Our Furry Friends

I'm not a morning person. When I wake up in the mornings, I'm not particularly hungry, I don't feel the urge to do much of anything, and I mostly just want to lie in bed and read. Inevitably, though, as soon as I open my eyes and reach for my Kindle, I hear it--

"Meow."

I keep reading, concentrating on the sentence I'm trying to read.

"Meow!"

I start my sentence over, but again--

"Meow. Meow. MEOW!"

I turn the other way, hoping it'll stop for a half hour so I can fully wake up. But if I'm stubborn, Kitty is even more so.

"Meow. Meow. Meow. Meow. Meeeeooooowwwwww. Meoooooooooooooooooow. Meow. Meoow! MEOW! MEOW!"

Finally, after having started the same sentence seven times, I give up and reluctantly get up and follow as Kitty runs to the minifridge. Yawning, I take out the plastic container that has her food and dump a few spoonfuls into her dish.

The infuriating thing is, she'll take two nibbles, shut up, and then walk away. What the hell, Cat!? You were just meowing like a... well, like a dying cat, as if you were on the brink of starvation, and then once I give you food you couldn't care less! Stupid cat!

Still, she's my stupid cat and I'm very fond of her. She eats bugs -- cockroaches, moths, spiders, etc. In the afternoons, we often take naps together -- her curled up on my stomach or in the crook of my arm. She purrs as I gently stroke her, and life is good.

Lots of Peace Corps volunteers have pets. Animals can be such a source of companionship, especially during first few months of service. The first three months at site are widely known to be the hardest, when you're dealing with homesickness, isolation, missing other volunteers, getting used to your site, etc. I had Poppy when I got to site, and she was a great friend to me.

Which is why I wasn't too surprised when, the other day as I was on vacation, I got a text from my new roommate at site, Laura.

"I got a puppy!"

And what a puppy he is.

I've never lived with a puppy before, and it's been equally fun and infuriating. He's so cute, and he loves to have his belly rubbed and sleep upside down. On the other hand, he chews on everything, pees everywhere (seriously, everywhere!) and cries at night.

Still, Laura loves him like her own child. We've been spending a lot of time sitting on the couch together, watching Downton Abbey, with my cat purring on my lap and the dog lying contently belly-up on Laura's lap.

Our little friend, Simba

The interaction between the cat and the dog has been pretty funny. The first day, when we brought the dog into the house, Leeloo was most seriously displeased. I have never seen her tail so big and fluffy or her back so arched. She made this really weird sound, that I have never heard a cat make before, and just basically gave the dog the stink eye for the next few hours.

Slowly, though, they've been getting used to each other. The dog is always trying to play with her, and she just glares at him, as if to say "Come on. I dare you to come a few steps closer."

Still, we've caught them eating from the same bowl without fighting, and even napping next to each other. I just know that one of these days, I'll catch Leeloo curled up with the dog and purring.

But for now, the relationship is pretty much explained by this photo:

Still, they're our animals and we love them. <3