So I guess the prediction that it would take a while - months? Years? for Bella to gradually become whatever she's going to become - was right. Bella and Jamie both adore Merrick's freeze-dried chicken nugget treats, which I keep in the drawer of the table next to my bed. Open the drawer, and Jamie dives into it, searching for the prize. I give them treats once or even twice a day (I can't resist their enthusiasm.) But I've been putting the treats on my body so the cats will have to get up close to my face to eat. Jamie already sleeps plonked up against my legs or between them. Last night Bella tried to wake me (as she always does when she wants feeding). But this time she did it more gently, as if she'd been learning tact! Who'd have thought it? She kissed my nose with her tongue. Then she patted my face with her paw. Then she came to rest with her back against mine, for maybe as long as ten minutes. Finally, as if testing my tolerance, she extended her claws and pricked my face, which made me pull the covers over my head. Finally she resorted to the sheet-scratching that invariably gets me up and doing what she (and Jamie) want. This usually happens at 5, 5:30 in the morning, when I feed her a whole 3-ounce can (she has not gained weight, as far as I can tell, despite the fact that she gets at least two full cans daily), and Jamie half of one. Right now she's lying an inch or two from my left hand as I type, her body partially obscuring (of course!) my view of the morning paper.
I've almost entirely abandoned getting a third - male, very affectionate - cat. Jamie and Bella are good friends now, never hissing at one another, not even batting/swatting much, and chasing each other merrily all over the apartment. They are just loads of fun to watch. They almost always make me laugh.
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