Yeah, a little off topic, I know. But cats are an important part of my daily life. Plus, they’re adorable.
The reason I’m posting about cats goes back a month or so now. At my school, every kid in my grade has to take a mandatory 9-week speech class. During that time, we had three speeches to present. After the second one, our teacher asked us all what we wanted her to ask our parents for. Thus, per my request, she sent home an email saying that they should get me a kitten.
A few days ago, we were headed home and my mother detoured to the local animal shelter. As could be expected, I was over-the-top excited and couldn’t wait to meet everyone. We started by greeting the older cats, the youngest of whom was a shy brown tabby named Omelette. We liked the cats, but we were looking for someone young enough to keep our older girls, June and Diane, on their toes, with a strong enough personality to compete.
So we went to meet the kittens (oh, the horrors!). There were only three, two of whom were Omelette’s offspring: Bacon and Eggs (nice, imaginative naming, guys!). They shared her quiet and skittish personality, but the third, a white and black who was at the time called Haley, came right up in our faces, asking for attention. She was constantly purring and bounding around, so we decided that she was the perfect choice.
As could be expected, there was a little trouble in introductions, leading to at least a day of the older girls hissing, growling and frantically pawing whenever any other cat came close. The kitten just kept bolting around and exploring, though, so eventually the other two came around.
Next was the matter of naming: we already have a relative named Haley, so we knew that the kitten’s would have to change. Mom rooted for Eowyn, but I decided that she was more of an Arwen. I prevailed and we officially named my kitten after an elf.
Cats are excellent companions, for both entertainment and cuddly purposes. They are, true to stereotype, very mischievous, but I can assure you that black cats are not bad luck. Quite on the contrary, in some places they are considered good luck! Those places are correct, as I spent the first 9 years of my life with a black cat in the household. During that time, I (or my parents) won everything from little raffles to a car at a baseball game (Camry 2012, Cubs game). I never managed to break a bone, get a cavity or require glasses, which is only somewhat luck, but I count myself fortunate anyways.
Can somebody tell me where that superstition came from anyways? But seriously, if you haven’t done so today (and you aren’t allergic,) go pet a cat!
