The Year of Yes

Now with 73% more cat hair!

It was the little mew from below that got me. I went into the Animal Rescue League shelter on Thursday to see another cat, but this little guy caught my eye. He was such a loverboy, I knew he was coming home with me.

From his Petfinder profile:

Hello friends! My name is Voltron! I found my way to the ARL when someone found me in a box in South Boston. Getting stuck in a box wasn’t very pleasant, but luckily, I was found by the right people! … I am so cuddly that I would be a great partner for movie marathons! [emphasis mine. I’ll admit, that’s what sold me.]

Because he had to be snipped and chipped, I arranged to pick him up this afternoon. Accompanied by expert kitty wrangler, Ivan, we took him home in the cardboard carrier supplied by the shelter. You would have thought we were transporting a Tasmanian devil the way he was carrying on, but given his history, he was probably not all that keen on being BACK INSIDE A FRICKIN’ BOX. Ivan made a small opening so the panicked critter could see and he wasted no time tearing at it like a crazed weasel in order to make it larger still. Ivan and I made it back to my place with minor scratches and bites. Fairly bloodless. For the most part.

I put the box down on the floor as soon as I got into my bedroom. While I struggled to get out of my coat, the little guy struggled to extricate himself from the box through the hole. It was graceless and comical, but he achieved his goal. This kid’s a fighter.

Thus, Ponder V. Kitteh came into my life.

I have named him after a character in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series (no, I haven’t read the books, but I saw Hogfather and I really liked the name). And because too many people thought it was awesome, I have maintained his shelter handle, VOLTRON, as a middle name (thank you, Gil).

I just realized. This cat has some serious geek cred.

He’s frisky, curious, and in a few short hours has already demonstrated a knack for trouble-making (witness: knocking my dinner plate to the floor). He loves his new toys, is eating like he invented it and he’s already tweeted. You just have to look at him and he starts purring like a lawnmower. Love it. And his favorite spot to crash today has been Nanny’s old dog bed. Go figure.