keetty party.

Over the past month, my little kitten, Ichi, has been staying in my friend Justin's basement with his other cat, Ada. This basement is where Justin lives, where I spend most nights, and also where he works from home. The two kitties had some awkward tension at first and I kind of thought hope was lost. Ichi loves everyone and is a huge attention whore while Ada is quiet and set in her ways, so I couldn't see them getting along. He'd try and pounce on her and she'd hiss and pop him in the mouth with her paw. Still, the little guy persisted. Every day, several times a day, he'd slowly walk up to her, roll on his back, chirp like Wall-E and lay there for ages, to no avail. He and my cat, Sookie, are more polite to one another but she's petrified of his playful advances and sees it as her cue to hide under a bed. I've had Ichi for over four weeks and it really seemed like, despite his best efforts, he wouldn't have any kitty friends after all.

But something clicked a few days ago and now Ichi and Ada are best friends. They playfight, lick each other's asses and eat in sync with one another. He reaches out with his paw for her and she leans in and snuggles. It's almost too cute for words. Ada has always been kind of moody and sad-faced, but I swear she seems happier now. She has a friend! And he has a friend! Yay!

The other interesting thing about the um, living arrangement is that the basement used to be the old owners' kids' play area, so each wall has a mural of characters from a Disney movie (and the Land Before Time...my fave!). In this very room I'm in now (out of several), I'm surrounded by Hercules, Woody, Buzz Lightyear, the T-Rex, Tarzan, Belle and the Beast, Mufasa, Rafiki, Simba, Sleeping Beauty, Jasmine, Aladdin, the Genie, Lady and the Tramp, Maid Marian AND Robin Hood (the hot fox version!). All in one room! It's actually petrifying. As soon as you walk down the stairs, the walls have been painted to look like a dungeon and there's a dwarf (from Snow White and the Seven) painted eye-level at each step.

Tonight I decided to take some pictures of the kitties since Ichi grows a little each day and I want to secure my crazy cat lady status by documenting his entire existance. These are some of my favorites.


Ichi's kind of adorable. Don't you agree?


During the day, so as not to disturb the office, the kitties spend most of their time in the Disney Princesses room, seen here. Mostly they just do some cold hard chilling with the occasional wheat grass break, also seen here.


Ichi likes wheat grass okay, but he'd much prefer chicken strips in any situation. This is how you know he's my cat.


He looks his wisest when admiring a treat. That's his trick, you see!


His tail is as long as his body. (We measured.) I think that's where his fat goes.


That black spot on his foot is my favorite part.


Here, he's about to attack Ada, who is doing some late-night filing at the office.


When playfighting, they each take turns instigating while the other plays coy.


After each round, they go into their respective corners for a breather.


Ada's usually the one who decides when the game is over. She has to budget her time wisely, you know, since she must also both hide behind the mattress AND gaze at the wall, all in the course of a single day. Busy lady!


Ichi's other favorite thing to do, besides wrestle with the love of his life, is hang out on the mattress with the Disney Princesses. Here he is with Belle from Beauty and the Beast.


Don't tell the others, but he has a soft spot for Ariel. He likes redheads.


Because Ichi is constantly surrounded by beautiful ladies, he's always purring. And loudly!


Here he is smushing his face. Just 'cause.


It doesn't REALLY matter, but I'd love it if his eyes stayed brown.


His one flaw is that, well, he's kind of a computer hog. He either wants to stare at pictures of himself, turn off the monitor, or play DJ by pressing all of the buttons at once. But he lets me use mine. Sometimes.