A Lifetime of Cats: Cheeky Charlie
I was in the garden one autumn afternoon when a young cat streaked across the lawn and into my house without so much as glancing at me. This is very characteristic of the cat who came to be known as 'Cheeky Charlie' - he is very much independent and although he likes the occasional cuddle, affection is very much on his own terms and most days you are lucky if he will so much as acknowledge your existence.
Soon after, a young Scottish woman knocked at my door and asked if I had a tabby and white cat. It turned out that she lived across the road from me and over there Cheeky Charlie was known as 'Tabby', although he didn't really belong to her either.
For the next few years, he continued to spend half his time on my bed and half his time on hers. We became good friends and regularly cat sat for each other's multiple cat households. When she relocated to York, she chose to leave Charlie with me,
feeling that he belonged more to the neighbourhood than any individual person.
Indeed, I frequently see Charlie going in and out of other houses on the street, sometimes as far as half a mile away, and I often wonder just how many names he has. I feel honoured that he chooses to spend so much time with me.
Learn more about Charlie in my forthcoming book "A Lifetime of Cats", to be published in 2011.
