Obligatory Cat Photos

by David Bratman and Berni Phillips

We've had seven cats in our household. In chronological order:

1. Papagena (b. 1983, d. 1995) (Poppy for short; black and white ex-female; named for a character from W.A. Mozart's The Magic Flute), "the meanest cat west of the Rockies";
2. Severian (b. 1989, d. 2002) (Seven for short; ultra-black ex-male; named for a character from Gene Wolfe's The Book of the New Sun), very very black, very very shy, and the most loving cat of all time;
3. Pandora (b. 1995, d. 2014) (buff and white ex-female; named for a character from Ursula K. Le Guin's Always Coming Home), a remarkably sound sleeper with multiple personalities: Snooze, Squiggle, Rocket Girl, Leaper, and Glorificus;
4. Harriet (b. & d. 2002) (a blue-grey female kitten; named for a character from Dorothy L. Sayers' Gaudy Night), a 6-week-old sick rescued foundling we took in who alas did not survive [no photos of her were ever taken];
5. Pippin (b. 2002, d. 2019) (orange and caramel ex-male; named for a character from J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, not Peter Jackson's, thank you very much), a cat who loved being petted and held only if you could catch him first;
6. Maia (b. 2013) (torbie ex-female; named for a character from P.L. Travers' Mary Poppins), a small and vocal cat who expects frequent petting ministrations;
7. Tybalt (b. 2018) (buff and white ex-male; named for a character from Reynard the Fox, with allusions to William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet), currently the most energetic and curiously investigative young cat ever born.

Left: Maia (right) studying the advent of Tybalt (left). Right: Tybalt, not dead yet. More below ...

Left: Tybalt in playing mode. Middle: Maia in kittenhood. Hasn't changed much as an adult. Right: Pippin hiding out. More below ...

Left: Pippin in a glamorous pose. Right: Pandora and Pippin together on their favorite grey thing. More below ...

Left: Pippin, looking very young and rather scared. Right: our two Halloween-colored cats, Pandora and Seven, together in watchful peace. More below ...

Left: Poppy on top of the bookcase, and Seven as a youngster below. Right: Pandora sprawled out in kittenhood. More below ...

Left: Seven as an adult, as visitors would never see him (because he was so shy and hid under the bed). Right: Pandora in her favorite sleeping position, on her head.

"They're so cute!" -- B. Phillips