Narcissistic Gerbils

My sister, Valerie, is in town with her husband, kids and dog. With the exception of the dog, they are all staying with my cousin. I've volunteered for and been given the enjoyable task of looking after the hound, named Jake. He's sleeping on my bed behind me as I write this little entry. There's his webcam picture on the right. I'm one of those people who doesn't like to define himself as a "dog person" or a "cat person." Some people get nuts when the conversation turns to the question of which is the "better" pet. I've always had cats because they fit into my flat with greater ease, but I'm an animal person in general. If I had the land, I'd have llamas and horses and goats and Hell knows what else. It's safe to say that I understand cats more than dogs, just out of experience. But Jake and I have bonded nicely. Dogs have a lousy poker face, and you can usually figure out what they're thinking just by looking at them. Well, not so much thinking as feeling. The tail gives it away, and those sad little doggy eyebrows.

For the time being, the House of Four Cats has four cats and one dog. And I'm proud of my kitties for their bravery, although they disappeared for several hours yesterday, except for Toulouse. He stood his ground...he's not much of a runner. Slowly the other cats have made their way back out from under the beds, or up from the basement. They stare at the dog, and the dog stares back. The cats move their tails because they're pissed off, and the dog wags his tail because he is curious and basically enjoying himself. Hilarity ensues. Although I'm afraid that one of the cats might take a swipe at Jake's noggin, and send his eyeball or moist nose sailing across the room. For the moment, however, there is peace.

I'm definitely of the mind that cats and dogs are better company than people. Not very surprising, I guess. People say the same about horses, and are quite adamant about it. Linda, my amant de dame, once owned and rode horses. She took me to a barn where I got to help take the horses in for the night, which is easy to do because the horses are looking forward to returning to the barn at the end of the day; there be food there. I don't envy anyone that has to try to get a horse to do something that he or she doesn't want to do. They are stunningly powerful and are more intelligent than city-folk might think. And every horse, I'm told, has a unique personality.

I suppose a lot of animals must be poor company, like polar bears, black mamba snakes and sea lions. Although it's likely that I'd still prefer the company of any animal over someone who wants to show me baby pictures, or talk about Jesus Christ.

I've always wanted to meet a manatee, but you have to go into the water to see them. They won't come out to see you. Fucking uptight manatee pricks.