Sharing

Sharing one's life with house pets is tremendously comforting.  They are funny, capricious, and, in the case of the dog, grateful, steadfast and loyal.  I'm not so sure about the cats.  Cats are more aloof and demanding.  We train dogs, cats train us.  Cats do not recognize personal space.  All space is their space, and if they want to lie on your lap, they will be on your lap, period.  If you object, their attitude is, "Get over yourself."  Dogs are grateful for the food in their dish.  Trust me, you don't want to see the baleful looks from the cats if the food in their bowl even gets low.  If they can see the bottom of the dish, you're in deep trouble.  If they could dial the phone, they'd report me to the SPCA.  If I've been gone, Bess Anne is happy to see me come home.  If the cats even notice, their attitude is, "Oh, it's you again."

Sharing one's bed with the animals can be a pleasure and a pain.  Single as I am, it's nice to hear breathing in the night to let me know I'm not alone.  Warm bodies in winter are cozy.  And then there are the other nights.  With the weather spiking up and down as it is right now, I've not yet changed to fleece sheets so wearing socks to bed minimizes the cold shock of cotton sheets.  It is said that body heat escapes through the head.  If that is so, heat must be trapped in the feet; in my feet, for sure.  Ralph and Celeste took turns crawling into the cat cave last night, and Bess snuggled up close.  Then the cats moved down on top of the blanket to trap my feet under their bodies.  It was fine at first, but later I was so hot it woke me up.  Cats mysteriously put on weight after dark and they must have weighed fifty pounds each and it was like trying to move boulders to push off my socks to cool off.  Bessie had moved over to share my pillow, but it wasn't just right so she was scratching at it to fix it to her liking, and then kept poking me with her paw to get me to move over (I was on the edge of the bed as it was).  I can't say it was a restful night for me, but the animals are full of vim and vigor this morning.

Ah, well.  I wouldn't change a thing.