I have played the violin since I was eight. When I would practice, our Maine Coon cat, Toodles, would hop up on the bed and sleep. Except when I played a wrong note. Then she would jerk her head up and look straight at me. Toodles was a music connoisseur.
Most fiber artists I hang out with are cat people. I’m not sure why this is because cats like to lay on anything made of fiber, and they shed—cats like art-making. If you have a table you work on and a cat, you’ll know you have to make a space for them to sleep or watch.
There are small pieces of wool roving all over my house. Esther pulls them from my stash and carries them about. Here are my three cats in order of their age:
George. George is shy and sensitive, big and handsome. At eight months, he and his brother Ari came to me as feral recuses in Lake City, Colorado. They were captured at four months and lived in rehab for another four months. After they came to live with me, it took four months before they trusted me enough to let me pet them. They eventually became the most cuddly, affectionate, and grateful cats I’ve ever known. Sadly, Ari disappeared last summer. He was the one that remained the most feral and would escape for several days and then return in the early morning light. This time he never came back. I still hope that one morning, he’ll sit at the sliding glass door waiting to come in.
Alice. Alice is also a rescue, but she was one of a litter of kittens with a rescue mom. Alice is independent and fierce. She disapproves of me because she believes she should be my only cat. If I’m sitting down or in bed, she is there. I think of her as my anchor. She also likes to stand between me and my computer, so I can’t see. My relationship with Alice is the most challenging and annoying, frustrating, and loveable. She hates George, and the jury is still out on the new kitten.
Esther Erminie. The new kitten. Esther is a mostly white calico from Canon City, Colorado. Not a rescue. She’s funny and curious – not the craziest kitten I’ve ever had, but she has her moments. She follows the beat of her own drum and sometimes wants to hang with me, sleep on the potholders in the kitchen, or hang out in front of the fish tank. I added Erminie to her name because she looks like a winter ermine.
My cats are my empty nest family – requiring far less attention than human children but still imposing routine in my life. They are my main emotional support system. No matter what happens, they still love me and are willing to snuggle.
Who are your animal besties, and how do they affect your creative life?
