Every town has them. The vet office cat who slinks around like a mob boss. The library cat curled up on the biographies, silently judging you for checking out a romance novel. The shop cat who “greets” customers by staring directly through them.  They’re not pets. They’re employees. Unpaid, untrained, irreplaceable. And unlike your human coworkers, they can’t be fired. A working cat doesn’t apply for the job—it just shows up, clocks in with a nap, and dares anyone to argue. At the vet, they’re emotional support for nervous owners—and psychological warfare for the dogs trembling in plastic carriers. Dogs come in wagging their tails, leave with their dignity in tatters because Mr. Whiskers stared at them like a loan shark. “Nice kneecaps, shame if something happened.” In libraries, they’re mascots and archivists, curling up on open dictionaries like living punctuation. They are scholars of dust and silence, connoisseurs of sun-warmed windowsills. Patrons think they’re sweet. T...

  I wrote years and years ago during a harrowing chapter in my life. Since some of you liked my noir writing. I will share this one with you. I hope you like it.    THE FERAL CAT UPSTAIRS:
 A Noir Confessional in 9 Lives or Less!  I’ve never seen him, not clearly.
A silhouette, once—on the landing. Shadow on shadow, staring back like he knew all my secrets and none of my boundaries. He blinked once. Slowly. The universal cat sign for you are beneath me but useful. Then he was gone.  We call him “Upstairs,” like a ghost or a rumor.
 He doesn’t meow. He doesn’t purr. He thuds. Late at night, just as you’re drifting off or trying to decide if carbs are still the enemy, he makes his move. A heavy-footed gallop across the ceiling like he’s chasing God or dodging rent.  I’ve questioned my sanity, naturally.
 Asked the neighbors, the landlord, the moon. No one claims him. No one feeds him. No one has ever seen a litter box. And yet the scratching continues. T...

                                   Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas! 

This week, I found a cute video to share. This holiday season is busier than normal, so I will post what I can on Caturdays to keep Kitty Corner at the manor open for business. What intelligent things do your cats do? I have one that opens doors and has figured out how to get to the treats for cats and dogs. I had to put a lock on the door, or else she would feed the pets treats like a benevolent treat goddess. 

  A tailor in Jakarta makes a living making fashion for the Asian market. It's unremarkable of a statement until you find out his clients are people who love the look of snappy wardrobes for cats. Some clients have seasonal wardrobes and unique holiday clothing just for their cats. Japan is one of the largest markets for this because they are known to be cat crazy and pamper their felines more than any other country in the world. These cats seem up for it; one of mine would take one look at a kitty kimono and might launch herself at me, claws out and saying, "Bitch, Please. I hope you enjoyed having sight all your life because this cat fashion shit is the last thing your sorry ass will ever see." It will have been the least I deserve.  Above is a photo at the Indonesian 2023 Fashion Show in Indonesia, and as you can see, these women mean business. (top photo the guardian)