Lick Is The New Love

Cat kisses. Love ‘em or hate ‘em? Our cat, Giese, is the “kisser.” When Cupid, bored with human dalliances, strikes an arrow squarely in her heart, Miss Giese suddenly needs to lick, rub, and purr with an intensity that’s hard to ignore. Or escape.

I would suggest the timing of such affection is completely random, but there seems to be an added burst of love when I’m wearing black, about to leave the house for an appointment, or want to avoid all things cat hair prior to cooking.

Giese, nonplussed, comes at me with chubby cuteness while I’m deflecting like crazy. “Oh! Look at the catnip mouse. See? Play with it. PLAY with it. Pleeeeease play with it.”

My anemic attempt at a defense seldom works, and moments later I’m grabbing the sticky roller to remove the afghan of calico hair left on my clothes. I glare at her as she walks away with a curious grin and a suspicious swagger. Somewhere in our house I expect to find little notches on the floorboards denoting all the days she scored and I didn’t. Days. Have I mentioned nights? Nights when humans sleep and cats do whatever they feel like doing? Oh wait, that’s pretty much 24/7.

Anyway, the other night I was dreaming I was in a desert-like location. The buildings were adobe, the wind groaned and spit sand, and I felt it was only a matter of time before I died of thirst. But wait. Why did my hand feel wet when everything around me was so dry? Eventually I woke up enough to realize Giese was vigorously licking my hand and purring like a jumbo jet. Argh! Resigned, I pet her head and got up to wash. I know my hand isn’t the only thing she licks with regularity, and let’s leave it at that.

My husband dislikes Giese’s tendency to lick/ love. He pushes her away gently and bellows a deep-voiced “No!” Her big green eyes half close as though she knows he couldn’t mean it. He does, however, and she moves towards me… the forever softy when it comes to animals. While I can’t say cat kisses are my favorite thing in life, knowing she adores me that much is often the best part of my day. How about you? Do you have an affectionate pet? How do you handle the love?