About the cat

    Five years ago about this time of year, then-girlfriend Alice brought home a second cat. I was not overly thrilled about this, as I was already allergic to the first cat. I hid in my room for a week or so in hopes that my eyes would one day stop streaming. Then, not being a complete idiot, I changed the HVAC filter and things gradually got better.
    One week, Alice went out of town, so I was left to be the sole catkeeper. Along with feeding them and seeing to litter boxes, I came out once per evening to give out scritches. And the new cat, Amelia, decided that I was Jesus McAllah O'Buddha. Nothing that has happened since has swayed her from this opinion, for reasons that are completely beyond me.
    Shortly thereafter, I threw open my door and she glommed onto me like a barnacle. I was sleeping on a sofa. (Not that it was all that cold a relationship; it was just that Alice and I both snored.) Whenever I rolled over, Amelia climbed to the new highest point. This went on for months, before she finally became comfortable enough to sleep somewhere not on my actual person. It was extremely endearing.
    Over the years, Amelia has had many names. At Project Pet, she was called Zola. Alice named her Amelia, but I almost immediately tagged her as The Monkey. Since then I've called her Zippy McFlibbet (the morning one), Extreme Closeup the Cat, Sweetie Sweetie Sweet Sweet, Sillyhead, Headbutt, Little Kitty Foo Foo (because once she bopped the older cat on the head) and a few dozen other names.
    Alice was a good sport to let me in her life for seven years and in her house for three but when she got fed up and asked me to leave, she couldn't break up the team, so Amelia came with me. In the two-odd years since, with no need to impress anyone with my creativity, I mainly call her Pooh or Boo, though she'll still come if I look away from her and say, "WHERE'S my monkey?!" I always say that she has more names than God, but is less mysterious.
    She is about seven years old now, which means she should have at least another ten years to run. I am so looking forward to it.