It’s tough being a dog person and living in the city. Even if I had an apartment that allowed dogs, it just doesn’t seem right to me having one without a big back yard — not just for the dog’s benefit, but so I can just let him run around without my intervention if I’m busy doing something else. Nintendogs get old after about five minutes, tops. And although the Roomba does mess up wires and drag dustballs all over the place, just like a real pet would, it’s just not the same.
So I got a cat from the local shelter. He’s about a year old, according to the authorities. The photo up there is the best I could manage to get; the damn cat just can’t pose for pictures. At the shelter, he was spazzing out quite a bit, so I expected more of the same. Instead, he’s all clingy and weirdly affectionate. I can’t sit down anywhere without him jumping on me and curling up in my armpit, around my neck, on the back of my chair, wherever he wants. And then he starts with the kneading my face with his deadly sharp claws. Every time I try to take a picture, he pushes up against the lens, or moves out of range to get back in my lap. I thought cats were supposed to be stand-offish.
Anyway, I’m stuck with him, and he’s pretty cute, and it looks like he’ll be good for dusting. (He’s been crawling into all the small spaces around the apartment, then jumping on me and getting dust balls all over the place.) We’re currently working on a scheme where he stays off the damn computer while I’m using it, but he’s winning.
At the moment, his name is Pazuzu, although that’s been contested by my peer group. (For what it matters. He doesn’t listen to me anyway, and his name will likely end up being “Dudecutitoutalready!”) Other candidate names were:
- Cat
- El Gato Diablo
- Bakeneko
- Dennis
- Lando
- Admiral Whiskers Von Furrybottom
- Azazel
- Belial
- Jean-Claude
- Bob
- Werner
- Phillip Michael
- Lamont
- Nyarlathotep
- Dog Substitute
Feel free to make suggestions or votes in the comments. I’ll show him the website periodically and see if he latches onto any suggestions in particular.