Alright, look, this post is a total cop-out. I don’t know why, but I’ve just been struggling hardcore with TTT lately, and I haven’t loved any of the TARG topics enough to do them, and this post has been sitting in my scheduled list forever without it actually being anything, and then, while I was doing something completely unrelated, but on WordPress, Grace came over and started rubbing the side of her face against my computer. She does this all the time, but all of a sudden, I was like AH HA! TOP TEN REASONS WHY I LOVE CATS!
I live with my parents, and they have two dogs, and while dogs are fine, they’re not my cup of tea by a long shot, and I just love cats so much that I would literally do anything for any cat on the planet, so I thought it’d be fun to explain why! That, and I’m going to just bombard you with the supreme cuteness that is my cats because why the hell not.
Grace always put one paw out for me to kiss.
I’m probably just crazy because what cat in their right mind actually sticks out a paw for someone to kiss, but it’s kind of her MO. I’ll walk into their room (which is my room, but let’s be real here), and she just stretches it on out and looks up at me, like oh hey ma fancy meeting you here want a paw? And she stretches her wittle fingers out in the slowest knead everrrrr when I kiss her paw, so it’s just literally the best experience ever. Also, she sleeps like super kitty with both arms in front of her, and I want to DIE SHE IS SO CUTE.
TOE BEANS
I love that toe beans are just universally accepted as the best cat accessory ever? Like, what a gift? I’ve been touching my cats’ paws since they were babies, too, so they actually let me do it now, which means I get to KISS THE TOE BEANS. I also love when they stretch really big, and their little feets shake and the toe beans stretch out.
When they just HAVE to sit in front of me while I’m on my laptop.
Always. With COVID, I’m working remotely, but I have a tiny room (it’s smaller than you’re even thinking right now), so there’s no space for a desk, which means I work at the dining room table every day. Honestly, though, even when I’m not working, and I’m just lounging in bed with my laptop, Grace has to wiggle her way under the laptop to get to my lap, so like, this isn’t just while I’m at the table. When I’m actively working, though both Lily & Grace like to periodically pace in between me and my laptop so that I can’t really see anything but their butts as they’re slowlyyyyy strolling by. Lily likes to be held, so I’ll give her an extra long hug before she’s on her way, but Grace needs a hug and then to sit down, so she’ll sit in between my arms and put her front paws over my left arm, and well, I’ve got to just die there. I’m never moving while she’s on me.
Lily lets me carry her everywhere.
Literally everywhere! If she’s wandering around the house, she’s fair game, and I’ll pick her up at any given moment. She’s got two favorite positions–she either likes to be held against my left shoulder or draped across my chest and perched on my shoulder. On the left, I just hold her in one arm, scooping her up into a little ball. She holds on with her right arm around my shoulder and her left paw against my chest, and her favorite thing is to go to the door and look out the screen window while she’s like this. The other day, she actually sat at the door and meowed until I came over to pick her up so she could look out. When she’s on the right, though, I’ve got to use two hands–one is tucked under her like that football baby carry, and the other is wrapped around her in a hug. Gosh, I just love her. She honestly lets me carry her everywhere, too, it’s not like I’m holding her there against her will. She just hangs out and purrs and generally has a great time.
Grace snuggles in my lap.
Fun story! I got the girls when they were 7 weeks old, and I kept them in my room for a long time because Maverick, our black lap/pit mix, is around 65 lbs, and he was still a puppy and over exuberant, so we were worried he would end up crushing them. He was really rough with them when we first let them out, too, so I’m glad I waited until they were a bit bigger and scrappier. Because of that, though, they’re pretty attached to me and nervous around anyone else, so they’re not generally loving cats to anyone but me. Grace, however, was the worst right from the beginning. I used to do these things called “love lessons” with her where I would lay on my back and let her stand on my chest and just pet her, full body massage kind of pets, and try to show her that there was nothing to be nervous about. This sounds so cruel now, but I think it worked? I also think I stressed the anxiety right out of her because when I moved to an apartment, she was absolutely traumatized by the entire experience, and when she finally settled in, it was like she said I don’t have time for anxiety anymore, I gotta be nice to the lady who gives me food because she suddenly turned into a lap cat? She would probably honestly crawl inside of me if she could. She’s always glaring at me like it’s my fault that she can’t get closer. Girl, I don’t know what to tell you, I’m literally hugging you with my entire body.
Heart butt!
I call my cats chickens, and for good reason! When cats sit all the way down, like with their arms curved against them in those weird little chicken wing positions, and then their thighs & hips are more prominent–that’s the heart butt! It’s so cute, and I just love looking at it and randomly shouting HEART BUTT so that everyone jumps.
Playing Mufasa & Scar on the tower.
Oh, that’s terrible, hahahahah, but it’s exactly what we do. They have two towers, and while one of them is definitely primarily Grace’s (I can’t explain why Lily doesn’t like the one out in the house, though she’s finally started going on it every once in a while) and she pretends she’s a queen on it, the one in my room is fair game to both of them. It’s what they grew up on, and they like to play what I call the Lion King game. It’s just a straight up tower, no pieces branching off, and there’s two hidey holes in the bottom, two little circles to lay on, and then the top. Both of them fight over the top circle, and so, whoever is currently sleeping in that circle gets to play the part of Mufasa. The other one will play Scar on the top of the tower, which usually means they reach inside and smack the ever living hell out of Mufasa while the poor thing is asleep, until Mufasa gets so fed up that he tries to fight back and then Scar literally bullies him off the tower. It’s horrible, and it makes me cackle every time.
Lily’s love of everything that’s not a toy, but also all toys.
Lily will literally play with anything that you give her. She loves straws, hair clips, and q-tips beyond comprehension, but she will also go to town on a crinkle ball, a plastic spring, and these weird little frisbee things my mom got for her one time. She loves playing so much. She’s got this cardboard scratcher that doubles as a sort of daybed thing (it sounds as ridiculous as it is), and she’ll flop over onto her back when anyone comes near so they can “scratch” her belly and she can latch onto them and bite/lick them to death. Grace is a huge fan of the laser pointer, and she’ll come running even if she just hears me take it out of the drawer, but Lily literally plays with everything. When she’s particularly bored, she’ll walk around the house meowing as loud as she can until I play fetch with her.
The way they have to sit on the thing instead of the entire rest of the bed.
They have an entire full bed to sit on, but if I put my laptop or a sweatshirt down on the bed, well, that’s their new sleeping place. The same for any other surface! If there’s a paper on the dining room table, that’s where they’re sitting. I once tested out the theory that if you tape a square onto the ground, your cats will sit in the square, and GUESS WHAT. Cats are so damn weird.
Bellies!
This is definitely a controversial one, and my cats are definitely psycho because of it, but they let me touch their bellies? Not only that, I can put my full face on their belly, and they won’t do anything. Grace is just like “ah yes business as usual” and Lily usually puts a paw on my head and licks whatever part of my face she can reach, but they both just tolerate it? I love giving Grace belly kisses all the time because she’s particularly chunky, and she lies on her side a lot so it’s all on display, and it’s just the SOFTEST BELLY EVER.
Okay, that’s enough, hahaha, I had a lot of fun writing this post, and even though it’s way sillier than what I normally post, I hope you enjoyed!
Mary and the Words 
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