This was one of Sweep's favourite tricks. When Bob was sitting on the toilet, minding his own business reading a magazine, Sweep used to march into the bathroom and start to play catch with his toes making him dance as he put it. Many a time I've had to go to rescue him.

I like to lie in a hot bath reading a book and with a cup of coffee. Sweep used to come into the bathroom and give a loud chirp of greeting then jump up on the shelf behind my head. One day I was reading a good ghost story when Sweep leapt up the side of the bath with a loud shriek. I shouted and dropped my book in water. Sweep by this time was sitting in the middle of the floor with that grin on her little face. Bless her.

Sweep originally lived with neighbours of ours but as they had another four cats and as she didn't like other cats she looked around until she found us. We all had to go along with what Sweep had decided. This was fine except that we used to go to a pub at night and to get there we had to pass the neighbours house. Sweep used to walk with us to the end of the street. When we returned she could see us coming down the hill and ran to the end of the street to meet us. Then she would walk back home with us and as we passed her old home she would rub round our ankles so much we had to stop sometimes, then when we were past the house she would walk normally. I often wondered if this was to wind up the cats, or people, at the house.

She would torment me by hiding under the bed while we were getting ready for bed. Then she would stalk my feet. It got so bad that I would leap from the door to the bed and crawl over to my side of the bed. This only stopped when we bought a new bed and she couldn't get underneath.

Although she was a tough cat outside, she was a real softie with me. She wouldn't use her litter in the dark and when she needed to use it she would wake me up to put on the light. As we didn't want to leave the ordinary light on day and night (it's dark when we go to work and when we come home in the winter) Bob fixed up a low energy light which is still known as Sweep's light. Sophie's light is outside the back door because she doesn't like going outside if it's too dark.

Sweep used to love to lie on flex (wire) wherever it was and as my husband is into electrical and electronic things she used to have great fun lying in whatever he needed. Oh and anything sharp she would lie on also.

It wasn't boring living with Sweep.

Copyright © Judith Latham
January 6, 2003