It's Like This, Cat

1



CAT AND KATE



My father is always talking about how a dog can be very educational for a
boy. This is one reason I got a cat.

My father talks a lot anyway. Maybe being a lawyer he gets in the habit.
Also, he’s a small guy with very little gray curly hair, so maybe he
thinks he’s got to roar a lot to make up for not being a big hairy tough
guy. Mom is thin and quiet, and when anything upsets her, she gets asthma.
In the apartment—we live right in the middle of New York City—we don’t
have any heavy drapes or rugs, and Mom never fries any food because the
doctors figure dust and smoke make her asthma worse. I don’t think it’s
dust; I think it’s Pop’s roaring.