August 7th, 2007 | by Michael
1 to 3 then 3 to 1 and back to 3 Cats
I must be crazy, because, prior to meeting my wife Jacky, back in 1988, cats were definitely not on my radar. My only relationship with cats was when I was a young boy growing up in Philadelphia, I was deathly allergic to the cats I came in contact with. As far as I was concerned cats had no place in my life because of my reaction: severe runny nose and sneezing attacks. This only made me want to run as far away as possible for fear of chronic sneezing episodes. I would avoid any social events at people’s houses that would have the company of cats as part of the party mix. I really started to hate the little buggers, which led me to believe that all cats were evil.
Well it all shifted in a big way when I started dating Jacky. Not only to discover she had simply a cat, but the biggest, fluffiest, prissiest long haired angora calico I’d ever laid my eyes on. My normal reaction when dating women with cats was that I would blame the cat and that the relationship was dangerous for me to continue in a healthy manner. In this case for some reason I decided to hang in there when I met Jacky’s cat to see if it was possible to beat this curse. Naturally the furry beast decides to like me, to nuzzle up to me and demand my attention. She must have sensed my fear, because this kitty was having none of my frosty behavior. She wanted to be fondled, and make sure she got all of her precious dander under my finger nails to savor for a delayed allergy attack at a most inappropriate moment, such as a movie theater, followed by a symphony of sneezes, red eyes and a runny nose to share with the whole theater.
And then something shifted, my ultimate fear and exhausted series of sneezing turned into a less traumatic experience of less sniffles and fewer sneezes whenever I hung with Cali and Jacky, and then the magic of acclimating to cat dander started taking effect, I was fine with even nuzzling these furry creatures without a sniffle or an earth shattering series of sneezes. Finally cured, this enabled me to actually interact and have a meaningful relationship with a women and a cat, without running off in blurry tears and runny nose.
Then I started going overboard with kitties. Every time I would run into a cat on the streets or someone’s home, I had to make some sort of connection with the creature. The obsession really got out of control, when Jacky and I ended up acquiring two other cats; a big grey tabby; Mac and Sienna, a burnt orange colored Manx (tailless cat bred from the Isle of Man UK) while living in Vermont. Now we had a household of three kitties, and for me it was a sneeze free environment. I was beside myself with joy, to go from “run and hide”, to having three cats sleep in the same bed with me.
Since then, we have lost two of the kitties; Cali and Mac. Just after Mac passed away, I found myself wandering into the SPCA in San Francisco to take a peek at some other kitties in need of a good home. Damn, I found one; a goofy mustachioed black & white short hair and proudly carted him home to meet up with our lone cat Sienna. Shortly after I found Jesper from the SPCA, Jacky showed me a small clipping in the paper for a . I have always been intrigued with these cats with almost no ears or at least what’s left of its tiny ears are folded forward onto its head, and large round eyes that make them look like an owl. I decided to drive 2 hours south of San Francisco to check this little guy out. Well, I fell in love with this cat, which has a sweet and gentle demeanor. I made the two hour trek back to the city with Rufus, to complete our new posse of three cats, again.
One thing I’ve learned, in the past I really thought that cats and chocolate didn’t mix well in my life … since then I’ve gone from one to three, then three to one and back to three again. Who would have thought I would become a cat person?
Cheers, Michael
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(6) Comments |
Hi Michael, what a cute story! I came across your blog while writing a short post about artist Brian Barneclo on my blog. I don’t have any cat myself (however I do have tons of backyard critters), but I LOVE them. Your cats are all so adorable!! I am so glad you overcome you cat allergy. Cheers! (I love your chocolates. They are truly beautiful!)
# Posted by: flora: August 18th, 2007 at 10:36 amflora from http://www.sleepyjellyfish.blogspot.com
thats how i ended up with four!!..and we always had dozens of cats in india..at one point, there were over 2 dozen cats in the house because my husband’s father thought that a kitty that wandered into the house was a boy while he was..well..a girl. and pregnant. oops. but of course, that was a huge house and there was a huge backyard…they were all outdoor neighbourhood community cats. and they were all loafers, i am telling you!..always disappearing in search of their next adventure..but they always came back home for food and a warm bed.
i also run this with some friends > http://catsofbangalore.blogspot.com even tho’…i am no longer in bangalore….recently, i started this> http://adoptstrays.blogspot.com its ridiculous because i am not even there in bangalore, but i think part of me is always lingering about somewhere in india, playing with the stray dogs and cats..the nameless, faceless ones..
anyways, i am impressed that you are now acclimitised to cat dander. allergies are the no:1 reason why most people wont keep pets. i ahve heard of allergic folks getting used to living with the allergens without problems, but this is the first time i have actually heard an actual case! thanks..i’ll be quoting you as a real life example from now on!
btw..my calico(i brought her with me from india…named CaliKat) is the smartest cat in the world..as all calicos are…and also with the world’s biggest attitude!..again, as all calicos are…its like genetic or something. there is something about calicos, isnt there?
well..cheers!
# Posted by: catsjellicle: August 20th, 2007 at 10:27 amI loved your story….I have my own of course….stories for each of the 3 I have…..so great to hear an allergetic, non-catlover man, fall in love-with cats, that is….over and over again. My first cat appeared out of nowhere……how did he know I had a huge spider problem
# Posted by: Teri Kellogg: September 25th, 2007 at 3:30 pm(I lived in a rural area in central Florida)……so I named him ANGEL. Then a big furry, cheshire looking cat (Alice and Wonderland) appeared one day on my deck. I wasn’t supposed to have anymore so I called him TABOO, but it got shortened to BOO after his first thunderstorm with me. My third adoptee, a kitten, who drove me crazy, hence the name, MISHUGANA, (it’s a yiddish word my grandmother used all the time) or MISHA for short. She was in a puddle in a rental car parking lot with gum in her hair heading towards the street. What else could I do?????
Thanks again for your story and giving me an opportunity to share mine……from one cat lover to another. There are alot of us out there,
and alot of strays too……TK
I loved your story, too. We design and sell gourmet food gift boxes. So I was checking out your sight for work and ran into your cat story.
I did not think I was a cat person either. But just like the poster Teri, my first cat found me! Our second was rescued on a 5 lane highway by a guy on a motorcycle. And as soon as I saw her at the vets, I knew she was coming home with me.
It seems like three is a good number. So I know when the timing is right … we will find number 3!
Thanks for your story!
# Posted by: Tracy: November 12th, 2007 at 8:22 amI know I’m late to this post, but I just had to comment. I had a Scottish Fold cat named Stutz (like the car, Stutz Bearcat) for about 18 years, he just passed away in November 2007. I miss him tremendously! Stutz was the most clever, interesting and personality-laden cat I’ve ever met – and many other people told me the same thing. I hope you have as many (or even more) years with your little flat-eared cat as I did. Congratulations on your furry family!
# Posted by: Digigirl: August 13th, 2008 at 12:29 pmI live on Maui and LOVE your chocolate. I also Trap, Neuter, Spay release and feed several colonies of cats here on Maui. I have 12 cats at my home ( I live on 15 acres) and about 50 cats down the road at three colonies. To date I have been involved in close to 300 cats being neutered and spayed. It was so sad when I would visit the island and see so many sick and starving cats so when i moved here I wanted to do something to help them.
# Posted by: Cheri: August 24th, 2009 at 1:09 pmThe hawaiian name for cats means poor kitty. there is a big problem with feral cats on all the islands.
Cats are very special fur people.