4. My tolerance for dust and cat hair is beyond high.
I used to be such a neat freak. Not Monica-crazy-OCD clean, but enough that my apartment was never full of clutter, laundry was always folded, and dishes were done as I cooked (ok, maybe a little OCD). When we moved into our brand new condo, it was such a treat because it was so sparkly clean, I had a dishwasher and insuite laundry, and I didn’t have to go outside to get to the garbage/recycling bins. And then little by little, there was always a dust monster or two even after I vacuumed, tiny particles of litter under my feet, and dried cat food on the walls. Everywhere I go, there is cat hair. Even when I cook, I’ll find a stray cat hair on my plate. HOW DID IT GET THERE?!!!! When I have people over, I have to spend a week cleaning, just for one evening. That’s why I don’t have people over very often. It’s too much freaking work! I’d rather just sit on my FURniture alone and watch TV.
5. I don’t shower on weekends because I don’t need to impress my cats.
Ok, I admit that sometimes I don’t shower on weekdays either. I frequently sleep through my alarm, so I’m usually late for work. And my hair is sooo long now that I can curl it on days I don’t shower or put it up in a messy bun and not worry about it. But weekends are the best. My cats don’t care and wouldn’t even know the difference between smelly me and non-smelly me.
6. I yell a lot more.
Coal and his protégé Wilbur are the naughtiest kittens you’ll meet in my house. I yell at them a lot. And sometimes, I use the wrong name. That’s when you know you have too many cats. Maybe I can attach the spray bottle to my new selfie stick…
7. I talk about cats all the time.
I have always liked cats, preferred cats, wanted cats. Dogs, not so much. I had no affinity towards them and would stay clear of them on the street. I especially hated it when they would jump on me and lick me. Yeach! But since I got my mogwoppits, my feelings towards other animals (dogs, lol) have transitioned from tolerance to love. I now stop and pet dogs, let them lick my hand, let them jump on me. The key change is a love of all animals and my advocacy against abuse and cruelty, including the “food” industry. But, back to cats. Yes, I talk about them all the time, I watch cat videos every chance I get, and I post photos every day. And if you don’t like that, you can meow off.
8. I do a lot more laundry.
When I have to. Because Coal has taken to peeing on my bed if the litter box isn’t clean enough by his standards. Recently, in one week, I had to put my bedding in the laundry three times! But while I do a lot more laundry, I don’t always fold it right away. Sometimes, I’m just too tired.
9. My camera happy trigger finger is ready at all times.
It used to be my real camera; now, it’s my smartphone. It’s always ready, I’m always ready, but sometimes, the kitties are too quick, and they move or change positions in the moment right before I take the photo. I used to print photos for albums, but now thank goodness for social media. {All photos in this post are courtesy of social media albums.}
10. I am content to be alone, as long as I have my cats next to me.
As I’ve alluded to many times before, The Breakup was the death of me. I wish I had adopted a cat right after that. But it was a year and a half before I did. I adopted Clea and Oreo, and then two months later, I sought out Coal. My life changed. I was finally healing. And in fact, I wrote about them when I first started this blog. And a year later, Wilbur came into my world (Wilbur was my foster fail).
I spent two years alone—I didn’t date, I didn’t talk to any of my old flames, I didn’t care. I realized that I was content to be alone. For the rest of my life. I didn’t need a man, and I didn’t even want one. If I was never in a relationship again, I was fine with that. I only needed myself to feel whole.
But I would die if I didn’t have my cats. ?
~~~~~~~~
Elle Superstar is passionate about animal rights, cat rescue (she has six! see the new additions), veganism, music, and travel. For more laughs, visit her blog, Full Circle.
Tsk, tsk… A lovely post but several misconceptions. Perhaps mademoiselle Colette and madame Simone will have to address these issues in a future post. All-in-all, thank you! 🙂
What do you mean by misconceptions?
I had my fur- any Jamima for 16 years before I had to take her the vet that final time earlier this year. Over those years I had boyfriends come and go in that time. Housemates too. Some good, most terrible. The diagnosis, treatment of my AVM and then the development of my disability. But my Jamima was there through it all. You cannot do better than the love of a cat! Cheers,H
<3
Love it! I can totally relate to this post…! Especially the bit about taking photos on my smartphone, and bring guilty of talking about cats to anyone who will listen!? Although your kitties sound like so much fun, do they do any ‘interior design’!? Gizmo has a skill (I use ‘skill’ in the loosest possible way) for stripping wallpaper!? He gets so excited when he’s torn off a bit and parades it round the kitchen!? Leanne (Gizmos Human Slave) x
Haha Gizmo! Mine don’t have any design skills, but each one matches a different colour schemes in my rooms. 😀
While cute post, lot most of these things root from:
a.) lazy, and (not or)
b.) not capable to teach/raise pets, have absolutely no clue about.
Ah, the yelling and spraying. That’s your problem. Cats love getting a reaction. No reaction, and they don’t bother to torment any more. Simple! 🙂
This is so true! LOL
We feel the same at home, not only cats but rats, degu, mice and pouchies, a real family 😉
Ha! Did I write this post? 😀 I very well could have–love it!
glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Hahaha, thanks!!
Just wonderful! If you live with cats … even one … you can relate. I love it
🙂
I just adopted a 5yr old cat named Leo just after my longtime companion Scabbers who had adopted me by the way. Adopting a pet is such a rewarding thing. To give your heart to a creature that need you as much as they need you.
I’m so happy you adopted an older cat! I volunteer in cat rescue and see so many who need homes. <3
I love not showering at weekends as you don’t have to impress the cats. What a relief!
Don’t forget I had my cat before I knew the Boyfriend or GF… The cat wins over you they’ve already been there for me through my worst time and WHY I am still here!
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Amazing! Cat has changed someones life, maybe many more too.