I have a cat. I have one cat, Simba. I feed him, entertain him and look out for him. Yes, I talk to him when no one is around. Heck, I even love this little animal. That does not mean I'll take in your neighbors' stray cat when s/he moves. It does not mean I collect various kitty paraphernalia to display around my place. And it certainly does not mean I have no social life.
Sometimes I feel like I need to make this clear, especially to people in my family. See, I don't come from a bunch of animal-loving people. In fact, most of my relatives despise animals, for various reasons. I was never allowed to have a dog growing up and the closest thing I had to owning a furry friend was parakeets and fish. My mother rarely visits me, largely because of the cat who lives in my house. Sometimes, when I'm leaving a family function, some smart aleck will say, "are you going home to your cat?" Cute.
So, it annoyed me a bit when my aunt called me awhile back, asking me if I would take in her coworkers' three kittens, since she had to move. She heard about the lady's situation and immediately thought I'd be able to help. Errr, no. Sorry, I'm not the one. This same relative sent me a Christmas card with the picture of a cat on the front. A coworker also sent me a card where it said something like "I hope you and Simba enjoy the holidays." Real cute.
I guess my annoyance is at people who try to put me into Crazy Cat Lady territory. Unlike the stereotype, I do not let my place get overrun by a multitude of cats. I do not shun visitors in favor of feline company. I do not avoid social events, just so I can keep my cat company.
There. I feel like I just needed to get that off my chest. I'll have to pass this post around to a few offenders.
(Photo from http://www.popgadget.net/images/crazy-cat-lady.jpg)
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