Welcome, Chance!

Our little family has grown: We got a cat today, this sweet two-year-old gray named Chance. We got her at the fabulous Dakin Animal Shelter in Leverett, about a half hour east of here. Dakin is terrific place to adopt cats and dogs, and they check you out thoroughly as owners before they give you an animal. They will remain a resource for us as we live with Chance (isn't that a great name?).

We looked at the cages first, the kittens -- I was convinced Lily would want a couple and they sure were adorable, but she said they were too bitey and scratchy -- and the adult cats, and then found Chance in the cat community room, where she was chillin' with a half dozen others in an enclosed room. She was looking out the window and I patted her and she turned around and checked me out and came over to be stroked. She's walking around the place now, hasn't said a word, hasn't scratched or drank or peed or nothin', just sniffing in every corner. Occasionally she lies down -- she likes the hardwood floors, it seems -- and relaxes.

She's very cat-friendly, the Dakin folks say. I was set on two cats but now I'm thinking we'll see how this goes, see if she seems lonesome or bored. I'm exhausted, for some reason. This is a big day for all of us.

PS -- yes, she has what appears to be some cataract in her left eye. Dakin took her to an opthamologist vet who thought she had an eye injury when she was very young. They think there's nothing wrong now (she does have a bit of a weepy eye, which Dakin thought was a kitty cold; I gather there's lots of stuff for these guys to catch while they're at a shelter) but to keep an eye on it.

Isn't she pretty!