Oh, Christmas Tree

So, last night, I finally got my tree set up in my house.  It's not decorated yet, because I wanted a day to let the branches settle.

I am very lucky that Sunny is really great about the tree.  I usually weight the base down, just in case.  A couple of full paint cans do the trick quite nicely.

In self defense, I do have a rule that must be followed when the tree is decorated...no breakable ornaments on the bottom foot of the tree.  I have plenty of no-shatter, paper, wood and other durable material ornaments that form the bottom ring on the tree.  He will occasionally investigate...

I think I've caught him batting at an ornament once or twice in the years that I've had him.  They're just not that interesting.  You see for Sunny, it's all about the tree skirt.

He LOVES the soft, fluffy skirt for lounging after defeating the dreaded catnip filled mouse

Mostly, though, it's all about the nap.  Curled up under the twinkling, sheltering branches is his favorite place to be at this time of the year, and really what better gift could be found under the tree than this...?

Invasion of the kitty snatchers?

So, last week was my annual trip to a campground in Western Pennsylvania, where for a week, I immerse myself in an attempt at recreating medieval and renaissance life.  It's something of a working vacation, because I'm constantly busy, but it is a time filled with friends, family, music and camaraderie.  I love it!

Sunny does not.

I am not sure if Sunny was abandoned, or ran away because of abuse.  So, either he gets anxious because he knows what it's like to be abandoned, or he is terrified of losing the human who loves him and getting stuck with one who treats him badly.  Either way, he has some major separation anxiety issues.

I have a couple of friends who will take care of him if I am away.  Both of them adore him and don't just stop in long enough to scoop the box and fill the bowl.  They stay and spend time with him.  They give him treats and his favorite kitty crack (also known as his vitamin).  While it's not the same as having me there every night, he does get plenty of affection while I'm away.

You couldn't tell that from the homecoming I received.

It started with the upset meows when I walked in the door.

"Where have you been?"

"How could you leave me?"

"I had to sleep all ALONE!"

"I was only getting treats every OTHER day!!"

There was a running stream of commentary as I pet him while trying to make a bee-line for the bathroom, because my last stop had included a large diet soda for the caffeine to push me through the last hour and a half of what turned into a 7.5 hour drive thanks to an overturned truck in a construction zone.  He came upstairs with me, of course, because all cat owners know that going to the bathroom alone is inconceivable.

Afterwards, I went to my room and crashed on the bed.  That was when Sunny did something truly remarkable.  Instead of going straight for the treat bag and swatting at it to get my attention, he did several passes of a full-body rub to express his delight at having his human home.  Now, you have to understand, Sunny is not the most demonstrative of kitties and prefers his affection at just short of arm's length, where I am supposed to worship him with scritches along his cheeks, head and back of the neck.  He reciprocates verbally with a roar of a purr.  The reality of my stand-offish boy purring with delight while rubbing his head and cheeks over every bit of me he could reach was more than a surprise.

I did give him some treats and he continued to purr and rub up against me.  He came back downstairs with me and while I caught up on emails and such, he actually jumped up on the couch for more head-butts and licks on my arm.  I was stunned.  Who was this strange feline who looked so much like my boy?  It was obviously the invasion of the kitty snatchers while I was away.

He eventually calmed down and I brought out his gift (yes, the first thing I purchased from the dozens of merchants there was for Sunny).  It was a grey felt rat, with a black cord tail, filled with catnip.  Sunny approved.

It's days later and he still wants to be in the same room with me when I'm in the house (it hasn't helped that I'm working 10-11 hour days).  He's sleeping on my bed through the night and generally being extremely affectionate (for Sunny that is).  I'm hoping that at least a part of it will last for a very long time.  Kitty snatchers or no, I'm enjoying having an almost cuddly Sunny.

Enter Candyland

As the internet has so aptly shown us, cats are cute.  A video with kitten antics can send the most hardened personality into a diabetic coma from the sweetness.  It is for cats a tool, defense mechanism and weapon.

When you have a cat as intelligent as Sunny, this can be a dangerous thing.  He is very good at using his cute to get what he wants.

One of his most potent weapons is the tummy fur.  Now, for anyone who understands animals, this is one of the most emotionally powerful things a cat can do.  For Sunny, this is especially true.  For almost any animal, their belly is their most vulnerable body part.  To expose their belly is an expression of extreme trust.  When you've adopted an animal who was abused, trust is incredibly precious.  A little piece of my heart melts every time he does this.  It doesn't hurt that it's just so soft and fuzzy and he looks ridiculously precious when he does it.



Of course, with Sunny, it is a trap.  He will show you his tummy, but it is not to be touched.  Unless he is half asleep and in a REALLY mellow mood, touching the tum will get your hand grabbed in a very sharp set of teeth.  He doesn't bite down with me, but he does express his displeasure at this transgression.  The revealing of the tummy is an invitation to scritch him behind his ears, or on his chin and cheeks.  The tummy itself is verbotten.

He's developed some other uses for the cuteness.  The primary use of the kitty superpower is to get his paws on treats.  Sunny is a treat-powered feline.  Treats are to be acquired as frequently as possible.  Treats are the first thing he wants in the morning when I wake up.  It doesn't matter where he's been sleeping, when the alarm goes off, he's in the bed, looking for treats.  Sometimes, he just waits for me, so I open my eyes to this...



"Are you up?  I've been waiting.  You've been asleep for so long and I've been waiting that WHOLE time for treats."  At least he is nice enough to not actually wake me himself and opening your eyes to that level of cute accompanied by a happy purr is not a bad way to start the day.

His other cute habit is when I'm not paying attention and he wants something.  This is from a few days ago.  I was working on the computer and he wanted to get my attention.  "Hey, hey there.  Stop tapping at the machine and give me treats."

I know I'm especially susceptible, but I find this to be unbearably cute as well, especially since he will often walk over and rub his head up against me once he has my attention.  Part of it is that he never used to do things like this.  It's just another sign of the bond between us.

Aside from using his super-powers for treats, there are the completely unintentional, casual cute moments:  putting his paws over his face to sleep, stretching with that little purring meow when he wakes or poking his head out from the covers after he's been sleeping under them.

A day with Sunny is a day filled with an overload of toothache-inducingly-sweet cuteness...and I'm happy to live in this candy land.