Thank goodness for the safety of our homes and private spaces. Within our walls, we can talk baby talk to our cats, make up crazy songs, and loudly break into an, “I love you, I love you, I love you!” as we grab and tightly hug a cat. Would I temper this kind of behavior in public? Probably (I’m a quiet type).

All families have their secrets, or fun stuff shared only within the walls of home. Cats are part of my family. Many of the eccentricities that I enjoy are things that many people would probably find strange. Here are some of the fun and strange things I do with my cats, or regarding my cats — that I don’t necessarily advertise. The one thing that unifies these? Silly as they are, they are all extremely fun and give me great joy.

Creating and singing special cat songs

I’ve lost count of the number of silly cat songs I’ve composed. Some are as simple as using an already existing song, and inserting a special cat’s name in the appropriate place. Some songs are original, with music and words that we make up that suit the particular cat. Why is this so fun? Probably because we love and do music in this house. The cats love it, too. I swear they love the rhythms and they love their particular songs.

Can I share them? No! They are way too private — not in a bad way, but just in a silly way. Suffice it to say that they are extremely joyful and fun, and funny too.

Dancing with cats

My next favorite thing to do with cats is to dance. It’s funny how we include our cats in our hobbies. I love to write, dance, and do music, and I work cat things into these areas. There’s nothing more fun than dancing with a cat, especially if your cat will tolerate it, or even love it. Put on a great song that seems to fit your cat, and have at it. We (again) change the words to some songs, and I sing as I dance with the cat.

Different cats have different personalities. The first feral that lived in our garage had a stealthy personality. I couldn’t get near him. We made up a stealthy sounding sound. On the other hand, Target (previous black cat) had a playful, fun loving spirit. We’d play and dance to MC Hammer and Target would dance, too. We didn’t even have to hold Target. He’d run back and forth on the counter, following our movements, getting into the groove.

Creating silly cat stories

I’ve made up so many cute cat stories — some written down, some not. How can I resist when my cats make such great characters? I know there are people out there who can’t fathom the thought of cats as characters in a story … but I know more and more people in MY world who would probably embrace it. This is great fun!

Breaking into a “woo woo!” or other nonsensical cat talk

If my cat likes to say “Woo! Woo!” I will say it back. If another cat likes to talk in a small crabby voice, I’ll make those same noises. A fly on the wall would probably think I was out of my mind. No … just having fun.

“Oh look! Jamie Bluebell is rolling around”

To me, this falls under the same category as human parents being fascinated by their offspring. I love to watch my cats. Anything new is cause for notice, or a comment. “Look. Chester and Bluebell are cuddling. I’ve never seen that before!” “Look at the cute thing Zorro is doing with his paws. Grab the camera!” “Look at Jamie — she’s rolling around and flirting with Zorro!” And on and on. These are topics of endless fascination in my household. Do we not have enough to do? No. There’s plenty going on in the rest of our lives. I just love to notice these cat eccentricities and cat milestones.

I wonder if the cats say the same thing about me? Oh, look! Mom is jumping around. She’s singing a silly song!”

If you dare, tell all. What secrets and silly things do you do (cat-related) within the safety and security of your home?

More by Catherine Holm:

• Let’s Talk about Why We Love Having Multiple Cats
• How to Tell if Your Cat is a Micromanager
• 9 Cat Gestures that Kill Me with Cuteness EVERY Time

About Catherine Holm: Told that she is funny but doesn’t know it, accused of being an unintentional con artist by her husband, quiet, with frequent unannounced bursts into dancing liveliness, Cat Holm loves writing about, working for, and living with cats. She is the author of The Great Purr, the cat-themed memoir Driving with Cats: Ours for a Short Time, the creator of Ann Catanzaro cat fantasy story gift books, and the author of two short story collections. She loves to dance, be outside whenever possible, read, play with cats, make music, do and teach yoga, and write. Cat lives in the woods, which she loves as much as really dark chocolate, and gets regular inspiration shots along with her double espresso shots from the city.