* * * * *
First thing's first. Melvin.
I moved into a new apartment in January—a place all to myself up the hill from Old Town Pasadena. It's a little bit of comfort for a guy who's still not so sure about cities. This "apartment" is actually a cottage tucked under an oak tree. There's a backyard larger than the house itself with some citrus trees and the remains of what was at some point a massive patch of mint. There's enough room for my hammock, from which I can watch my hummingbird feeders. Way more hummingbird feeders than I ever thought I'd own.
And here's one of those hummers, a rufous one:
Even after just a few weeks of moving in, I was lonely. I hardly interacted with my previous roommate, but just having him around was nicer than I realized. I figured the solution should be a cat. I contemplated more than I probably should have. I had my upcoming second-year candidacy exam, and I knew that would suck a lot of my time. Preparing for that exam would also mean that I could use a loving companion around here.
So I did it. Wandered around some shelters. Met a lot of really nice cats. On the evening of February 1st, I was deep in the maze of the LA Animal Services North Central Shelter. They were closing in about 10 minutes, and I had seen all but one of the cats. This last one was a former streetcat brought in about a week before I arrived. The volunteer opened his cage and mentioned that this tabby would tolerate affection, but that he would just stay up on his ledge. She reached in, stroked his head, and sure enough, he stayed put. I walked up to the crate and did the same. Before my hand even got to him, he was reaching up towards me. He stood up all the way, jumped down, and leaned out of the cage so he could push his head against me. This was the buddy I need. A few minutes later, I was back on the 110 with a cat-filled carrier beside me.
After about an hour of hiding behind my bathroom sink, he decided everything was okay and he jumped right into apartment life. He followed me around everywhere, meowing constantly. (He still sits on the toilet and watches me shower.) Over the course of a weekend, he had figured out that his favorite places were in front of the fireplace and on my comfy IKEA chair. I had intended that chair to be a place for me to sit. I was very wrong.
I went through a lot of bad names before settling on Melvin. It fits him, I think. And it pays homage to one of the old-time fiddling greats, Melvin Wine of Braxton County, WV.
At this point, Melvin is settled in. He runs this place. I have to move him when I'm ready for bed, because he tends to sprawl out and take up a good portion of the mattress. He has a tendency to pull all the covers off me in the night so he can make a little nest for himself. Then he wakes up at 5am and head-butts me and cries in my ear until I feed him. I tried ignoring him for a while to see if he would catch on. Nope. 5am breakfast it is.
He's a spoiled cat. He has his own window seat now. When the sun shines through in the morning, he crawls up there for a nap. Sometimes upside-down. Sometimes forgetting to put his tongue back in.
This cat finds amusement in such things as dust bunnies, pieces of dirt I tracked in, and strips of paper left a little too close to the top of the trash can. But most of all, Melvin loves cardboard boxes. Sure, he'll sit in them...
...but what Melvin enjoys more than anything is tearing them to shreds.
He's very good about his destructive habits. He won't touch anything on my desk, only things I place on the floor for him. My personal document shredder. It's rather handy.
I can't believe I almost waited to get a cat until after candidacy. Those plans would've been thwarted by the virus. Sure, he wakes me up way too early, but the comfort and laughs and love he gives me has been so worth it through all of this. I couldn't ask for a better roommate.
Now you've met Melvin. If this blog continues, you'll be seeing more of him, for sure. (If you can't wait that long, you should check out his Instagram account.) Up next, though, is skunks. Get ready for some of the cutest pictures you've ever seen.
