In Defense of Crazy Cat Ladies
Sunny Frazier, author of the Christy Bristol Astrology Mysteries, returns to lead a serious discussion on a subject near and dear to my heart and to those of multitudes of authors and readers.
It’s never happened that a blog owner has asked me to write about my cats. Lelia is apparently a cat lover and opened that door. At the risk of alienating pooch-people I will sing the praises of felines everywhere.
Right now I have the matron of the house standing guard by the computer making sure I write positive things about the tribe. Gemini, who entered my life on my birthday, allows me to tap at the computer keys for just so long, then reminds me to take a break by crawling into my lap for a few strokes of her own.
The other four are off doing their own thing: Kitler is asleep on a cardboard box, a favorite spot of all cats (along with the step stool, the recycle bin and my favorite robe). The newest addition, who I call The Little Prince, has discovered the fake ficus and confuses it with real greenery. He doesn’t know it, but he’s going to the vets in two weeks to become a eunuch.
Cats are great companions for older, single women. We are quiet, move slowly (especially in the morning), have soft voices and time to cuddle. They are purfect for writers because they love it when we stay in one place for hours and 
they can doze nearby. When we move, they reluctantly relocate. When we explain our plot frustrations, they listen intently. When we need them, they knead us.
I live in a small, rural town where cats are still considered farm animals. People aren’t inclined to spay or neuter so the neighborhood is over-run with strays. I have fixed as many as I can catch with the help of my sister (also a crazy cat lady). Strays are welcome to eat kibble and sleep on blankets I keep on the porch for cold nights. This does not endear me to the neighbors, who feel if ignored, the cats will go away. I don’t believe starvation is an option.
Although there is no love for cats here, the local shelter puts cats on a train and sends them to San Francisco to a no-kill shelter. I’ve been told that pet stores no longer “sell” cats in the Bay Area, people are encouraged to give a home to shelter kitties. I hope that’s true.
The running joke at mystery conference is “Never kill a cat.” Don’t laugh. I wrote a nasty letter to Joe Konrath for doing exactly that in his first book. I had to put down THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO because a cat was tortured and dismembered. If that’s a spoiler, I don’t care.
Before I close, I want to explain Kitler’s name. There is a website called “Kitler Cats,” one of the funniest sites ever. These are cats with a distinctive mustache. My Kitler had her photo posted on the site and I sent it to everyone to vote. I’m including the shot in hopes Lelia will post it. And yes, Kitler looks like she’s had one drink too many!
November 30, 2010
Posted in: Guest Blogs
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34 Responses
Kitler looks terrific, and if she likes a little wine on occasion, well, she does livc in California. I’ve always had cats and you’re right. For women livin alone they are very satisfying companions. Or perhaps its the other way around. But canines can be as well. I currently live with an Italian Grayhound and a German Shepard. The Grayhound wouldn’t mind a cat,but the Shepard would make life for a cat a living hell, so I’ll continue to support our local shelter, and commend you for taking care of your local population. If you need some extra blankets for your visiting friends this winter, or some kibble, just let me know. The dogs and I will be glad to help. Well, two of us will. Kathleen Delaney Author of the soon to be released, Murder Halfbaked
I was raised on a farm, so I have lived with the mentality that cats are farm anikmals, but I always thought they were pets. I’ve had many cats in my life, all of them unique, all of them special. When cats stopped showing up on my doorstep for adoption, Glenn and I joined a cat rescue group in Key Largo Florida and captured feral cats to be spayed or neutered and put back in their wild place. Of course, some of those ferals won our hearts and we still have two of them in our home today. One of them tried writing on my computer, but got only as far as 5 5 and 8 9, then gave up. Probably a mathematician and not a writer.
Kitler seems right proud of her mustache! And she’s got the look only can cats give, that squinty-eyed, I love you gaze.
Thanks for a cool cat post from a fellow “cat person.”
Love, Kelter’s smile! Wonderful to hear from another cat lover.
We have two writer cats. Both rescues from out back yard. They both love pencils, pens, paper and books, but prefer them off any flat surface except the floor.
Smoki the little one would like to play tap the keys but when she was a tiny baby, Hubby frightened her when she was sitting on my laptop and she took a key with her when she ran. Now we have an agreement, she can sit on the laptop when its closed. I do pet her when sits next to me nicely, which is about evey five minutes or so unless she is sleeping.
Jakette prefers to knock your papers on the floor and then chase her tail on them to make a racket.
I reallyl ejoyed hearing about your cats and all you do for those outside.
Hi, Sunny, waving. As you know we’re cat lovers too with three inside cats and I don’t know how many outside ones that people drop off and husband feeds and has made shelters for. We’ve caught some and had them fixed, but those seem to run off or be taken by others. (Hope that’s the case.)Inside are Butch and Sundance and Squeaky.
Have never put a cat in a book.
Marilyn
Had to come for a visit to this blog post because the topic intrigued me. I really like cats, but I love dogs even more. I write about both, so I hope that means I’m welcome here. Loved the post, even if I’m not! Of course I never harm the animals in my stories.
Hi Sunny – I have several grand-kitties, courtesy of my two oldest children, but don’t have any myself since my youngest has a severe cat allery. Besides, I used to work in the home office of a woman who had several cats…all of whom insisted on walking across the computer’s keyboard while I tried to work. Or they’d decide to settle down for a nap right between the keyboard and screen. We never did manage to find a happy accommodation, so I ended up kicking them outside and shutting the door when I needed to get some actual work done.
I have only been owned by cats for the past few years, but I’ve been around pets all my life. My Bessie is the love of my life. (Please don’t tell my husband!) She listens while I read a manuscript aloud and gives my a paw up or down in a most distinct way. If the story is interesting, she sits up and listens. If I bore her, she crawls up on the chest in my office and promptly falls asleep. She’s one tough editor.
I’ve been “marked” by the feline community since I was a kid. I’ve had kitty companions all my life and remember each one fondly. I’m afraid my home would not be a home without my cat or cats. Yes, I’ve had times where five cats shared my home. They are truly special.
And if you like to write or read about cats and crime, I’d like to throw in a reminder for my upcoming anthology, DARK THINGS II: Cat Crimes. Please check out the guidelines at Black Car Publishing:
http://blackcarpublishing.yolasite.com/dark-things-anthology.php
Writers, you still have time to submit your darkest (dark humor too) kitty tales. Readers, the anthology will be sure to please and should be published mid 2011.
God Bless our feline companions.
Patty
What you said. All of it. Three cats here, although none with distinctive mustaches.
Susanne
Crazy Cat Lady-in-the-making
Sunny, I loved reading about your cats (and love Kitler’s mustache!). But my Emma and Gabriel are in a terrible snit, wondering why THEIR pictures aren’t displayed on other people’s blogs. I remind them of their fans on Facebook and Flickr, but they’re into blogging these days. I may have to start a blog just for writers’ cats.
A kitty blog—what a great idea! In the meantime, I’ll extend an invitation for pictures and paragraphs about everyone’s favorite felines and I’ll put together one or more blog posts. Are y’all game? And if that works out well, we’ll do doggies next and then “others”.
Let’s aim for December 12th as blog day, meaning I’ll need your offerings by December 9th.
I’m stunned! When Lelia suggested the topic, I thought “Oh, here goes. People will get bored hearing me go on and on about my cats.”
Apparently, I’m wrong. Your replies delighted me and many of your names are familar.
When grandma’s pull out those baby photos, I pull out my kitty pics. My sister gave me a plaque: “Children are for people who can’t have cats.” So true.
Anyone who knows me –even a little–knows I am a total pet person, and OTP guidelines have always warned authors to not bother sending in material where animals are harmed. Over the years I have had countless doggies, kitties and even a pidgeon I rescued from the jaws of one of my dogs! I named him Mr. Dove. He lived with me for years, and I relocated him to a Los Osos aviary when I left California in 2002.
Currently, OTP world headquarters is a kitty only facility, as they are easier to manage when I am traveling. Blinkie, a great fluffy boy, is the Chairman of the Board. Lovey, a co-dependent fem, adopted me in Aug 2009, and the latest addition is Frida Kahlo…a sassy, big-eyed Miss who is my constant companion. She doesn’t really try to type, but has figured out how to press the copy key on the printer so she can chase the output sheets!
ahhh! I love kitties! Such a cute picture!
Great post, Sunny and Lelia. My 15 pound kitty is called Zoey from th Bronx. She’s a tough old gal who loves to read the newspaper with me, although her reading is far more vigorous and results in the front page littering the floor. When I plot, I tend to pace, and she’s right behind me purring out hints. Gotta love those feline assistants.
Great post, Sunny and Lelia. I am a “nana” to three cats. The three of them prefer the lap of the writer at the keyboard. I can see the incentive to stay put and write.
Hi Sunny,
Thanks for a blog I enjoyed reading. I, too, am a cat lover. When I was a kid growing up, we had a pet cat with the ingenious name of Baby. Duh. We also had about six to a dozen “patio cats” whom we fed. Lai and I had a cat, but we had to “loan” him to my mother when we discovered our newborn son was allergic to both cats and dogs. He was an animal lover from the beginning and wanted desperately to have a pet. His allergist said we could buy a ferret because they have no dander and don’t ignite allergies. So we bought one, and he turned out to be a great pet. Like a cat, he used a litter box, slept a lot, and was perfectly content to curl up in your lap and do absolutely nothing. He loved grapes and bananas and chasing balloons. He lived in Utah, Texas, and Maine to a ripe old age. We still miss him.
enjoyed pere always had a pet cat growi
Sunny & Lelia– I loved this blog post! You cannot tell too many cat stories! We currently have one wonderful indoor cat (who was once an outdoor cat until he insisted he was meant to be indoors). He has a few relatives who come and get extra food and pettting whenever they don’t feel their humans provide enough. Mike Orenduff, I love the term, “patio cats” for the dear outdoor ones.
Suny, I had a tee shirt that had a cat sitting at the bottom of a Christmas tree with all the presents that said, “We had to get rid of the kids because the cat was allergic.”
As teenagers my kids thought the shirt was funny but now as adults they tell Hubby and me that we love the cats best.
Personally, I’ve always been a dog person–as are my children. My sister and niece are of the other persuasion. I have no quarrel with that. Anyone who loves animals is all right by me.
Incidentally, it was a cat discovered the body in my first mystery, Something In Common.
Sunny, I love cats but right now I have two small dogs, very neurotic but loving. I’ve owned both cats and dogs and cats are more relaxing because they are not as demanding as dogs. Cats are nearly always beautiful whereas dogs can be so ugly they’re cute. The only time I have a problem with cats is during the spring when they wait by my bird feeders.
Sunny, The number of comments on this blog is impressive. I am a cat lover, dog lover as well, lover of fish, guinea pigs, gerbils, tarantulas, snakes, iguanas, you name it, I’ve owned it. But I do have to say cats are pretty special, and probably my favorite because they are so self sufficient. I have two kids, a husband and a dog, all of them require a whole lot more work than my one deaf kitty.
Holli Castillo
Gumbo Justice
Great post Sunny and while I have had cats, currently dogs have been king at our house. In book four of the Mitch Malone Mystery series, a dog does play a major role. It was a lot of fun writing about the dog giving Mitch fits. In a later book I may have to include a cat and adopt one and call it research. I do miss their self-sufficiency. Leila thanks for thinking of our feline friends.
Wendy
W.S. Gager
Okay, am I the only one grinning like an idiot while reading every comment? If you’re a cat person, every “tail” is unique. I often ask people to name all their cats for me. How crazy is that? Don’t bother me with chatter about your children, I will tune you out. But mention a feline and you are my friend for life.
And just so you know, this is the current tribe: Gemini, Squirrel, Tuxey, Kitler, Petey-Pie, Chester, Maurice, Kit Carson and Sylvie. Some of them are porch kitties but they still get names.
Great post! I am reading it with my Sophie in her usual place, curled up right beside my keyboard. My husband calls her my muse.
Love animals. Won’t read a book, or return to an author who kills one off. Can’t help it.
I guess my Agamemnon, a rescued feral, will feel left out if I don’t mention his name here. A very cute post, Sunny. And I love Sandy’s idea of a blog for cats. Memnon would like to be included. The end of his tail just twitched in affirmation.
Cats are wonderful companions not only for older single women, but for couples, too. I’ve always had cats, but my husband had never had one until he acquired Oliver along with me. Now, many years (and several cats) later, he patiently administers three daily medications for thyroid and kidney disease, plus a subcutaneous fluid drip, to our 18-year-old Petey. The only bad thing about cats is that we tend to outlive them, which never fails to break our hearts. Lovely post, by the way.
What a wonderful post and I have enjoyed meeting all the other cats in the comments. We currently have four cats, three of our own and one that we are fostering for our son until he gets settled in a new apartment. Stache is named because she has a mustache, and looks so much like your cat, Sunny, I did a doubletake when I saw the picture.
Big meows to you, Sunny.
For some reason, whenever I visit someone with a cat, the cat heads straight for me and looks puzzled when I don’t pet the cute little critter. Thing is, I am highly allergic to cats, but I like them. Life ain’t fair!
Mama, my cat, Pokey, her son and I loved your post. Now they’re lobbying for 2 Buck Chuck with their dinner.
When I was growing up, we always had a kittie, but they set off my allergies, so I’ve switched to dogs, and my newest addition is a rescue (who had been “thrown out” with her two sisters). What’s wrong with people?
Sunny,
I enjoyed reading your post and all the comments. I’m also an animal lover and have added a beautiful Australian Shepherd and a big fat Rhode Island Red hen to my pet list. We call them Snoopy and Woodstock because they visit each other regularly.
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