Crazy cat lady.

Cally

My coworkers think I'm a crazy cat lady.  I mean, who else has to leave work because her cat has a Senior Wellness exam appointment at the vet?

On Christmas morning of 1996 (or 1997?  I was like 10 or 11), I woke up around 3 a.m. needing to go to the bathroom.  It was too early to wake my parents for presents, but I was so excited that I just couldn't sleep anymore.  Since the bathroom I shared with my sister was close to my parents' room, I didn't want to wake anyone up by flushing... so after sneaking a peek at the gifts under the tree (and doing a victory dance!) I tiptoed downstairs to use the basement bathroom.  (I was such a considerate child...)

I love when she naps and rolls around into cute poses.

When I opened the bathroom door, I was immediately surprised to see a little cat, very timid and adorable, sitting by the toilet.  I quickly shut the door, screamed internally (you know, when you're so excited and you're screaming on the inside and your mouth is open and your eyes are closed because it's just so much emotion?) and ran back upstairs.  I totally forgot that I had to pee and climbed back into bed, waiting with my eyes wide open for four more hours to wake up my parents.

Sure enough, that little kitty cat was one of our Christmas presents that year!  We named her Cally (for California, I might add) and the little tortie (tortoiseshell cat) became a fixture in my life.  She chose me as her person, and even though I worried she'd forget me when I went to college, every time I came home she slept at the foot of my bed.  When I got my own place, she made the 15-hour drive to live with me and kept me company.  She's the one animal I think my anti-pet Mom secretly cares about, and I'm convinced Cally thinks she's a dog; she greets me at the door every day, knows when I'm sad and need a buddy, and spends every night at the foot of my bed.

She likes to sit in my bags to prevent me from going on trips.

Today, when I took Cally to the vet for her checkup, I was worried.  She's 15+ years old, and I've spent over half of my life with her.  As I watched her have blood drawn, I felt like a nervous parent at the doctor's office.  She was so scared to be out of the house, it made me an emotional mess!   But, in spite of some weight loss (she's so skinny now!) and being a senior citizen in the feline world, Cally's tests all came back normal.  The vet just came in and said, "This cat is great!"  I smiled and thought, "That's an understatement."

She's the subject of 99% of my iPhone photos.  :)  What a great buddy I have.  So call me a Crazy Cat Lady...  because I'm definitely crazy over this one.