Don?t get me wrong. Alex?my cat?is pretty much the coolest cat there is, was or ever will be. He?ll be 16 tomorrow?with a lot of years left in him. As I?ve written about before, Alex has been with me since the early ?90s in Buffalo, driven cross-country with me?twice?and is more fun and just great to be around than I ever could have asked for.
But if there?s one thing I would change about him, just one little, itty bitty detail I would do different, it would be this: his %$#@! meow. Holy [Don?t get me wrong. Alex?my cat?is pretty much the coolest cat there is, was or ever will be. He?ll be 16 tomorrow?with a lot of years left in him. As I?ve written about before, Alex has been with me since the early ?90s in Buffalo, driven cross-country with me?twice?and is more fun and just great to be around than I ever could have asked for.
But if there?s one thing I would change about him, just one little, itty bitty detail I would do different, it would be this: his %$#@! meow. Holy [i]crud[/i] is it annoying. And on two fronts.
[b]The Timing[/b]:
Cats are amazing. Alex has this internal clock (and maybe it?s all animals) that you could set a train schedule to. And since I get up early?my alarm goes off at 4:50 a.m.?well, he hears me stirring, so he?s up early, too, on schedule, with very few exceptions. And when he?s up, he wants two things?attention and food, although not necessarily in that order.
Thing is, he?s long had this delightful habit of coming into my bedroom in the morning to wake me up?an hour before my alarm goes off! And when I?m already getting up before 5 a.m., that means that on many mornings (not all, but many) I can expect his meowing at 4 a.m.?when he knows I?ll be up in an hour anyway! Why does he do this? I have no idea. And believe me, I wish I did.
[b]The Sound:[/b]
Most cats have that classic [i]meow.[/i] You know the one. It?s that light and soft kinda high-pitched meow. It?s not particularly loud or aggressive. It?s just a sound you recognize.
And then there?s Alex.
His meow is more like an old man sitting on the john having a very difficult time squeezing out a backed-up dookie?and letting you know just how annoyed he is about it. Alex has a loud, aggressive guttural meow that doesn?t really say, ?hey, man, how are ya? I?m just glad to see you.? Alex has a meow that?s more like, ?Listen up, numb nuts. I want something. I want it now! I want it now! I … WANT … IT … NOW!
Of course, I don?t know that?s what he?s actually thinking, but [i]man[/i] does he let you know he?s in the room. And when you hear that meow at 4 a.m. … not fun. I can?t tell you how many mornings he?s literally scared Liz and I awake.
And yet, once I walk over to him, pick him up and give him a few scratches on the cheek, Alex purrs up a storm. He?s happy as a clam. Just the warmest, most gentle cat you could ever ask for.
Alex is the coolest cat there is. If there?s just something to be done about that meow …
