Annabel and me

Annabel is a black cat. A beautiful shiny plush black cat with vibrant amber eyes who lives with me and I am in awe of her crazy little self.

I brought her home in August and bought her a beautiful black bed to match her fur. It seemed like a good idea at the time. When she sheds you can't see it. The problem is you can't see her in it either. It is like living with the Shadow.

Flashes of darkness flit across my view and I just attribute them all to Annabel. If she didn't have two pointy little ears I wouldn't even know where she was half the time.

Very well behaved and very adaptable, she has agreed to using the same size litter box she had at the pound and the vet's. It is very small and inside a building called a Litter Loo and in my bathroom where I have to clean it every day. I've worked out a system where I dump the whole box into a used grocery bag and refill the litter box with two cups of paper litter. Easy. Clean. Efficient.

There is a tall stool in the bathroom she used to sit on and wait until I turned on the faucet for her, but I noticed she stopped doing that and I'm not sure if it's because the stool tipped over with her on it the other day and she disappeared for so long I thought the apartment ate her. I couldn't find her anywhere. Or, if it's because of the new monster in the bathroom that intermittently spits out a bit of white linen air freshner now and then. Annabel stalks this beast and guards it to protect the apartment.

Of course she has toys, but she entertains herself by opening and closing the closet door where her light up ball in its track sits.. And then there is Annavision, the lower part of the glass patio door that is always available for her to look out of without bothering the blinds. Outside is an ever changing array of ducks, rabbits, birds and leaves that keep her entranced for hours.

At night she is welcome to sleep with me, but she seldom does. However, if she should choose to join me it is almost always directly on top of the blankets covering my feet so I am pinned to the bed. It is surprising how heavy a less than ten pound cat can be.

Her most endearing traits are two fold. If I go into the bathroom she follows, weaving in and out of my legs and expecting to be petted in one long swoop from the top of her head to the tip of her tail. And every time I go into the kitchen she lurks under the bed until I get there, then leaps out right in front of me nearly tripping me so she can get to her food where she purrs as loud as she can while gobbling up cat chow as if the only time she is allowed to eat is when I am there.

It is adorable, but of course she can eat whenever she likes. There is always food in her bowl and there is a sort of skylight night light that comes on when it's the least bit dark on the ceiling right over her food and water.

Sometimes she will sleep on the end of my recliner and three times now, she actually sat on my lap for a minute or two. It is a match made in heaven.