AUGUST 28, 1999

Tyger's Diary Aug. 28, 1999
Grrrreetings everyone! I know I'm late. I've just been very busy lately. However, I'm also running out of stories, so I'm trying to stretch out the stories I do have, to make them last! Today I want to tell you the story of how Johnny Success, one of my cats from the '60's, came to live with us. It was interesting. My mother and I were out shopping at Ann and Hope one summer afternoon. After we had gone through the cashier's checkout with our purchases, we ran into a couple of little boys who were holding a lovely cat. (Inside the store, you ask? Yes, inside the store! In those days, they were still allowing pets inside stores. We used to wheel Kee-Tay in our shopping cart in the grocery store, believe it or not!) Anyway, we stopped to remark what a beautiful cat they had and to pet him. The boys said they were looking for a home for the cat and asked if we wanted him. He was friendly and outgoing. He took to us right away and seemed to really like us. We certainly liked him. So we said yes and took him with us. He was a dark gray and white cat with a black nose and cute little black patches on his chin and over one eye, that made him look like a little pirate with an eye patch. He also had wonderful double paws (paws with extra toes, I like those). We took him with us in the car to McDonald's, so that we could have some lunch. As soon as I started eating my hamburger (inside the car in those days), I offered him a little piece. Promptly, he meowed in a wonderful, strong voice and accepted it. Long story short, he rode very nicely in the car and we brought him home with us. I named him Johnny Success after a cat in a story book I had at home as a small child. The cat in the book had similar markings to him. It was a rather aggressive cat who was sure of himself and how wonderful he was, who went around telling everyone "I'm Johnny Success." But you know how names have a funny way of switching around. Because he was the newest addition to our family of cats, we kept referring to him as the new kitty, instead of by his name. All of a sudden, it became the name we called him by: NuKitty, and it was the only name he ever answered to! That's my little story for today. A good discussion to start on our message board might be how people come up with the names they give their cats. I have found cat names in story books, songs, cartoons and comics, food and drinks, and even from using silly baby talk to them. Where do you find yours? I have even used human names for cats, although I seldom care to do that. I also once had a cat named Judy, an orange striped tabby female with semi-long hair and four double paws. She had a nice fluffy tail. She wasn't named after any particular person, however, any more than Suzy was. It was just a human name I happened to like. I might have used the name for my child, if I had ever had one. I hope you enjoyed the story. Have a grrrreat weekend and I'll see you next time!
TygerStar079