Do Cats Remember Stuff...?

 We've had our cat for several years. He was just a little ball of fluff when we rescued him as a kitten...we did not know he'd grow to be a 20 lb huge ball of fluff. Sam Dean Winchester stays in the basement. He's not an outdoor cat. We kept him inside at our last home, and since mountain lions have been spotted in our neighborhood, we feel good about keeping him inside.

Our oldest son moved out and got married a few years ago. He loves pets and pets love him. One thing our cat used to do was jump up into our son's arms, many times on command. A few weeks ago, our son came over and he wanted to say hi to the cat so he went downstairs and the cat, once again, sprang into my son's arms.

It made me wonder...

Just how much do cats remember?

Does he remember our son? Does he remember it's okay to jump into his arms when he's around? I'm sure there are volumes of data out there on the memory retention of cats. Have I read them? Have I done any research? No. It's just a question I have. 

It's possible the cat would love to jump into others arms, but our son is the only one who allows it. Then again, maybe the cat remembers him as being the only one to get that kind of greeting. Maybe one day I'll find out for sure, but for now, it's kind of fun to keep wondering.

Maybe I Should Just Become A Cat Photographer...

 Because we have a semi-large dog that does not "appreciate" the uniqueness of cats, we have divided our home. We have cat zones and dog zones. So far, no complaints (that I understand...) from the animals. Oh, I'll bet they would enjoy free-range of the whole house, but animals make questionable decisions at times, so we do not allow that to happen.

One of the cat zones is upstairs, pretty much in our bedroom. We try to make it a nice space for Sam-Dean. He has different rooms to explore, a hallway where he can look through the gate and see humans and a big dog, and one of his favorite things--a large window where he can look out over his kingdom.

Maybe it's the natural light, but something about that window can often times bring a wonderful place to take photos...of the cat.

Maybe I should become a cat photographer.

Ever since my mother bought me an incredible piece of photographic technology--my Olympus OM-10--back in 1979, I've tinkered with the idea of becoming a professional photographer. I've never done more than tinker...nope. But thanks to social media, I've been able to post some of my favorite photos and not-so-favorite photos. Many have left some wonderful comments on these pictures.

Being a photographer is sort of like being a writer. Sometimes finding stuff to photograph (or finding stuff to write about...) can be daunting. Maybe I could spend all my time taking photographs of the cats. I mean, why not? Many people love cats. They spend half their lives watching cat videos, so we all know the market exists. 

In all seriousness, many people make a living photographing animals and many of them photograph cats. Cats are part of this natural world and nature can be beautiful. There are others who maybe don't make a living with their photography, but love the art form anyway. I could do much worse trying to find a fascinating subject to photograph.