My energy tank is low, as is my cache of inspiration. In these times, I find it best to turn to the easiest thing. The silly thing. The things that I love. So today I write about cats.

One reason my energy tank is low is that Cloud decided he was lonely at 1 a.m. last night and sang the song of his people until I got up at 5 a.m. Aang and Cloud are the first cats I’ve ever had to lock out of my bedroom. Although most cats will get you up before you’re ready on the weekends, these two developed a habit of coming in during the middle of the night, banging the blinds against the window—I’m not kidding—and yowling when they wanted human attention. Aang has even resorted to leaping from the top of the eight-foot-tall bookcase onto my stomach when he really wants something. He is thirteen pounds, so this does not feel pleasant by any stretch of the imagination. Back to last night.

I knew they weren’t out of food. When they’re out of food, Aang will join in. He’s actually pretty good at leaving us alone overnight unless his food bowl is empty. The impulse to open the door and yell at them to shut up is there, or open the door ‘just to check,’ but here’s the thing, that will only reward the behavior. Cloud’s entire goal is to get me to come into the rest of the house to break up the monotony of his evening, so I just have to lay there and listen to him yowl. At some point I did hear him and Aang crashing around in a tussle, which made me happy, because that’s why we got two of them but it didn’t last long.

That being the introduction, let’s start with the cons!

Cats find a closed door to be an insult to their very existence. Cloud will often meow at the back door if I’m in the kitchen. He’s even tall enough to reach up and wrap his little paws around the knob. This is the thing, he’s terrified of being outdoors ever since a motorcycle revved a little too loudly when we had them in the backyard on their leashes. He doesn’t want to BE outside. He just wants the option to be available to him.
When they are bored, they will fuck shit up. Older cats are less likely to do this because they’re tired. And don’t get me wrong, young cats like sleeping too, but they need to be occupied. Ours have a plethora of toys in a toybox easily accessible to them. They get toys out of it all the time. We always leave one cardboard box on the floor because Cloud will chew on cords or the cabinets if he doesn’t have a cardboard box to chew on. Sometimes he’ll chew on other things anyway. When Jake was young, I couldn’t keep house plants unless they were VERY prickly cacti that could defend themselves.
They are very furry. This could also fall in the ‘good’ category, because they’re so soft and cuddly, but I have to make a conscious effort not to pet them when they wind around my legs in the bathroom first thing in the morning until AFTER I put my contact lenses in. It gets everywhere. Vacuuming and de-hairing furniture before friends come over is a thing. Jake was a hypoallergenic and didn’t shed much. Dean did not believe this about him until we got these other cats. If I were the kind of person that made my own yard, I would totally make a skein of cathair yarn.

Going somewhere? Not without our inspection.

I love these guys to death. When I open the front door, whether I’ve been gone for the weekend, for a couple hours, a run, or even just went to check the mail, the cats are there to greet me. I love them to death. Every now and then, Aang just NEEDS me to hold him. He has a special meow for this and will reach his paws up to grab onto the waistband of my pants until I lift him into my arms like a small child. When I sleep in on the weekends, Cloud likes to come cuddle in the crook of my elbow, resting his head on my chest, with his arm stretched across my stomach. I wouldn’t trade them for anything. Let’s talk about the good.

They can be just as affectionate as dogs, they merely set boundaries. I actually find that if a person ‘hates’ cats, it’s often because they don’t like it when they have to respect a boundary. Your mileage may vary, and the boundaries are as individual as the cats. Cloud certainly has more boundaries than Aang. If Aang decides to sit on your lap, you can pet him. If Cloud sits on your lap, he would prefer not to be touched in most cases.
They keep the rodent and bug population at bay. We live in the south, bugs and rodents are a thing even if you spray regularly. If we grill outside in the summer, there’s a 90% chance that a fly will get into the house at some point during the comings and goings. Before, we just had to wait for that fly to die or escape—rarely were we quick enough to smack it—but now we have Aang the Hunter. Both cats will chase the fly, but Aang is aces at catching them and eating them. No muss no fuss. He will go after any bug he sees.
They’re low maintenance. For all of their quirks, you can leave them at home for hours at a time with no notice and you don’t have to worry that they’ll have an accident or destroy the furniture in a panic. They’re also unlikely to attack the mailman and really more likely to run and hide if a guest they don’t care for arrives at your house. I’ve also found them pretty easy to travel with.
Something about having them around is soothing, even when they run around like maniacs. After Jake died, I was heartbroken and didn’t think I was ready for another cat. It was Dean who eventually pushed after a few months, saying he missed ‘another presence in the house.’ We have countless pictures of the cats sleeping in various places, sitting in ways we think are cute or proper, videos of their wrestling matches, basically we can’t keep ourselves from documenting their very existence, almost every aspect of which we find pleasing. I even have a video of Aang scaring himself coming out of the litterbox.

I think one of the best parts of sharing your life with another being is their ability to surprise you. (It can be scary too, but…) It’s why A.I. and robots just aren’t the same. There’s something about that organic quirkiness that just trumps all. That said, here’s the unexpected:

Cats absolutely can be trained. (If you have the patience.) We were fortunate enough to get Aang and Cloud as kittens as well as having the advantage of my now near-lifetime experience with cats. Claw trimming with these two is easier than any cat I’ve ever had because we started them as kittens and gave them beaucoup de treats after their trimmings. Now one sees the other one’s claws getting trimmed and comes running to make sure he gets his share of treats. They’re not bad during the trimming either! I also taught them both to sit. This has mixed results when they’re excited, as one will sit first, decide that’s enough, and get up before the other one settles down enough to sit, but if I feel like waiting it out, I can get them both to sit nicely before I give them their treat. Cloud will sometimes even sit in anticipation of what he wants.
They will learn your patterns and even anticipate them. Cloud knows that I go to bed around 9 p.m. and likes to do a little bit of reserved cuddling during that time. Often I’ll find him waiting on the bed already. Aang knows that when I’m working on the treadmill desk, he’ll be allowed there for a bit longer if he doesn’t step on the keyboard. He has learned to avoid the keyboard on my regular desk also, although it’s easier there.
They know very well what they’re not supposed to do, and they’ll often do more of it when you’re in the room to get your attention. Yes, certainly some naughtiness happens where we can’t see it (they know when to do that also), but any time I’m not at my desk, my pens, notebooks, and sundries are allowed to rest unmolested. If a cat wants something from me, nothing on my desk surface is safe from chewing, pawing, or tossing.
They will talk to you, and you’ll learn to tell their voices apart from rooms away. Aang has a special high-pitched, sympathy-inducing mew for when he wants me to pick him up and let him rest across my shoulders. Cloud has a special little ‘brrrrr?’ for when he wants to know what’s going on. It’s a little bit query, a little bit demanding. Although both of them can be incredibly loud when they want to be, I can tell if it’s Aang or Cloud yowling.

Do you have cats? Share your cat stories. Let’s have a chill weekend of just talking about cats and lowering our blood pressure.

Cats: The Good, The Bad, and the Unexpected (cats are never ugly)