by Deborah Barnes – Author of The Chronicles of Zee & Zoey – A Journey of the Extraordinarily Ordinary

One, two, three or more cats – there are just some things to which any cat guardian can relate. Case in point: I know for a fact that I have seven cats. I have a beautiful photo to prove it; I even know all of their names and can recognize them properly about 90% of the time without getting them mixed up. So, why does it seem like there are dozens of cats living in the house?

Several months ago, during the Christmas holidays when my kids came to visit, it seemed like everywhere I turned there were cats. I’m making cookies and am surrounded by them, their fur, and their dander (my secret ingredient). When I was wrapping presents, they were all over the place – some of them sitting on wrapping paper, some chewing on ribbon and some hiding inside empty gift bags. When we sat on the couch to watch Christmas movies, it was like a conveyor belt of cats as we saw them randomly walking to and fro with an air of confidence and urgency past the TV. And why is it that for no apparent reason, a cat just feels the need to get up and walk from one point to another? I could understand it if they were going to the litter box or the food dish, but no, they just get up and walk a few feet away from where they were previously standing.

Even the simplest of activities becomes a cat convention for me. A quick trip to the bathroom has at least one cat on my lap. Obviously I don’t want to be sitting on the toilet all day while my cat decides this is the ideal opportunity to get acquainted and bond with me. When I am sitting on a regular chair with all the time in the world, the cats won’t come near me. Well, unless it is my office chair and I have important work to get done. Then, there is always a cat sitting smack in the center of it without any hint of moving on my behalf. So, yes, I do perch precariously on the edge of the chair so as not to wake the darling. The remaining throng of cats will be on top of the keyboard and blocking the monitor. I could have sworn the office was empty when I walked into the room…

At night, before I go to bed, I always get my clothes ready for work for the next day. I think I am completely alone, but as soon as I open the closet door, it is literally instantly filled with cats. How do they do that? And how is it that they are already on the top shelf? When I finally get to bed and try to get some sleep, there seems to be an endless changing of the guards as one cat after another tries to find that perfect “snuggle spot” on the bed (or my head). When I wake up in the morning to get ready for work, stumbling to get out of bed, I feel like I have tripped over at least a dozen cats before I make it to the bathroom. The last thing I do before I leave for work is scoop litter boxes. No sooner am I done scooping one box when a cat appears to use it again. I move on to the next litter box to find another cat waiting. Sigh…

It’s like those little sponge capsules we got as kids – just add water and watch the creatures grow!! The only time I feel like we don’t have any cats at all is when the cat carrier comes out. Oddly enough, all the cats then vanish without a trace of evidence.

About the Author

Deborah Barnes currently resides in South Florida and after an unexpected life-changing event she decided to follow her dreams of becoming an author, using the relationship of her cats as inspiration for her first book. She is also the author of the popular blog, Zee & Zoey’s Chronicle Connection. Visit Deborah at: http://www.zeezoey.com