Annabelle

Kenny and I sometimes get into an argument as to which of our cats is the smartest. Allie, while lovable, is somewhat addle brained, so she is out. Kenny roots for Paddy. He would. She is his little shadow, following him everywhere, getting underfoot. And, while it's true that she can open a closed door and let herself into a room, my vote still goes to Annabelle.

Paddy is her Daddy's girl, Allie hides too much to belong to either of us, but Annabelle is my baby. She has my schedule memorized, it seems and will head immediately upstairs to my room when I come into the house. She knows when I'm heading to the bathroom to wash my face, knows the words "Up", "Down" and "Come On" and will sit on my lap for hours watching TV with me. She's better, in fact, than a masseuse as just a few minutes of her purring calms me right down.

I once saw a Star Trek: The Next Generation- episode in which Data was trying to demonstrate how well trained his cat "Spot" was. It turned out to be the other way around for every time "Spot" would mew, Data would get her some food, brush her hair or produce a new toy. That could be me and Annabelle. She will lead me downstairs to show me a messy litter box or empty food bowl. I really do believe that given half a chance, she could talk; she makes her needs known so well.

Annabelle's personality is somewhat between that of the overly friendly Paddy and the "believe me, we really do- have three cats" reclusiveness of Allie. She won't greet a stranger at the door or jump up on their lap, but she will, say, sniff their shoes or roll over for her belly to be rubbed. She's also the disciplinarian of our three cats. If Paddy, or especially Allie, gets out of line, Annabelle will give them a swat. She's even been known to scold us- a time or two!

You can write to Annabelle at: annabelle@thesimsplace.info. I'm sure she'd love to hear from you.