NOVEMBER 26, 1980
Lunchlines
The Further Adventures Of Mary, Jamie Kitten
About a month ago I acquired two sweet, pretty kittens. What I didn't know at the time was that sweet, pretty kittens can be very playful.
I spent five years trying to convince my parents to let me get a cat. Finally they agreed with the stipulation that we get two kittens to keep each other company. I picked out a darkly marked kitten that I named Jamie and a lightly marked kitten named Mary. The first two days Jamie and Mary were as sweet as any cats could be, always friendly and never doing anything more than taking a playful swipe at each other.
Once they got used to their surroundings, however, they began to play. Jamie and Mary started to go for each other, Jamie attacking Mary's eyes and Mary making like vampire by biting Jamie's throat. The kittens spend most of their days now rolling around the floor trying to kill each other.
Unfortunately, I'm not immune to their playful attacks. On my left arm I can count eight scratches, mostly from Mary. Jamie likes to chase after my bare feet and bite them while I'm occupied washing my hair.
Both Jamie and Mary like to eat. Not only do they like to eat cat food, they like to eat human food. The kittens always know when we're eating, even if it's just a snack. They sneak up on the table, paw their way through mashed potatoes, stamp on the steak, play with the peas, and then they have the nerve to try to drink my milk. No matter how many times we try to "discourage" them from playing with our food, they still won't stop.
As you might have guessed by now, Jamie and Mary don't stop playing at night. Once the lights go out, the kittens get lonely for human companionship. They try to get into the bedrooms. Since the bedroom doors are closed: they spend most of the night throwing themselves against the door trying to get in.
Yes, kittens are delightful creatures. I'll be glad when they grow up.
(Next: What's Christmas, anyway?)