Cat Appreciation Day

In honor of today's Cat Appreciation Day, undoubtedly designated a special day by someone with too much time on their hands,  I present to you "Izzy".  She's the second prettiest cat I've ever seen.

Izzy is my cat, although two cats make our house their home. Sport is the other, a 15-year old with a giant personality and energy to put most kittens to shame.  But Izzy is mine.

She was once a wild cat, living under the neighbor's porch for two years. Through snow, cold, rain, she lived there, and how she managed to keep herself beautiful -- not caked in mud -- is a mystery.

Began putting food out for her, then in winter added a small warming blanket. She was always around, adopting us slowly, and we always wondered,  "Is he out there?"   "Is he", became Izzy. One spring, we discovered Izzy was being especially friendly to the neighborhood tom cats, guessed Izzy was in fact a female (duh!) had her fixed, and officially changed her name to Isabella.

At about the same time we moved into a new house, we lost Bernadette, a dear 17-year old cat. We wanted a pair of cats so they could play, so we picked up Izzy and introduced her to the new house.

Never did I think she would submit to living inside, after being outdoors her entire life. But we gave it a shot. Five years ago, I put her down on the thick, soft carpet and she's not stepped outside since.  You could see the thoughts-- "Hm, carpet, regular food, soft places to sleep, no dogs, no snow, people who love me. Life is good."

She was a svelte feline when she adopted us, but five years of good food has made her blossom. Although she doesn't appreciate the nickname "Wide Load" and gives a dirty look to whoever calls her that, it's true.  She's double Sport's weight. We wanted another cat so Sport would have a playmate.  Sport plays, Izzy watches.

Izzy isn't the lap cat I had hoped for, because her first two years spent dodging pit bulls, cars, kids on bikes made her very careful and timid. She hears everything, and is wary of even the tiniest squeak or creak in the house.

But every night, she sneaks up on the bed, and I brush her long hair for a few minutes. She purrs, I purr, and life is good.



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Signs that your cat is too fat, from the web site   http://www.joke-archives.com/cats.html

• Confused guests constantly mistaking her for beanbag chair.
• Fewer calls to the fire department, but a sudden upsurge in broken branches.
• No longer cleans itself unless coated in Cheese Whiz.
• Catfood dish replaced with Rush Limbaugh trough.
• It's no longer safe to lift her without a spotter.
• Waits for the third bowl of food to get finicky.
• She only catches mice that get trapped in her gravitational pull.
• Enormous gut keeps your hardwood floors freshly buffed.
• Has more chins than lives.