I've always considered myself a cat person -- I've never disliked dogs, exactly, but they always seemed so needy and noisy and annoying to bathe. I grew up with cats (our one dog was an outdoor dog and, honestly, didn't get the attention she really needed, which made her more irritating to try to play with, which just made it less likely we'd go out and spend time with her, and so on), and they always seemed to me to be a perfect combination of affectionate and aloof.
When TJ and I moved in together, we brought his little dog, Memphis, along with us. I hadn't had a pet in several years, and I had never had an indoor dog. Having seen how aggressively cuddly he was in our few encounters before, I knew I'd be OK in the lovin' department, but I was a little nervous about suddenly being thrust into the stepmom role with a pet I hardly knew -- he had, after all, been living with TJ's brother in Quincy up until move-in day.
Now, I'm damn-near obsessed with the little nugget. We've had to kick him out of our bedroom, as he constantly wakes me up with his frequent location changes under the covers, but I sing to him, snuggle him, smooch him, and tug on his enormous ears like he's always been mine. He can drive me nuts with his eternal lick-fests (anyone who has been to our apartment knows exactly what I'm talking about), but I can't deny that he's a never-ending source of entertainment.
The following comic represents a fairly typical day in our apartment.
Memphis, bless his little heart, ain't the sharpest tool in the shed. He convinces himself that he can't jump up onto the couch or the chair in the living room, despite the fact that he's done it a million times before. He burrows himself into blankets, only to find himself stuck. He can't always find his chew toy once we throw it. And even though this isn't his fault, the fact is, he has really bad fart breath.
But I have fallen completely in love with him, more than I ever would have imagined. The excitement he shows every time I walk through the door -- even if I've only gone on a fifteen-minute Walgreen's run -- shatters my heart (in the best possible way, of course). I still love cats and always will, but come on -- just try to resist this precious face. I dare you.
