Why I’m Okay With Being a Crazy Cat Lady
We have four cats.
Just saying that, I cringe knowing the judgement I face. People imagine a hairy, gross home with cats scratching violently throughout. In some ways, they are correct . . .I do have to run my Dyson every other day, and there is usually a cat scratching the back of the couch at any given moment. But I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Growing up, we always had cats. One of the earliest pictures of me is one of me holding a bunch of kittens as a baby. I think my fate was sealed right there. Nonetheless, growing up, I wasn’t a crazy cat lady. Cats were okay, but I was a dog person.
But when I turned 21, my mom fell for a cat in the Sunday paper. She had been in the Humane Society for an entire year, and something about that just pulled at my mom (also a cat lady, by the way. And her mom was a cat lady, so I guess it is genetic). Before I knew it, we were adopting our second cat, a cat whom I would become obsessed with.
The cat’s name was Penelope, a name we didn’t care for. While my mom was reading through name choices in the name book, the name Jimmie Dean was listed for some odd reason. The cat ran over meowing when she said this, so the female cat’s name became Jimmie. She loved her name.
From the beginning, Jimmie was a challenge. She had an ear infection and an eye infection. When we took her to the vet, we also found out that she wasn’t two like the Humane Society had told us . . .she was 12. It didn’t matter, though, because after a few weeks, I was in love with the geriatric cat.
Over the years, Jimmie and I were best friends. She would sit on my lap, scratching Chad (who was then my fiancé) if he got too close. She slept with me, her paw resting on me all night. When I bought my first house, she moved in with us. She was sassy, expressive, and truly my soul cat.
So because of one cat, a somewhat grumpy, old cat nonetheless, I became an instant cat person. I realized how wonderful cats are. They are independent and easy to take care of, sure. But more than that, they are highly intelligent and soulful. They do build a connection with you that is hard to beat. Perfect cuddle companions, sassy enough to make you laugh . . .I was doomed to be a cat lady from that day we picked up Jimmie.
My husband and I have had quite the cat collection over the two years we’ve been in our house. Over the series of many crazy events, we ended up with Amelia, who was found under a car in the 100 degree heat; Arya, who was abandoned by her mother in December at only a few weeks old; Bob, who I adopted from Mending Hearts after Jimmie passed away . . .his owner went to a nursing home; and Alice, our devilish cat, who was born to the stray cat my Mom saved. We also had a cat named Sophia who died from a rare genetic disease at four months old. I miss her every dya. All of our cats were unwanted in one way or another, making them super clingy. When you come to our house, you know we have four cats because they will all greet you.
People say we’re crazy, and maybe we are. Four cats is past the socially acceptable threshold for many people. But I don’t care. All four of them bring something to our lives. Most of all, they remind us that although we can’t save every suffering animal, we can change one’s life . . .or four.
If you’re thinking about donating to a cause that supports cats, check out Mending Hearts from Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania. This wonderful no-kill shelter does amazing work. It’s where we adopted Bob from. The ladies there are so passionate about saving animals.
Lindsay Detwiler, Voice of Innocence
