Thanks, Ray!

I have been tagged by none other than Ray, the Purple Prince.

I'm to write 5 fabulous facts about myself, then tag five other fabulous cats. Don't mind writing about myself, but I won't be tagging other cats. Sorry, Ray!

My five fabulous facts:

1. With three younger brothers who are all bigger than me, I know how to pack a lot of wallop into my swats. I'm a Lady, I don't punch. Though I'd like to. Hmmpf.

2. LBK likes to wrestle when I don't. I found a really good hiding place Mom found by accident the other day. She covered me back up and kept my secret. Ha ha to dumb little brothers.

3. Pink is my very favorite color! (Sorry, Chey.) Pink is NOT evil. Repeat after me, Pink Is NOT Evil.

4. I never eat human food, and refuse any and all wet food. I like what I like and don't like what I don't like.

5. I love to jump and I can jump quite high. I love to run and can run very fast. Sometimes I move so quickly I become a blur. Especially when pouncing on one of the aforementioned younger brothers who are bigger than me.

Ta da!

Fun game!

Playing gotcha - the meme game

I have been tagged! That is right I have been tagged by Toffy, Zoe and Chey to participate in Kazumi Joy's meme.

The rules:
Each player starts with seven random facts about themselves. Cats who are tagged need to write on their own diary about the seven things and the rules. You need to choose seven cats to tag and list their names. Don’t forget to leave them a comment that they have been tagged and to read your diary.

My seven random facts:

1. I love to sit on Mom's lap when she is trying to type on the computer. I'm very loving!

2. I will not sit on her lap when she is not on the computer. Hee Hee!

3. I like to nibble at my food and eat a little at a time, a BIG problem with my piggy brothers around!

4. I rule the house. My brothers listen to me even though I am much smaller than they.

5. My fave color is pink!

6. I can be a diva at times.

7. I don't sleep with the humans, but I do sleep in the bedroom. I prefer the closet, myself.

The friends that I am going to tag are:
I don't know!!! As I find cats who haven't been tagged yet, I'll add them here. Fair enough? And if YOU haven't been tagged yet, let me know! I'll tag you, of course!

P. S.- Little pink nosies rule!

Is Winter Over Yet?

We are having a snow/ice storm as I write this. They tell me it had been a pretty mild winter this year, but I'm still cold! Who cares about snow and ice outside? I'm on the inside.

But for some strange reason, it's cold in here.

Hurry up Spring!

Part Four- A Kitty Needs to Play!

My family has always been amused and astounded by my agility. I came to live here at the age of five weeks on a Wednesday. By Friday I had mastered the stairs, both going up and down. In fact, I was running up and down those stairs! When buying my litter box, Mom didn't stop to think how small I was and bought one with tall sides. Once she got it home she was concerned that I would have trouble getting in and out. Oh, please!
I have always been great at jumping, and leaping from one piece of furniture to another is one of my fave things to do. (Very unlike my nephew Casey, who lived here for a while. He couldn't even handle jumping from the sofa to the coffee table! He'd have his butt wriggling a mile a minute, then get down on the floor and climb up on the table. Sheesh!!)
Anyway, I need to be ACTIVE! I love it when some one throws a toy up or down the stairs so I can chase it. The laser light is a great challenge, especially when I have to nudge one of the others out of the way so I can get to it first! Mom bought us these pop up cubes that you link together. One of my best games is to dive in and out of them, often having the whole contraption rolling around on the floor. You can't believe how fun that is. Oh, one problem with those cubes, though. They have streamers inside for batting around. Benjamin, whose stomache is a bottomless pit, chewed at one till it came off. Then he tried to swallow it, couldn't get it out of his mouth and got so scared he ran around the house at top speed! (Luckily Dad was home. Benjamin got the ribbon out by the time Dad caught up with him.) Mom cut all the streamers out so there would be no more incidents.
I'm not overly fond of the kitty cruiser, though it can be fun rolling around in it. My brothers do enjoy it though. Danny's favorite game is to hide in there till I walk by. Then he jumps out at me. Well, I jump at least a foot straight up! I get him back though. Soon as I touch down, I chase him through the cruiser and all through the house. Have to admit, he's fun to chase!

Part Three- My Molly and me, how I got my name AND the terrible fire!

Got your interest with that last one, didn't I? Hehe! There really was a fire, but all in good time.

Molly was a small black lab, about 12 years old, who lived here when I arrived. In her younger days, she most likely would have hurt me pretty badly (Mom has old vet bills to prove it), but by September 2003 Molly just wasn't interested in doing me in. Her arthritis was pretty bad by then, and she was slowing down. That doesn't mean she wasn't curious though!

Molly literally followed me everywhere I went! I weighed less than a pound and a half, and she weighed about 55 pounds! She was HUGE compared to me! Every step I took, she was right over me, sniffing and watching. I guess she should have made me nervous, but she didn't. I totally ignored her. (Mom says I was a bit of a prima dona even then). Thing is, she ate all my food and drank all my water! Shocking! Mom put my food and water in my carrier. Smart! ;)

Molly and I became comfortable with each other. We slept together all the time and I even tried to nurse from her a few times- I missed my kitty mommy. She never tried to clean me, but seemed to enjoy when I licked her face. Soon I was doing all the following. I even decided I should have been a dog and would wrestle one piece of her food at a time to the floor so I could nibble at it. Hehe!

I loved Molly and miss her VERY much. :( There is a pic of Molly and me at the front door. I'm looking up at her with adoration. Beautiful Molly.

*Sigh*



************************************ ********************************
So where did my name come from? Mom and my oldest human sister "K" wanted to give me a name that was very special. They found a website where cat's names were listed alphabetically. Of course, they started with A, then B, then (you guessed it) C... on and on. They liked a lot of names, but nothing really fit. Mom and K were getting tired and discouraged. It seemed I would never have a name at all! They got to S. And there it was- "Sophie". They looked at each other and smiled. It was a perfect fit. Dad wasn't too sure about it, but shrugged and went along. Everyone called me by my new name and soon I responded to "SOPHIE"! I ♥ my name.
***************************************************** **************
Okay, the fire. We live in an end-unit townhouse. On the Sunday after I came here to live, Mom was asleep around 1:15AM when something startled her awake. Dad was calling "Get out of the house! There's a fire two doors down!" The question Mom wanted to ask was, "Is that two doors down connected to us, or two doors down NOT connected?" Of course, she didn't take the time to ask.

Did you ever stop to think what you will take out of your house if there was a fire? Mom didn't take much of anything she once THOUGHT she would.

Mom grabbed her clothes from the day before, her purse and sandles, which were in her bedroom. She ran down the stairs looking into rooms to make sure no one was in them. As she came into the living room, she saw one brother going out with Molly on her leash. She could see the other two kids who lived at home outside. She saw Dad outside, too. BUT she noticed my carrier inside the house! Where was I? How could her family forget me?

Luckily, K saw Mom through the window and called that she had me. Mom grabbed my carrier and headed out. No pictures, no "important papers", no bills to be paid or anything else.

The fire was two doors down NOT connected. Whew! Still, it wasn't too far away. Mom sat outside till 6AM to make sure we were okay. It was scary, believe me!

Part Two- How I came to live at my house

I left off in my last entry after Jinx left our house to live in New York with B.
That was in June. Mom was all excited. Now that Dad LIKED cats, she wanted one of her own! But, Dad wasn't "ready" for a cat that wasn't Jinx.
:(

Fast forward to the first Wednesday in September. (Yep- Mom even remembers what day of the week it was).

Mom had been on disability for a few weeks. Although it was good to rest her body, her mind was bored! She wanted something to do!! Mom was sitting on the back porch with one of my human brothers when three teens came right into our yard. The girl was holding a tiny purring kitten. ME!

I was placed on the ground and wobbled all over, inspecting everything! Then I found Mom and climbed into her lap. She laughed and pet me. It really felt good. I was purring so hard, Mom laughed some more. I tried to suckle her fingers, so she decided to feed me. All she had was some of Jinx's treats that had been left behind. She also gave me some water in a bowl. That was my first meal at my house, treats and water.

The visitors told Mom they had found me in the alley behind the house and she felt so sad for me. Then they started to leave. Mom said, "You're forgetting your cat!" The answer was- "We're not allowed to keep her. We've been trying to find out who she belongs to, but no one says she's theirs." And they just... left!

I think Mom was pretty stunned. What was SHE supposed to do with me? She wanted a cat, but wasn't sure if Dad would be agreeable. She called the vet, who gave her the phone number of the local cat rescue. The woman at the cat rescue said they had too many kitties and couldn't take me! Sniff! I was starting to feel SO unwanted.

Well Mom certainly wasn't going to put me out in the alley again! It's NOT a safe place for a kitty! She thought I looked too young to even leave my mother and wondered who would put me out like that. She called the vet right back and was able to get an appointment that very afternoon.

I was whisked into a build-a-bear carton and into the car. The vet was a really nice lady, but she gave me shots! *OUCH!* Dr. Hawks told Mom I was only 5 weeks old and needed replacement milk. Mom added that to her growing list of kitten needs!

Well, the rest of the day went pretty quickly. My first introduction with Dad didn't go very well. He took me out of my box and put me on (you're never gonna believe this) the dining room table. I promptly "did my business' on Mom's second-best tablecloth. Relations between us are only NOW starting to improve. Worse of all, I wasn't Jinx. *Shrug*

My mother wasn't bored anymore. She had me to take care of and love. I love her, too!

Next instalment- let me tell you about my big black shadow, Molly the dog.

PS- The second picture on my page "Peek-a-Boo Baby Sophie" was taken my first day at my house.

Part One- In the beginning- the story of how cats came to live at my house

Mom's mother grew up with cats. Mom's father grew up with dogs. As far as Mom is concerned, they "did it right" and Mom and her sisters grew up with both!
Dad grew up with dogs. Grandmom was (and still is) terrified of cats. Dad grew up hating cats with a passion!
After they were married and had a home, Mom longed for a kitty. But if a cat came into the yard, Dad would throw stones at it to chase it away. Mom knew that was not a healthy atmosphere and reluctantly decided never to have a cat. She was very sad. :(
(Are the tears starting yet?) MOL!
Mom and Dad have four children. The oldest two are girls. When the second daughter, "B", was a senior in college, her boyfriend gave her a cute kitten for Christmas! His name is Jinx. At spring break that March, B brought Jinx home to live for the week. Dad was MOST upset that a dreaded CAT would be living in his house for seven whole days!! Oh No!
Umm.... by the end of the week, Dad was intrigued by Jinx. He worked near the house B lived in and would often stop by, supposedly to see B and her room mates, but secretly he wanted to see more of Jinx! Hehe!
After B graduated that May, she and Jinx lived with Mom and Dad for 6 weeks before B moved to New York. At the end of those 6 weeks, Dad didn't want her to take Jinx with her! He tried very hard to convince her that Jinx should stay and live at our house.
From confirmed cat hater to confirmed cat lover. It only took from Christmas to the end of June for Jinx to accomplish this amazing transformation. What a GREAT cat!
Would you like to see Jinxy for yourself?
Jinx
Thank you Jinx from the bottom of my heart for working your kitty magic on Dad!

Random Thoughts

Several cats that I really like have recently left Catster. I don't know their reasons, but I suppose that their experiences on Catster weren't whatever they wanted. I really miss these kitties.
I have decided that my experience on Catster is whatever I make of it. I've really had a good time here and have met wonderful cats! If I'm not comfortable with something going on in a Forum thread, I avoid it. I do at least TRY to understand others' viewpoints (something I had to learn to do at my job) and do not attempt to make others accept mine in opposition to theirs. In other words, I must admit I avoid conflict whenever possible. For me, this works quite well. I haven't been angry and I haven't had my feelings hurt.
The world is full of conflict, it would be naive to expect there to be none here. It's what we members DO about it that matters.


Today's Sophie-Lesson: I love Catster! :)

What exactly ARE Sophie-Lessons?

Well, I can be very ornery. I do not let anyone push me around! I call myself a typical cat, Mom calls me stubborn!
When Benjamin came here to live, he pretty much let those humans do anything they wanted! Really! I was shocked!!
SO, I decided to teach him a few things and I must say he's come along rather well. He still allows things I would not, but I'm pleased with his progress.
He no longer sits on laps. He used to whenever they wanted him to! (Gag!)
He growls and even hisses sometimes, especially when they try to hold him (that's my boy!).
He uses his teeth, too. (I did teach him to never actually bite down, just touch his teeth to a hand or whatever has him).

So, that's what Sophie-Lessons are all about. I'm so proud of my prodigy!
(Mom says, "Yeah, thanks SO much Sophie!" Do I detect a note of sarcasm? Whatever!)

Thank you!

Thank you, Catster, for letting my diary be a featured diary today. I feel very honored!

Today's Sophie-Lesson: Catster is a great place!