I don’t really care for cats. Except for the Stray Cats. But I do care to be a good host. So when the neighbor’s cat “Kitty” followed me inside the house one day, I offered her skim milk and tuna fish.
She seemed to enjoy her snack. At least she kept walking by me, brushing her sides against my leg and purring. After a while she left and I got back to work.
The next afternoon, I heard meowing and scratching by the stoop. I opened the door to find Kitty had returned. She invited herself in and scurried to the kitchen. So I gave her milk and tuna. Again she did the brushing and purring thing.
And the next afternoon, the same thing happened once more. I didn’t really mind. The ex-man was away on business and it was nice to have some company. I made a special trip to buy more tuna. We already had plenty of milk.
But the next day, the ex-man comes home. Within moments he is wheezing, coughing, and sneezing. See, he is a highly allergic man…
Him to me: It’s like there’s been a cat in here!
Me to him: Kitty’s been visiting.
Him to me: You let a cat in the house?
Me to him: She comes over for lunch.
Him to me: You feed her?
Me to him: Just skim milk and tuna fish. She likes it.
Needless to say, Kitty would not be invited to dine any time soon. When I heard her outside the front door the next day, I had to be strong and ignore the scratching and meowing. Kind of like sleep training a baby. It was heartbreaking. And I don’t even like cats.
© 2013 Jaclyn Schrier. All rights reserved.
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