It was a Christmas party. The red covered buffet table was spread with an assortment of my food specialities. Directly in the center of the table was a large, expensive, Honey Baked Ham. As I took one last satisfied glance before calling my guests in to eat I saw Lucky, my fluffy, grey cat at the time throughly enjoying the ham. In a matter of two minutes someone had inadvertently let the cat in and Lucky had managed to find the best food in the house.

I never tell people that I have five cats. Old ladies always have cats and that’s one stereotype that I try not to be obvious about. Sometimes people look at me questioningly when I place five dozen cans of Fancy Feast,  a huge bag of Kit and Kaboodle and several cans of cheap tuna on the counter. Mostly, I ignore them.

Did you ever notice the difference in pet food customers? Dog owners walk directly to their chosen brand of dry dog food throw it into the shopping cart and are on their way. Cat owners ponder. They walk slowly up and down the supermarket aisle and you can almost hear their thought processes. ” Did Fluffy like tender liver and chicken or was that the one I had to throw away?”

Yes, I have five cats but not one of them by choice. Doesn’t that make me less weird? Patches was pulled from a neighbors garage, on her way to the humane society. Smudge was the only live kitten among several dead ones in the middle of a dark country road. My husband stopped, opened the door of his truck, and Smudge jumped in and settled immediately on his lap. MoJo, no bigger than a Coke can, mewing pitifully in a store parking lot one bitterly cold winter’s night. By now you’ve gotten the idea, my husband and I have soft hearts and thus five cats.

I know these are evil thoughts but I never thought all of the cats would survive. They are allowed to go outdoors and we live in the country. All animal experts say that this is not the best lifestyle for cats, but, all of my cats are thriving. They look both ways before crossing the road and run very fast when they do it. Their tree climbing skills are excellent and they always come down no matter how high they go.

Most of the cats have used a few of their nine lives and my job is to keep them from using that last one. Patches took a ride in a construction trailer to a town an hour away from our home and had the good sense to wait for us to come and rescue her. Both Smudge and MoJo were locked in vehicles for several hours before being released. They have been found in closets, hampers, and on the tops of cupboards. I think I have too many cats but I pay the occasional three hundred dollar vet bill to make sure they survive.

They assume that anyone that comes to our house loves them and would love to have them on their lap. They often wait patiently for their turn at lap sitting and if all are agreeable two or three of them will share the same lap. I hate what they do to my furniture, clothing, and life. I complain often, but when they are not around I look for them and worry about them.There is something very comforting about having a warm, purring body close by. Although I did not plan or want so many cats they are a part of my life and I am a part of theirs.