I am a literary writer by profession (with many literary novels, short story collections, poetry books, and books of literary criticism to my credit) and an independent historian. One of my novels is called A History of the Cat in Nine Chapters Or Less, which is an interpretation of human civilization over the millennia from the perspective of the cat. It was inspired by my first cat, Fu, who was a legend in the local artistic and literary community for his unique personality. I love living in Austin–one of the most livable cities in the country, I think–and make the most of the health and fitness opportunities here. When not involved in cat care, you will find me at Town Lake running or biking, or at home writing and reading most of the time. I also enjoy doing yoga and weight training, cooking excellent and healthy food (I consider myself something of a serious chef, having mastered many world cuisines, although in recent years I have not cooked so many elaborate feasts), and generally doing everything possible to maximize health and longevity. I bring the same concern for health and longevity to cat care, having learned so much about their physical and emotional needs over the decades. After Fu, his successor Foolittle (who died not long ago) turned out to be equally intelligent and wise, and I feel blessed to have had him since he was a baby and eager to soak up everything I wanted to teach him. Foolittle was a wonderful companion as together we wrote many books over the years. As time went by I started rescuing cats off the streets, filling a gap shelters often cannot fill, with TNR cats that seemed ready for domestic life, if only given enough love and attention. When I was living in another city my home at one point became a de facto cat rescue center as word went around in the cat community and one after the other they would literally show up at my door asking for help, usually on the point of starvation. When I took in a pregnant cat, Miso, who ended up having babies at my home, that was another big advance in my knowledge of cats, as Miso and her babies had to be rescued from the point of death several times. Those were the babies I had to syringe feed for months, even in the middle of eye surgery, because Miso was too young and wasn’t producing enough milk. Each cat I have known has left a strong bond and memory with me, and I hope I have done the same for each cat I have known, whether for long or short periods of time. I never forget that cats are special beings who teach us about the only things in life that matter, because they have NO TIME for distracting and useless stuff. So i just go about in the cat universe trying to do my best to learn, a humble student of their ways.
