Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Seemingly Human

Iwanski hates it when I refer to him as “Daddy” (to one of our cats).

“I am not that cat’s Dad,” he says.

But that doesn’t stop me. I always tell the cats to “Go by your Daddy,” or “Ask Daddy to feed you.”

Recently, this has spilled over into my dreams.

One night, as I was sound asleep, I dreamed that our cat Autumn walked up to Iwanski, who was sitting in the recliner, and said, “Hi, Daddy!” in the cutest little kitten voice. (Yes, she spoke English words in a little kitten voice. Trust me, it was cute.)

When I woke up, I could have sworn it was real. I actually looked at Autumn, who was curled up at the foot of the bed, and said, “Autumn, can you say ‘Hi Daddy’?”

She just stared at me and yawned.

So much for that.

But I’m not the only one who’s had human-like dreams about Autumn. One night, Iwanski dreamed that Autumn was piloting a plane on which we were passengers. Apparently she was even wearing tiny pilots’ goggles.

Another time, Iwanski dreamed that his boss had hired Autumn to be an insurance claims analyst at his job. In the dream, she was sitting in a chair in a cubicle with a stack of files in front of her.

The thing is, between our two felines, Autumn seems to have more “human-like” qualities. She is spunky, tough, and alternately sweet and loving, and cranky/bitchy. I’m sure that if left alone in nature, Autumn could totally survive on her own. She is one tough cookie.

But as for Hattie, she is just a perpetual helpless kitten. She is terrified of pretty much everything (balloons and being taken outside of the apartment are her biggest fears), and her life is spent eating, lying around, and rolling around on the floor, whining for her “people” to pet her fat belly. (I like to refer to her as “Whine-stein.”) But she’s an extremely sweet cat. She’s just not as “human-like” as Autumn is. If left alone in nature, Hattie would probably run, terrified, up a tree, and would never be heard from again.

There’s no way that I’d ever let Hattie pilot my plane.

Autumn, maybe.

13 comments:

Maria said...

I often dream about my dog. In one dream, we were cooking together and he decided to jump into the oven to warm up. I wanted to get in too, but he wouldn't let me. Now, how weird is that?

lisahgolden said...

Love this! When I was pregnant with Chloe (the dancer), I dreamt that I had kittens instead of a baby.

I woke to find our male cat Phoebe on my chest. That cat loved me in the most unnatural way.

We had Chloe's tail and whiskers removed and she looks practically normal!

yellowdoggranny said...

I don't dream about my living cats. but would always dream about my cats and dogs that had died..especially my dog bill and he's been dead since 92...i love it when i dream about him..

sageweb said...

HAHAHA ..my animals know me as Mommy.
I love cats just because of the diverse personalities they all have.

Random Thinker said...

Maybe Autumn is leading a secret double life at night that you don't know about. Sneaking out, working at a job, flying planes....

Our dogs call us Mom & Dad. It's only natural. Our cat just left to go live with our daughter, who has always loved the cat best. I didn't think I would want another cat but I miss having her around.

Daisy's Mom said...

I'm sure Petey thinks I am his mommy. That's ok with me. Who wouldn't want unconditional love from an adorable, fun loving guy like Petey.

Daisy thinks she is a cat. She is not nice, but I love her anyway. I am her Petey.

Br. Jonathan said...

I came over to feed Hattie and Autumn one night and they were singing "Stayin' Alive" by the BeeGees.
It was so cute. . .

Fantastic Forrest said...

Tiny pilot goggles and insurance claims analyst are awesome images. Autumn may have refused to say "Hi Daddy," but I'll bet if you put her in a cubicle or a pilot's seat, you'd get a response. :)

Sling said...

I don't think it was a dream..I've suspected cats of talking about us behind our backs for years.

rosemary said...

I dream about the pets a lot too...in usually weird houses or in the forest. I always thought that Drakie and I could go to the mall and shop....she was the human cat in the family. She would sit on a chair at the dinner table and wait for a scrap...slept under the covers with her head on my pillow....Steve and I call each other mom and dad with the pets...swore we would never do it.

Lorraine said...

So what you're saying is, my dog was lying when he said he graduated flight school?

Lorraine said...

Ok, and just read Maria's comment and that made me laugh out loud. For real. Because that is totally something a dog would do.

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