spinsters - Jezebel

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Glitterbug (likes life shaken, not stirred)
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
How anyone could look at my cats and think "Agent of the Devil" is beyond me, even though they are black. Of course, get between them and their kitty milk and it's another story.

And the all-black one is called Salem in memory of her persecuted forbears :) #catladies
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wilmawonker
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"

I love this comic. #catladies
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Blueberry26
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
What is the special thing about cats that make their owners stereotyped to be crazy and socially-outcast? This doesn't happen with dogs or fish. Maybe birds, but birds are not cuddly or nice. I have always loved cats. I think dogs are considered more "American" for some reason though. #catladies
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anteup
11/09/09

@Blueberry26: Dogs are also more manly. #catladies
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boxspelunker
11/09/09

@anteup: Which is so weird to me. Dogs are so emotional and require a lot of one-on-one attention (stereotypically), while cats are often more independent. You'd think the emotional stereotyping would make cats the manlier pet, as in, an animal that can virtually take care of itself, whereas a dog is so dependent and emotional (like a laaaaadieeee). #catladies
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anteup
11/09/09

@boxspelunker: My cat is the stereotypical naggy girlfriend. I come home and all he does is yell and nag. He always wants to cuddle and talk when I just want to sleep. He is the pickiest creature alive when it comes to food. He holds a grudge like nobodies business.... #catladies
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booter26
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
Paula Poundstone, who is a self-proclaimed crazy cat lady (she has a website where her cat answers questions from other cats and their owners) and when I saw her stand-up recently she said something like, "You might be wondering how I came to own 12 cats. And the answer is really very simple. I had 11 cats, and I got one more. " (Her delivery adds a lot). She also adds that she had names picked out for 12 cats, so it only seemed like a reasonable choice that her 12th name should have a cat to go with it. #catladies
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PaintedTrollop
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
There are men who are animal hoarders. My dearly departed husband was one of them. He had chickens, roosters, fish, a parrot, 2 tortoises, a rabbit, a cat, and a dog when he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. I used to tell him that if he were a woman, he'd have a house full of cats. #catladies
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laureltreedaphne
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
I have to say, I think 3 is SUCH an unfair and low number. My parents have a big house and we have 6 cats and 2 dogs. All are happy, well-fed, healthy and well-loved. #catladies
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lastsinglestanding
11/09/09

@laureltreedaphne: I always thought an ideal home would include four cats and two dogs -- the boyfriend is not convinced. Where I grew up, there was a house that had eight indoor/outdoor cats and one dog. Kids LOVED that house. And they were nice, normal people living in it. They just loved animals. #catladies
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redqueenmeg
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
I freely admit I am a crazy cat lady, but I put a lot of restrictions on my behavior. I only have 3, and they are all fixed. But I am a huge kitty advocate and whenever I go lie down for a nap they always come visit me, all of them. I've always liked animals but have always had the greatest affinity for kitties.

I could never give up my cats no matter what. #catladies
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Raederle
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
Anyone read Lillian Jackson Braun's Cat Who books? Dashing older gentleman has two cats, and together they Solve Crimes. #catladies
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vulcanized
11/09/09

@Raederle: I read so many of those. I did a book report on one (The Cat Who Played Post Office, I believe) in 7th grade English, which leads me to believe my teacher was not so much about what we were reading and more just relieved we were reading at all. #catladies
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limber
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
Jeez. I read "Cat Wednesday" and suddenly recalled the coverage of the little girl with schizophrenia, Jani... who hallucinates cats and is tormented by a creature called Wednesday.

But it turns out her Wednesday is a rat. The cat, who commands her to jump off of balconies, is named Four Thousand.

I wonder how many "witches" with invisible familiars were schizophrenic? #catladies
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waverly
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
Wow. This is making me think of Mrs. V. Mrs. V. was an old shut-in lady who lived in our very small, very poor town in the mountains. She had dozens of cats. Literally, dozens. And because she was a shut-in, she needed people to do her grocery shopping for her. Somehow, this task fell to my dad. (I don't know how this happened, but my dad is a good guy, and that's the best explanation I can come up with.)

Anyway, he'd buy her tons of cat food each week and bring it to her house and when he returned, he had to immediately throw his clothes into the laundry and shower because her house was just the stinkiest place in the world.

Not only was she a cat-hoarder, but she was also a stuff-hoarder. There were literally paths through her house. I went in there once, just once, around age 7. It was bewildering.

Obviously now it's clear to me that she had serious mental problems, but at the time, my parents never, ever discussed Mrs. V in that light. She was just a poor shut in with too many cats and a lot of stuff in her house. I wonder why my dad never called state services for her? It seems so odd, looking back on it. #catladies
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WashingMyHair
11/09/09

@waverly: What's even sadder is that these people often start out with good intentions, unless all cats are spayed and neutered, it can become overwhelming in no time. Cats breed like rabbits.... #catladies
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UrsulaV
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
Definitely not always women. I know a priest with fifteen...you start doing rescue, and you're trying to foster one until it gets a home, and next thing you know...

My boyfriend and I are attempting to find homes for four or five that he (the boyfriend, not the priest) accumulated doing rescue, but this is a lousy time for it. Seems like the shelters are always full, but with people dumping animals because they can't afford them anymore, it's even worse than usual. #catladies
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girlgonemild
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
There are definitely cat gentleman-- my brother, who looks like a young Ozzy Osbourne and has two enormous orange tabbies he's raised since kittenhood, comes to mind-- but I think their devotion tends to be expressed in depth rather than breadth. #catladies
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ideas of light
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
"If you have one cat, you're just a guy who has a cat. If you have two cats... the two cats are friends, they keep each other company. If you have three cats... you start to be that guy... who has all those cats..."

Anyway. My old roommate had four cats. I teased him a little for it, but really, they were all rescues, so hey, more power to him. I don't see why it's such a stigma, or why it's consider exclusively a female thing. Plenty of people enjoy animal companionship, and sometimes they just... accumulate.
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Edited by ideas of light at 11/09/09 1:55 PM ideas of light was starred ideas of light was unstarred

Zombie Ms. Skittles
11/09/09

@ideas of light: My dream retirement would be living alone in a house boat with 3-5 cats. Actually, that would be my dream right now, too. #catladies
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Working-for-the-weekend
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
Two of my male friends who are roomates recently added 2 cats to their house and now continually feel the need to point out that they aren't gay when they tell people. #catladies
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Zombie Ms. Skittles
11/09/09

@Working-for-the-weekend: Part of that may be the stigma of two dudes getting any kind of pet together. If they got a dog together they'd probably mention it, too. #catladies
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Lumbercath
11/09/09

In reply to "Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?"
My boyfriend is the biggest cat person I know. He wanted to change his Facebook status to "In a Relationship with" his cat's name. His after work chats consists of what his cats did that day. #catladies
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WashingMyHair
11/09/09

@Lumbercath: I accuse my husband of loving one of our cats more than he does me. He pretty much admits that he probably does! Ironically, that just endears me to him even more! #catladies
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Tippi Hedren
11/09/09

@WashingMyHair: My husband totally loves our two cats more than he loves me. He gives them little cat massages and talks about them to anyone who will listen. When our friends tell stories about their babies, he breaks in with one about our cats. It's kind of adorable, seeing as he didn't even really want a cat in the first place. #catladies
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