Things My Cats Have Taught Me

 The following is a list of things The Boyz have taught me:

- never leave coffee unattended.  Even if there are no cats in the vicinity.  Even if the cats in the vicinity are sound asleep.  If you leave your coffee, you will return to find either a cat with its paws/face in the mug or coffee splatters everywhere and fur or litter in your cup.

- focus on the warm spots.  If you get up from a chair, you have a 90% chance of finding a cat in the chair when you return. If there is a cat in your chair and you change chairs, the cat will want your new chair.  Or, if you have multiple cats, you'll find another cat in your new chair.  The same applies to getting out of bed in the middle of the night.  The cat will find your warm spot and fill it.

- trespassers can't be trusted and should be eliminated whenever possible.  If there's a bug anywhere in the house, the cats will find it and kill it.  This goes for mice/shrews/moles and birds (and once, when we had Max, a squirrel) as well, or anything really that's unlucky enough to try to come inside.

- sleep whenever you can / naps are important.  The Boyz are usually sleeping.  Except when they're keeping me awake.

- work whenever you can.  It seems like anytime I sit down at the computer, one or the other of The Boyz will come over to either a) get on my lap and make it impossible for me to type or b) get into trouble right behind me so I have to stop working to chastise them for being naughty.

- being naughty has its advantages.  When The Boyz are naughty, they get attention.  Sometimes they get treats (that's a slippery slope, I know, but sometimes it's the only way to redirect their attention).  

- never take things too seriously.  Not that The Boyz don't take things seriously.  Sometimes, they take things way too seriously - especially 'fraidy-cat Sawyer, who'll jump at the slightest sound, or Finn, who acts like I've set fire to all his hopes and dreams when I scold him.  Their reactions are what have taught me to not take things seriously, if you catch my drift.

;o)